Entrepreneur Report: 1 Year of Business

I’m facing two big milestones this month.  One that has come and gone and another one is around the corner.  I have been in full-time business for a year as of July 1st and I’m turning 40 as of July 17th.  

Who knew that July would be fraught with so much meaning? Isn’t this supposed to be the happy-go-lucky month where the sun finally comes out in Seattle and it’s semi-acceptable to drink a ice-cold lager at 3 in the afternoon?

Well, there won’t be any 3pm beers in my future, because I am a business owner.  The summer is the time where childcare doesn’t restrict me and I can work a solid 12 hour day with almost no one bothering me.  This, as you can imagine, is fraught with it’s own conflict. 

I thought that this would be a really solid time to share what I’ve learned about being an entrepreneur in the last 12 months.  Here goes: ​

Have a Perspective, Don't be Shy

The idea of having a perspective has long been at the core of many marketing conference presentations.  And outside of the voice of your company, it’s more important than ever to take a stand about something you believe in. After about 5 months in business, it became clear that I wasn’t willing to work with just anyone. We needed to share some fundamental ideas to ensure that a) we wouldn’t be helping to market something I found morally reprehensible and b) I wanted to work with people who were looking to actually help the world become a better place. 

After a trip to Morocco and a little soul searching, I think we found a tasteful way to craft the messaging.  It came in the form of a section on our home page that explained, in no uncertain terms, what type of client would be a good fit for us.  

The results have been illuminating.  I am often surprised how often this section combined with our “We Support” section is mentioned in sales calls and when talking to the people who work on our team.  It really means something to them. It also quietly weeds out people who think drastically differently than us. Although there is a time to "kumbaya" with someone who thinks differently than you, while you’re trying to get a job done those types of shenanigans just cost everyone more money. 

It turns out that when you craft a clear perspective to attract the type of customer that lights you up inside, it works. Who knew? 

Take a Break

The irony of this sub headline is I’m going on hour 8 of being at work and it’s only 3:30. But you really can work yourself to death.  I wasn’t doing this and I ended up with a pinched nerve in my back and constant pain down the left side of my leg. Sitting is bad people.  It really is the new smoking. 

The other thing I noticed is that it was REALLY hard to sleep at night.  Being wound up like that tells your system “HEY WE’RE IN DANGER!” and “YOU SHOULD RUN, NOT SLEEP” and it’s not cool.  Not cool at all. Plus, I do not function when I’m tired. I’m no good to anyone.

In the last few months I’ve shifted gears towards building in time to walk and exercise and before bed I take a few moments to meditate (Meditation Minis is amazing).  It’s really making an impact on my ability to go to sleep.

Get a Line of Credit

Because business owners take their businesses so personally, there’s a deep seeded sense of failure when a company needs to get a little help. Seasonality happens.  Invoices are late. There are a whole host of companies who are out there trying to fill that gap. What I’m guessing is that they don’t know that there’s shame that comes with that if you’re an early stage business trying to survive. 

I, too, carried this misconception with me until, as I was tearing up as I signed the papers for my credit line, my banker friend told me that most successful businesses have a credit line.  It’s not a bandaid (well it is) but a tool to ensure you have a stable working environment. You don’t want to lay someone off because a client paid their bill late. In fact, that seems crazy!  How do you grow like that? 

So, my sage advice is to have a flexible line of credit you can use to help augment the slow times.  It doesn’t make you a bad person. I promise.

Keep in Touch

There are plenty of motivational sayings out there (scroll through Instagram and you'll agree). They all come into sharp focus the minute you decide to pluck one off of the screen and build your professional and personal life around it. The first year has been full of trials, joys and learning. Let's see what year two brings.  

What's Next?

If you're interested in learning more about my adventures, follow me on Twitter at @SuperDeluxeMo! ​