86% of Business Owners Would Earn More as Employees
86% of owners would make more money as employees. (math below)
It’s uncomfortable, but most small business are just jobs with extra steps.
Because most people start a business without knowing how to build a business and they get stuck in the self-employment trap.
• 86% of small business owners make < $100k/year
• Median revenue is only $390k
• Half fail within 5 years
Most people set out on their own to break free from the constraints of a job.
But most small business ownership demands more time, stress, and responsibility than a job, usually for less pay.
The hard truth?
To begin to build a real business (not just buy yourself a job), you need:
1. Enough to pay yourself ($70k-114k)
2. Cover operations ($28k-102k)
3. Build a team ($200k-$300k)
4. Reinvest in growth
5. Build systems
6. Hire key people
Do the math.
For a typical small business it looks something like this:
($90k personal + $225k staff + $60k operations)
÷ 70% (after-tax retention)
÷ 20% margin
= $2.68M revenue
That’s the minimum viable business.
Not self-employed, not juggling everything yourself.
Anything less is just selling time for money.
The catch?
Getting to $2.7M+ requires infrastructure, a team, and structured progress.
Doing the right things in the wrong order risks reseting you to square one.
Building infrastructure requires capital. Getting capital requires higher revenue.
It’s a trap most never escape.
It’s hard work to get there.
There’s certainly an element of luck.
Most people don’t understand what it requires before taking that leap.
If you make it, the world is your oyster.
Start with clarity.
If you’ve started, what are you doing now? What would it take to get you where you need to be? Is there a clear path to get there?
If you haven’t jumped yet?
Decide what you really want and whether you’re willing to accept the risk and work to get there.