Small Business Owners Confess Their Highs, Lows and Biggest Mistakes
Research* recently conducted by NOW: Pensions revealed although escaping the life of an employee may seem tempting, one in five business owners find it lonely and half (52%) fear the lack of a secure income.
However, despite the ups and downs, 89% believe they made the right decision going it alone and 80% are happier running their own firm than working for somebody else.
NOW: Pensions Interview with: Neil Adams, Bordh Tables, Cornwall
I wanted to be the master of my own destiny. I’d been searching for a while for a good business idea and then one evening, sitting around the fire after a surf we just thought “why not make tables out of surfboards” and Bordh was born.
- What did you do before you set up your business?
I left school at 16 and joined the Royal Navy. Eight years late and after a stint in the gulf war I retrained as an electrician which, at the time, was a great new challenge for me. Eight years of that I was ready for a change again!
- What’s your biggest business concern this year?
As export outside the UK is a key part of our growth strategy, exit from the EU, and any resulting reduction in international trade confidence would be a major issue for us.
- What do you like best about being your own boss?
“Running your own business means that you are the master of your own destiny. It’s great making all the decisions and taking the responsibility for the outcomes, good and bad!”
- What do you like least?
Running your own business means doing everything yourself, including the bits that you don’t like. For me, being a practical person, this is the admin but luckily I have a good accountant to help out!
- Do you have any regrets?
None at all. Every day brings a new challenge and I’m enjoying every minute of it.
