From Oprah to Beyonce: The Hardest Part Of Being An Entrepreneur

18 Mar From Oprah to Beyonce: The Hardest Part Of Being An Entrepreneur

Creating a business is no easy task regardless if you are solo-prenuer or multimillion dollar celebrity. Growing your vision from the ground up takes more than passion. It takes sleepless nights, dedication and inner-strength to keep moving forward. Starting and running a business is hard work, but those challenges can be totally worth it if you are willing to stick it out.

If you need a little inspiration, here is a list of seven female entrepreneurs (compiled by Morgan Quinn of GOBankingRates) who have shared their thoughts on the hardest parts of running a business:

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The Queen of All Media: Haters

There will always be people who don’t believe in your dream and even some rooting for your to fail. Even Oprah has had her fare share of doubters and haters throughout the years. They were loudest when she launched her network OWN. “I certainly did not expect the velocity of schadenfreude — meaning people sort of lying in wait for you to fail, or make a mistake,” Oprah told ABC News. “I knew from the time I stepped in as CEO, the only way through is that you’re either going to have to end it, or you’re going to have to make some cutbacks now so you’ll be able to go forward.”

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The Design Maven: Self-esteem

People assume that entrepreneurs are naturally confident.  In truth, building confidence takes work; just ask designer Tory Burch.  “Gaining confidence to really believe in myself was a big [challenge].” I had an article written on our company, the first article. And a great friend called and said, ‘It was a great article, but you shied away from the word ambition.’ When I thought about it, she was absolutely right.”

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The Story Teller: Failing

Everyone fails at something. It’s how you deal with the failure that matters. And, J.K. Rowling thinks we should talk about it more. “Failure. Failure … doesn’t get spoken about enough,” Rowling said. “We speak about success all the time, but, you know, I do not know any — I haven’t met — and I’ve been so fortunate and met extraordinary people through Harry Potter, and not one of them didn’t have their failure, more than one failure. And it’s the ability to resist failure, in many ways, or use failure that often leads to the greatest success, isn’t it?”

Photo Credit: Sebástian Freire

The Queen B: Keeping Up

You may think nothing rattles Beyonce, but the pressure to keep up is tough for everyone. “The pressure to keep up the pace can be unbearable but I try to take it all in stride,” she told Island Connections. “I don’t think about it. I just do my own thing. I love what I do and there are certain things that come along with it that I don’t like, but it’s a part of my job.”

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The Original Shark: Watching Your Back

Having to watch your back comes with the territory when you are building a business, said Shark Tank’s Lori Greiner. “Dealing with unscrupulous people,” was the number one business challenge that she shared in a recent Reddit AMA. “Remember, Karma is a bitch – I believe in Karma and I have seen what goes around come back around.” 

Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore

The Breakout Star: Losing Your Anonymity

Everyone thinks they wants to be that next famous name in business, but it can be a hard transition to lose your privacy. This was a big challenge to overcome for YouTube sensation Michelle Phan. “Being overwhelmed was my biggest challenge. Growing up, I moved around a lot and didn’t make many friends,” she told Personal Branding Blog. “I was always the new girl, quiet and doodling all day in my notebooks. Now I had 10,000 friends overnight. I felt this incredible connection with people I had never met nor probably would never meet. But I felt like I knew them and it was both exciting and overwhelming.” 

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The Fashion Icon:  The Challenges Never Stop

The truth is everyday brings a new challenge for entrepreneurs. You have to love the thrill of always being challenged like trend-setter Diane von Furstenberg. “One thing that my mother did, and that is a habit in my life, is that when something unpleasant happens, somehow I deal with it, and then, because I deal with it, I’ve transformed it into something good,” she told The Telegraph. “People ask, ‘What are the biggest challenges in your life?’ I never know what to say, because every day’s a challenge and you just have to embrace it.”

Being an entrepreneur may be hard work, but you are not alone in facing the challenges. Take a cue from these celebs and be motivated by the challenge to create an unstoppable legacy.

– à bientôt

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