[jeppine]

Unfortunately, I feel that this is quite common in small businesses. I put in the same 10 years that you did, and would constantly propose large improvements to the owners. They were almost always shot down, and just result in me having to deal with the same problems.

Most of the time, I feel that it is just the owner’s fear of losing control of some part of their business. Sometimes it’s just fear of change.

I decided to go into a different career path entirely and am working for myself now. It has helped my mental state incredibly.

I know it is scary, but sometimes you just have to take the leap.

Best of luck with your plans.

[adra]

I mean, I don't blame the owner entirely. Maybe they're perfectly happy with what they have. If someone really knows their business well, maybe it isn't worth putting effort behind a brand new thing that customers couldn't give two flips for. If you aren't seeking new customers, there isn't a strong business appetite to innovate unless customers are complaining. If you're too eager for customers, you're probably putting too much emphasis on thin product feature checklists to sell sell sell! Somewhere in the middle is where I think the sweet spot is, and org that isn't comfortable with its market share but unwilling to throw caution to the wind in order to make every sale. That isn't exciting? Great, then find a company that better fits what you want in your career. Job/employment isn't always a good fit for what you're looking to fulfill in your career, and those are perfect opportunities to leave.