Before You Start a Business or Franchise, Consider This First

Feb 18, 2026

A candid look at why entrepreneurship is not for everyone. Topics include the hidden skills owners must master beyond their trade, the realities of buying a business or franchise, and personality fits that struggle with risk. Hear true stories about cash crunches, the pressure of responsibility, and practical ways to test business readiness without diving in full-time.

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INSIGHT

Business Requires Far More Skills Than Your Core Offer

Business requires many skills beyond your core service like sales, marketing, finance, payroll, and culture.
Chris Miles lists the specific back-office and leadership tasks solopreneurs must learn, explaining why it's more complex than 'do the work, get paid'.

ADVICE

Avoid Full-Time Entrepreneurship If You Need Security

If you value safety and security, avoid full-time entrepreneurship and consider employee or side-hustle routes.
Chris recommends keeping business as a side hustle until finances and mindset can tolerate volatility.

ANECDOTE

Quitting My Job Shrunk Income Because Scarcity Showed

Chris Miles quit his job expecting big income from his advisory book but panicked without a steady paycheck and lost clients.
The scarcity in his energy repelled prospects, dropping his income and forcing him to seek part-time work again.

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There are a lot of experts, gurus, and influencers out there telling you why you should start a business. In this episode, I'm taking the other side of that conversation: why you should not start a business, and how to know if entrepreneurship is actually a bad fit for you right now.

I've been a business owner for nearly 25 years, and I've lived the good, the bad, and the ugly. I started out as a financial advisor inside a company that did a decent job onboarding me with tools and personal development. I was reading books like Rich Dad Poor Dad and How to Win Friends and Influence People, and I was excited. But I learned fast that business isn't just "here's what I do" and people magically show up. You have to learn sales. You have to learn marketing. You have to learn the language of finance. You have to know how to stay profitable, build reserves, navigate credit and lines of credit, handle payroll, manage employees, build culture, and still cast vision. And if you're a solopreneur, you're carrying all of those roles at once. That's a lot, and it's not for everyone.

I also talk about what no one wants to admit: entrepreneurship isn't just "freedom." Freedom comes with responsibility, and responsibility comes with pressure. As an employee, you usually have an income floor, but you also have an income ceiling. As a business owner, you have no ceiling, but you also don't have a floor. You can make zero. You can even lose money. When cash gets tight, you're the one who has to figure it out.

I share a personal story from my early days: I was working a job for benefits while building my practice on the side, sometimes from 7:00 AM to 9:00 or 10:00 PM. When I finally went full-time, I thought I had a big month coming. Then reality hit. I panicked. And I didn't realize it at the time, but that scarcity and pressure showed up in my energy, and prospects backed away. My income actually dropped when I "went all in," and I eventually had to look for part-time work again. That experience taught me something important: if you need safety and security to perform well, you may be better off keeping business as a side hustle until your finances and mindset can handle the volatility.

We also talk about the "buy a business" trend, franchises, and why you might end up being the manager instead of the owner you imagined. I break down who tends to succeed faster (people with prior business experience), why the "80% fail in five years" stat is often misunderstood, and the real ugly side nobody highlights: distractions, market shifts, legal issues, and the mental load that causes most people to quit when it gets hard.

If you're thinking about starting a business, buying a business, or buying a franchise, listen to this first. My goal is to help you make a smarter decision, protect your family, and choose the path that actually fits your personality and your season of life whether that's entrepreneurship, intrapreneurship inside a company, or building freedom through passive income.