In my previous blog, I had addressed one of the most debated “indecisions” that people replay in their minds: Whether to start a business or take the salaried route.

While this quandary can seem too intimidating to explore, it often shifts focus from a very important reality, which is that one can always revisit an idea. The decision to start a business does not need to be rushed. Nor does a decision to not start a business have to be permanent. One can revisit the options any number of times, then weigh the pros and cons before deciding the way forward.

Contrary to popular perception, the conclusion arrived at by choosing to start a business, is only the beginning of a long and complicated future.

For instance, one of the first questions that loom over an entrepreneur’s mind is related to the sustenance and operation of a business—the dilemma of capital. Capital, be it working or fixed, is the fuel on which a business runs. The predicament that entrepreneurs often face is whether to take a loan or dip into their savings. While savings can seem like a risk-free solution in the short term, loans may be the more judicious option in the long term. Typically, a VFS customer must determine whether she risks losing her emergency fund if she dips into her savings.

Entrepreneurs face another key dilemma: how to build teams, however small they may be. Difficult decisions regarding hiring—whether to hire and train or take seasoned players, whether to work with relatives or recruit professionals—are questions that arise time and again when one is running a business. Ultimately, it is a challenge to achieve a balance between prioritising the interests of the business and ensuring that morale is always up and rising. Experienced and successful entrepreneurs are the ones who realise early in the game that business interests and team satisfaction are not contrasting issues but complementary. The one who can strike the perfect harmony takes the cake.

An entrepreneur’s life is filled with challenges and her decision-making power is a skill that determines the success of her business. Successful entrepreneurs can soar over unexpected hurdles and know how to get up and continue after a stumble, storing the lessons learnt.

Though a sensitive subject, the wisdom to know when to wind up a business is also essential for an entrepreneur. It is the ability to recognise when one should work with renewed zeal to rejuvenate a business and when the business is well past its expiry date.

Whenever I think about these omnipresent dilemmas in an entrepreneur’s life, I think of the core concept that stayed with me in every decision that I take. The concept of opportunity cost. Opportunity cost represents the benefit that one forgoes when one chooses one opportunity over another. In simpler words, opportunity cost refers to what you give up when you choose one thing over another. For an entrepreneur, the process of overcoming these dilemmas is nothing but a rational assessment of opportunity cost in numerous situations and she strives to ensure that the decision she takes keeps the opportunity cost at a minimum.