5 Harsh Realities I Learned Transiting from an Employee to an Entrepreneur
From the glitter and glamorous to the downright frustrating
Entrepreneurship is an arduous journey.
And sometimes, we assume that position because we have to. Circumstances drive transitions.
Here’s what happened to me at the start of the year.
- The corporate downsizing exercise started on Oct 2022.
- The APAC marketing director was asked to leave in Oct 2022.
- The APAC managing director was given the sack in Nov 2022.
- My office manager was terminated in Jan 2023.
By Feb 2023, I was left alone to manage the APAC operations.
No help. No one to delegate work to. No technical support. No lead engines.
Just me.
And just like that, I was asked to become an independent affiliate with top & bottom-line responsibilities.
I became an entrepreneur.
Here’s what I learned.
Budgets Become Irrelevant
Back then, as a Pre-Sales director, all I had to do was submit budgets for the year and defend my financial needs.
- These are the expenses for software tools and content creation.
- These are my required headcount to increase revenue by X%.
- These are the costs for industry events we must attend.
I would bitch about the arduous process of securing that $1 of the budget after committing weeks and months of excel crunching. It is dreadful.
Now?
I miss those days.
I no longer need to submit a budget as a 1-person headcount operating in my entity. My claims and salary are budgeted for. Expectations for marketing are limited to weekly LinkedIn posts.
I can no longer afford to acquire leads.
LinkedIn and Sales Navigator became my go-to again. That is… when time permits.
Unwinding Existing Contracts
I watch operating costs with hawk eyes.
A year ago, generating revenue is my absolute focus. How much money we are making is all I think about.
Today, I must think about profits. As a result, I got stickier with operating costs.
My predecessor believes having a spacious office is necessary for productivity and inspiration. I benefitted from it.
Times have changed.
Now, that is a hefty line item sitting on my P&L statement.
It sucked away SGD 12,000 per month.
- Utilities are not included.
- Coffee beans top-up excluded.
- Toilet cleaning fees are excluded.
It is crazy how money can disappear that quickly. One bill and poof!
And to make things worse, revenue generation has been hovering around the same amount. Either I generate a meager profit or fall into marginal losses.
I hate it. It creates financial anxiety.
I made the decision to cut the rental agreement. It is a no-brainer decision.
That said, it creates additional work. I must reinstate the office and cut off all subscriptions and equipment rental.
I learned the importance of entrepreneurial humility.
There is no need to incur unnecessary operational expenses. It comes back to bite our asses when we fail to grow our revenue.
Think of recurring operating expenses as your mortgage payment.
It takes money out of your pocket even when you lose your income.
Existing Clients Matter More Than High Potential Leads
I never had to worry about losing clients.
That was 2022. My mindset changed in 2023.
Now, I focus exclusively on existing clients. These are my reasons.
- They are already acquired. No additional marketing costs are required.
- Upselling and contract renewals are easier than inking the first deal.
- There are other entities within the client business I can tap on.
Drilling the existing oil fields in my charge is way more energy efficient than exploration projects.
I increased my revenue by 20% in Q1 with this strategy.
Building the Business Outwards
Partnerships are more important than ever.
We need help. And we can get help from those in the same circumstances as we do.
I approached fellow sales and pre-sales directors within my network ecosystem for the following purposes.
- Build a system of referrals.
- Create a reseller network.
- Work on deals as a consortium.
We get to cross-pollinate leads and harness them as one attacking group.
At the same time, we work to bring each other business.
Win-win.
Increasing Billable Time is a Daily Obsession
Sales and pre-sales professionals are used to spending time outside wooing prospects and clients.
That is our job. We were never questioned on the utilization of our time.
Today, I stopped doing that. Every second is like every drop of water in the Sahara desert. It is precious.
Instead, I focus on billable time.
- I sell visual management workshops for a fee.
- I sell product re-training for clients experiencing high churn rates.
- I sell knowledge brown bags to operational leaders looking for that 2% efficiency.
This is the thing. Increasing billable time increases service revenue.
It contributes to the financial growth of my 1-person entity.
I have increased my billable time by 40% since the start of the year. There is more to run.
Parting Keynotes
Rising with the occasion matters.
The current state of global macroeconomics is not rosy. There will be more pain.
I cannot prevent choppy waves from crashing into the beach. As a surfer, I can only learn to overcome.
This is my journey transiting from an employee to an entrepreneur. I do not appreciate the circumstances I’m in. But I must deal with it.
And these are 5 different realities I had to deal with.
- Low to no budget.
- Unwinding existing contracts.
- Forsaking high potential leads to focus on existing clients.
- Building the business with partners.
- Increasing billable time.
Doing so allowed me to focus on the P&L statement in its entirety.
I think harder to keep the business going.
Because now, I am the business.
As a content contributor, I write my observations from daily life and my business exposure. Because our life experience is the bedrock of our unique perspectives.