For some entrepreneurs, becoming their own boss was a no-brainer. Maybe they come from a family of business owners, or never really felt fulfilled working a standard 9-to-5 job.
For others, the signs may not be so evident, leaving them to wonder, “Am I ready to take the leap? Am I even supposed to be my own boss?” According to Olipop co-founder and CEO Ben Goodwin, there’s a tell-tale sign to watch out for.
“If the excitement and fulfillment of the vision for what you want to do is more powerful than the fear and the excuses,” then you should act on it, says Goodwin, 40. He adds that you have to have “a lot of passion” because when things inevitably get tough, that drive will keep you focused on your mission.
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Goodwin struggled with his physical and mental health as a teen who was regularly consuming unhealthy foods and beverages. Changing to a healthier diet and lifestyle made him feel much more fulfilled, he told Fortune in December 2023. So much so that he dropped out of college to pursue healthy drink alternatives to sodas and sugary juices. Goodwin left the University of California Santa Cruz in 2005, and 20 years later, he’s still dedicated to his mission to help people lead healthier lives, he tells CNBC Make It.
The journey wasn’t linear. Goodwin’s first venture, a water kefir beverage called Obi Probiotic Soda that launched in 2008, didn’t gain the traction he’d hoped despite being in business for eight years. He and his business partner, David Lester, sold the company for an undisclosed amount in 2016, and used the money to get Olipop off the ground. The company made $852,000 in gross revenue in its first year of business, and was valued at $1.85 billion in February.
Goodwin says that if you’re able to bounce back from hardships and enjoy facing challenges head on, you’re probably ready to be your own boss.
“One of the things I really enjoy about entrepreneurialism is that it keeps challenging you,” he says. “You’ve got to make complex ethical decisions. You’ve got to make complex procedure decisions. You’ve got to operate under extreme pressure. And a lot of people want to avoid those things, logically, because they tend to make life a lot more complicated.”
But if you’re the kind of person that “feels more alive when they’re getting deeply or dynamically challenged, and recognize the value that that can provide to your interpersonal development,” you should try your hand at entrepreneurship, says Goodwin.
Of course, everyone isn’t innately open to failing or recovering from setbacks. But resilience is a skill that can be built and nurtured over time, according to author and mental performance coach Steve Magness. He recommends that people make a simple mindset shift to start: “Switch ‘I’ to ‘you,” he wrote for CNBC Make It in July 2022.
“Using second- or third-person language in your self-talk creates distance between an experience and our emotional response,” said Magness. “This linguistic trick allows us to zoom out.”
Next time you’re facing a stressful challenge, tell yourself, “You can do this,” or, “[Your name] can get through this,” instead of, “I’ve done this before,” speaking to yourself like a friend or family member giving you a push.
“When we broaden our worldview beyond a self-immersed world, we move from emotional reaction to action,” Magness said.
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