A little while back I wrote an article called The Biggest Lie That Entrepreneurs Are Told. Well I also asked the same question on Facebook as well. And I had some interesting responses.
So It made me think…
What would happen if I reached out to 14 entrepreneurs who are in the trenches and ask them to share their thoughts around what they feel are the biggest lies?
So I found 14 entrepreneurs (mostly in the fitness niche because that’s where I come from) and I sent over these questions…
- What is the biggest lie that entrepreneurs are told?
- Why do you believe it’s the biggest lie?
- How is this lie hurting entrepreneurs?
They all sent over some fascinating responses which I’m sharing with you below in the order I received them.
Enjoy…
Chris Amaro
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
If you do what you love, you’ll never work a day again.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
Just doing something because you love it does not guarantee or facilitate business success. Too many blind spots, overwhelm, poor marketing, poor sales, etc. will kill that “love” slowly and painfully….thus leaving you without the love you had.
3) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
It leaves entrepreneurs looking for love…and being ‘stuck’ or hesitant to make a drastic change because after all….”it’s what they love”
Dr. Mike T. Nelson
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
That grinding harder solves all your issues.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
Because people, even those who are successful, wear it like a badge of honor. Monkey see monkey do. Others think that is the ONLY path to success.
3) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
Fatigue and burnout are the opposite of what you want to do. When has trying harder ever solved anything? When was the last time you solved an issue when you had 4 hours of sleep and were stressed out of your mind compared to coming back from a vacation or 8 hours of sleep?
Yes, you do need to put the work in. Yes, it will take time. Yes you may sleep a bit less, but that is NOT the goal. The goal is to keep fatigue as low as possible while being productive on things that move the needle.
Fahad Maniar
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
The biggest lie entrepreneurs are told in my opinion is that there’s a quick plan to a “laptop Lifestyle” – That there’s some easy way to leverage the internet and make millions in a short space of time.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
I believe it’s one of the biggest lies because it’s perpetuated by an industry of gurus and coaches who feed off the get rich/stay rich quick mentality of many people.
3) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
We see people post overnight success stories all the time on social media, Instagram pics of people posting wads of cash or posing in front of nice cars. It’s very easy to do that as it is easy to fake a before an after pic and it’s hurting entrepreneurs because there’s now unrealistic expectations of what success is.
When it gets hard for entrepreneurs in their first few years, they feel like they’re a failure because they’re not on a beach somewhere already making millions in their sleep.
This false expectation is probably killing more entrepreneurs now in my opinion as is the huge sums of money many guru type coaches command. And people are paying the price because they assume it’s a pre-requisite to this so called laptop lifestyle
Anthony Steel
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
I think one off the top of my mind is that not everyone is a entrepreneur. Although many believe that they are.. But another one is that you have to grind.
2) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
It hurts them because they put so many hours in without any structure, and in return they chase their tales.
Forrest Folen
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
The biggest lie is that most businesses fail within 3 – 5 years.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
I think it doesn’t take into account different types of business, or different types of entrepreneurs so it’s a “blanket statement. And although it may be true, it’s brought to the forefront with society, and they focus on that instead of asking the “right” question which really is…
“What are the attributes all successful businesses have in common that last 15 years or more?” Now that’s the question they should be teaching kids in the high schools!
NOT scaring them and saying “most businesses fail within 3 – 5 years” and they get all the kids nodding their heads in agreement so they can continue indoctrinating them so that they can fall into the system of college and debt.
Nothing wrong with college, but it is a system that keeps people trapped in debt here in America. We have individual responsibility BUT the schools don’t teach shit on budgeting, home finances, or even what a credit report is. That’s a problem. A big one.
Rahz Slaughter
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
The 4 Hour Work Week: That a BS lie.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
I feel that this is a lie because many entrepreneurs can’t produce enough value for the marketplace to generate enough enough money to live.
3) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
This lie has hurt many business owners because they are trying to live this crazy lie and going broke trying to only work 4 hours per week.
On the other side working yourself to death isn’t a success plan either. I believe each business owner has to find out what works for him or herself and build their life around their business model. I like to work hard, play hard, and spend time with my wife, 2 boys, and friends. Boom!!!
Daniel Clifford
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
One of the biggest lies I believe being told is “build a business so you can create a life of freedom” giving people the idea that you can be on the beach everyday while your business is running itself.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
If you are trying to build a business so you can escape form it, you are doing something you don’t like. I have a few friends who are super successful business owners, (8 and 9 figures) The last thing these people want is to be away from their business.
3) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
This lie is encouraging people to build business’s they have no interest in and also glamourizing the “laptop lifestyle. This is a lonely and stressful lifestyle where you end up fooling no one but yourself.
www.cyclingperformancecoaching.com
Yvonne Radley
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
The biggest lie that we are told is that money will make us happy.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
Because we are forever chasing a dream that doesn’t exist. I have spoken to lots of entrepreneurs who when they got “there” described it as a bit of a let down. That the journey was much more exciting.
Not only that but we are so busy chasing the money that life passes us by. Our why passes us by. We miss out on family occasions – we don’t see enough of our friends – relationships get damaged and so what we are chasing to make our lives better is actually destroying all that is good in the process.
3) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
The other day I was asked to speak at an event in London. Did I chase the money and pitch my products? No. I went to share my thoughts and ideas with a room full of people who I hoped I could help.
My happiest moment during the day was sitting in the sun on a pavement cafe with my coffee wishing I had ordered water instead and then as if by magic the waiter brought me a stoneware jug filled with ice cold water. The smile on my face was huge and I had this feeling of pure bliss.
We need to slow down and live in the now because life is passing us by when we are hustling and grinding and chasing the money when actually everything we ever need is right there.
Armando Cruz
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
That hustling and grinding is the key to success.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
Service driven entrepreneurs become entrepreneurs because they want the freedom to serve others in the way they believe is best and leads to their fulfillment.
3) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
It is hurting them because they start from the hustle instead of first aligning where they are most fulfilled. It ends up enslaving them and making them show up as a watered down version of themselves.
Brian Devlin
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
The biggest lie I have ever been told is that it is in the work that a world class business is built.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
Nothing could be further from the truth. From my experience every time I worked hard, I robbed Peter to pay Paul.
3) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
It wasn’t till I started using intent, strategy, and architecture that I actually started to make money, have freedom, and enjoy my life.
Dan Vogt
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
The biggest lie that entrepreneurs are told in my opinion is from these guys that are all over YouTube and post their big houses, and their Ferrari’s, and talk about how they’re just sitting back relaxing and hanging out while they collect.
That is not real life and that is not running a business. I work smart but I work very hard. And yes my business can self-sustain with employees, but my business is mine. And in an order for my business to continue to grow I need to be in the driver’s seat.
2) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
These people provide a sense of security Karma. They make it seem like being an entrepreneur is easy. Being an entrepreneur as hard as f****** s***.
It takes balls to do what we do. I think the people that are on YouTube that promote themselves as someone who just slaps something together and made an amazing business happen are committing fraud.
And those folks are straight-up lying to naive people so they can sell their program.
As an entrepreneur you see some great benefits and there is ultimate freedom in being able to choose your own path. But there is also a serious responsibility to you and the people you employ to bust your ass every single day.
And that’s what it’s about.
Travis Dillard
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
Quit your 9-5 job, turn on the machine and live a life of financial freedom.
2) Why Do You Believe This Is The Biggest Lie And How Is It Hurting Entrepreneurs?
Now the concept is intriguing and very attractive, especially for the new entrepreneur sick of his/her daytime job, desperate for a new, more attractive lifestyle, but it’s eliciting the wrong mindset.
If you become an entrepreneur to flip a switch and watch the fat stacks a’ cash roll in, you might be in for a rude awakening.
Becoming a true entrepreneur is really becoming a professional relationship builder.
And if we buy into the lie that you can get ‘leads’ on demand and that money just passes through your stripe account with the snap of a finger, you’re missing the boat – not because it’s B.S (which it is for the most part), but because the joy is in the mastery of obtaining leads, building a relationship, and changing lives.
The fun is in the ‘struggle’ because when you look back, you’ll remember when you hit that low point and rather than throwing in the towel, you stuck it out because you believed in your vision. You held true. You mastered yourself – the gateway to helping others do the same.
Greg Crawford
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
Biggest lie is how easy it is to make 100k or more a month just by watching a video training series. I think it takes a few years of studying, testing, coaching and hard work.
2) Why Do You Believe This Is The Biggest Lie?
All you hear about is the exciting part of starting a business or businesses…..but you don’t hear about the challenges and details on what to look out for like taxes, hiring the right people, forming partnerships and like what you are now talking about, mental health.
Tom Crawshaw
1) What’s The Biggest Lie Entrepreneurs Are Told?
That all they need to do to become successful is to buy program X.
2) Why Do You Believe That’s The Biggest Lie?
Because this is what’s currently being sold right now by ALOT of marketers, and I’ve fallen into that trap before and realized it’s less about the strategy (which is still important) and more about the person implementing the strategy.
3) How Is This Lie Hurting Entrepreneurs?
They think that this shiny new program will solve all their problems and when it doesn’t work out, they give up….but the reality is that most successful entrepreneurs ‘fail’ alot. It’s persistence and consistency that breeds results.
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So there ya have it.
The 14 biggest lies entrepreneurs are told.
What’s funny is there seems to be a common underlying theme with all of them.
That is…
There’s a lot of shady shit going on, and A LOT of lies.
Why? Because a lot of those lies sell.
These lies are affecting all entrepreneurs to some degree. Especially the ones just starting out, and the ones who are struggling and hoping for anything to turn things around.
So it’s my hope that this little article helps to open a few more eyes as to what we as entrepreneurs have to weed through on a daily basis.
I’m curious, what are the other biggest lies entrepreneurs are being told in your opinion? Let me know in the comments.
