[Quora] 为什么说小生意是赚钱的途径

之前在quora看到的，想要分享给大家，苦于英文对大家都有些吃力，我就辛苦一下。第一次翻译，难免很多问题，欢迎指正。

Why is small business the way to make money?

为什么说小生意是赚钱的途径？

If making money is your only goal, then study hard, get lots of academic qualifications, play the corporate ladder game by sucking up politically to the appropriate powerful people at the appropriate times, take no financial risks and invest the excess money from your regular pay checks in property and watch your wealth rise over your 40 years of work as you trade your entire life for $.

如果赚钱是你唯一的目标，那么你就拼命学习，然后获得很多学位证书，在合适的时间拍领导的马屁，玩一些领导者的游戏，只要没有经济危机，把你固定的工资中剩余的钱都用作为投资，管理好你的资产，看着你的财富在40年工作时间不断增长，用你的一生和钱打交道。

Making money from a small business is hard ... very hard with 8 in 10 failing to make it to financial sustainability. See most small business people have limited financial resources and capacity to convert an idea into a sustainable venture. Even the small percentage that do succeed in the short term are soon confronted by business ending events like expiring lease terms, marketvolatility or competitor activities. So I would never recommend opening a small business for the sole purpose of making money.

从小生意里面赚钱是非常非常难的事情，百分之80死在收支平衡，其中看到大多数做小生意的人将一个想法稳定的运营起来的资本和人力非常有限，甚至那些少部分在短时间内成功的又将迅速面临生意终结的状况，例如租用到期，市场波动，又或者竞争活动。所以我从来不建议为了赚钱而做小生意。

To succeed in small business you need an entirely different set of motivators. You need to be motivated to build a business that makes meaning for your customers not just $ for yourself. Your small business should be built to do oneor more of the following:

为了能在一个小生意里面成功你得完全转换一下动机。你要让你做得生意变的对你的客户有意义，而不是为你自己能赚钱。你的小生意要做以下一点或几点：

1.  to solve a pressing problem/pain

解决一个急迫的问题或痛点

2.  to satisfy a basic human need

满足人类基本的需求

3.  to increase the quality of someone’s life

提高人们的生活质量

4.  to change people’s lives for the better

让百姓的生活变的更好

5.  to right a terrible wrong

改变一个严重的错误

6.  to prevent the end of something good

阻止一些好的东西消亡

If your small business can 'make meaning' and it has the right mix of available means including your passion to 'make it happen' (below):

如果你的小生意可以“变得有意义”，如果它具备了下面所有的条件手段包括你的激情使得“让它发生”

... then with some sound management and decision making, it will make sustainable and significant money for you the owner.

然后加上一些完善的管理和决策，作为拥有者你将获得稳定的大量的金钱。

In following this path you will also fulfil the highest human need of self-actualisation, you will build and hone your character, you will find meaning and purpose in your life, you will drink from the privileged chalice reserved for conquerors and you will make money from a willing, grateful and loyal customer base. This is what starting a small business does for the owners and it is worth far more than the equivalently money made by prostituting your life by the hour in satisfying other people's corporate ambitions.

按照这样的途径，你将充满着自我满足感这一人类最大的需求，你将建立和磨练你得个性，你将找到人生的意义和价值，你将喝到为胜利者提供的荣誉的酒杯，你将从心甘情愿，充满感激，忠实的客户那里赚到你想要的钱。这就是做一个小生意能为拥有者所带来的，它的价值远比为了赚相同的钱而出卖你生命所有时间来满足个别人公司的野心要大得多。