Starting your own business can be emotionally and financially rewarding, but it can also be emotionally and financially draining, especially during the early years of the company’s life. If you want to succeed as an entrepreneur, you want to make as few mistakes as possible, and choosing the wrong time to launch your business can be a critical error. Here are eight times when you should postpone the launch of your new business.

1. When Your Financial Situation Is Desperate

Despite numerous ads and claims to the contrary, there is virtually no chance that your new business will show a profit within 30 days. In fact, most startups lose money for at least the first year, and it can take up to five years before your business is profitable enough for you to start taking a salary. Naturally, your situation can vary dramatically. Depending on how much revenue is being reinvested in your company, the volume of your sales, and the profit you earn from the sale of each unit, your timeline could vary. The point is that starting a business is not going to solve your financial problems immediately. If you are facing a foreclosure, your car is about to be repossessed, or your credit cards are at their limits, you need to gain a bit more financial stability before you consider launching a business. Consider taking a second job or selling your unwanted possessions to raise the cash you need to restore your financial security first.

2. When a Major Life Change Is Imminent or Has Recently Occurred

A divorce, the death of a spouse, a parent recently diagnosed with a serious illness, a move to a new city, and the birth of a child can all result in extreme emotions that can interfere with your ability to think clearly and logically. Starting and running a business requires calm, rational planning. Even happy events can trigger waves of emotions that leave you anything but calm. Give yourself time to adapt to your new circumstances before you commit to a new business. Once your emotions have stabilized, you may find that you no longer want to start the business you had envisioned.

3. When You Are Driven to Spend More Time With Your Family

If you have a stressful job that requires you to work long hours, you may feel that you should be spending more time with your family. You may feel that starting your own business will give you that time. In reality, you will probably need to work even longer hours to get your business off the ground. You might believe that at least you will have more flexibility in your work schedule, but that is only true to a certain point. You may not have a boss or supervisor dictating the days and hours you must work, but you will have customers who will have certain expectations of when they can reach you or how long it will take to receive their orders. You may have employees to train or supervise. Furthermore, if you are spending more time with your family, you are spending less time on your business, and that can affect the success of your company. If your current job is severely limiting your family time, you could consider changing employers or even occupations. Perhaps you could trim your budget so that you could accept a position that offers a lower salary or requires less overtime.

4. When You Are Motivated by Spite

Virtually every adult has had at least one experience that made them feel that they were undervalued or unappreciated by an employer. Perhaps they were passed over for a promotion in favor of another employee with less experience, or they did not receive what they felt was a well-deserved raise. Maybe the employer dismissed their suggestions or ideas, or a supervisor took the credit for their ideas. They may feel that they were unjustly reprimanded or held to an unfair standard. Perhaps they believe that the employer discriminated against them due to their gender, ethnicity or religion. Whatever the motivation, they may react with a desire to teach the employer a lesson. This is a very bad reason to start a business, especially if it is the primary or only reason to do so. Carefully evaluate your motivations, postponing your decision until you determine the validity of your reasons for launching your own business.

5. When You Are Being Pressured by a Friend or Relative

Your business should be your dream. Friends, spouses and relatives may try to pressure you into adopting their dreams. Perhaps they think they have a great idea, but they are reluctant to risk their own money to develop it. Maybe they believe that you have a talent that they do not possess, so they want you to think that they are doing you a favor by trying to force you into turning your talent into a moneymaking enterprise. Perhaps a family member thinks that being in business together will strengthen your relationship. If you do not share their enthusiasm for launching a business or have serious misgivings about its potential success, resist their attempts to draw you into their plans until you have an opportunity to consider the matter carefully.

6. When You Are Running Away

There are many things from which you might want to escape. Perhaps you want to escape the boredom of your current job or an overbearing boss. Maybe you are the parent responsible for most or all of the housekeeping, meal planning, bill paying, child care, laundry and cooking, so you have a desire to do something more interesting. Perhaps your relationship with your significant other has deteriorated to the point that you dread having to spend time with him or her. Maybe you are tired of a long commute, an annoying coworker, or the rigidity of your work schedule, or perhaps you dislike getting up early, spending money on suits, doing a disproportionate amount of work, or wearing uncomfortable or unflattering styles to conform to the company dress code. If you are running away from something instead of running toward your own business, you will likely have a great deal of trouble establishing a successful enterprise.

7. When You Are Counting on a Loan to Launch Your Business

The first problem with counting on a loan to start a business is that you probably will not be able to get a loan until your company has been established for at least two years. Legitimate lenders want to see tax returns and financial statements proving that your business is financially viable. Banks and even venture capitalists want to feel confident that your company will be profitable enough to repay any money that they loan you. Accepting a loan from a shady lender could have disastrous consequences, while taking out a personal loan to finance a business could put your home and all of your other personal assets at risk if you default.

8. When You Just Want to Start a Business

The idea of owning your own business can be enticing. You have visions of fame, fortune and freedom. You think of the wonderful things you could do for your parents, your children or yourself. All you need to do is launch a successful business. However, you do not have an idea for a product or service that your company could offer. Therefore, you do not any concept of how much money you will need to start your business, the licenses you might need, how to market your company, or how long it might take to generate a profit. If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, you need a viable idea and a workable plan, so until you come up with these two critical components, you should not launch a business.

Closing Thoughts

Starting your own business can be exciting and rewarding. However, if you want to succeed, you need to plan your moves carefully. Part of your planning should involve evaluating your timing. If it’s not the right time for you to launch a startup, you should consider waiting. This does not mean that you should give up on your dreams. It simply means that you need to do everything you can to make those dreams come true, and that might mean that you have to put your plans on hold.