Have you been considering giving up your business lately? 'Should I quit my business?' is a question that tends to come up for many of us small business owners when the going gets tough. In today's episode, I'll be taking a look at why we sometimes think about quitting, and whether or not it really is the right time to do it. This is something that I've talked about a lot on my blog, but never before on the podcast. I realize that this question might be a little hard for some of you to hear, and I don't mean to depress anyone, but running a business really isn't easy and I think that this is one of the things we need to think about, and to talk about openly, more often. Listen in today, to find out more.

Last year I did a podcast episode about a blog post that I wrote a while back, about a typical small cookie company. That was one of the most popular episodes of all of last season. So I've chosen one of the blog posts that I wrote some time ago, about quitting your business, and I'm going to read it to you today. I will be adding in the things that have changed for me, and the things that I feel differently about now, so tune in, to hear what I wrote about whether or not it really is the time to quit your business. 

Show Highlights:

• I sometimes used to have a little voice in my head late at night, urging me to quit my business.
• The idea of relinquishing my business responsibilities was sometimes really appealing to me.
• I get a lot of emails from people asking me if they should quit their businesses.
• I don't have a secret sauce, and I cannot give you permission to quit.
• Our lives and our circumstances are way too complex to simply use happiness as a measure of your success.
• Businesses are like relationships. They take time and they take effort.
• Why people sometimes think about quitting their businesses.
• It's pretty upsetting and scary when the little voice in the night starts talking to you, and it's hard not to listen to it.
• Acting like an irresponsible business owner and losing yourself for a while.
• How to find an answer to the question 'Should I quit my business?'.
• Answering the question with three more questions.
• Question one: Am I feeling this way because of a temporary situation, or have I felt this way for a long time?
• Question two: Why am I doing this business in the first place?
• Close your eyes, look into your heart, and imagine what your life would look like without your business in it.
• Some ideas for how to move forward if you decide to stay in your business.
• Developing a vision is really important.
• Everybody needs business friends.
• Fixing temporary situations.
• Choosing to walk away is a really brave decision.
• Some tips for closing your business.
• Give yourself the mental time and the mental space to close your business down with dignity.
• You have to have a purpose for staying in your business.

Links and resources:

Michelle's website: www.thebizofbaking.com  You can search for the article there. It's called 'Should I quit my business?'