Taking Stock
It has been almost three months since I flung all caution to the wind and jumped off the cliff. My entrance into the entrepreneurial sea was not as graceful as the swan dive that I had imagined but I am happy to report it was not a belly flop either.
As many of my friends and family will attest, seeds of starting my own business have always been germinating deep within my mind. Some have made their way to become little sprouts that tasted sweet but were short-lived and others simply wilted and withered away before they got started. Looking back, I now know that each time I launched an idea, it was just a practice run for the big event. But what I did not know at the time was that each failure to launch gave me more fuel for the fire. All I really needed to do was dig deep, find what really inspired me, and “just do it”.
Reflecting upon the last three months and the years that led up to the launching of Lolili, I now know at least a few important things that make a difference when starting a new business.
1. Are you ready? When you start asking yourself some hard questions and can be brutally honest with yourself about your skills, passion, expertise, lifestyle it will set the path.
2. The idea. When you have an idea that you eat, sleep, and live, it is probably what you need to do.
3. Research and development. I am not a patient person, but I am a particularly fussy one. I set standards for myself and my product and delved into finding the result that would satisfy my expectations. This took much longer than I thought it would…years actually. Disappointment after disappointment left me wondering if I had set my goals too high. Deep doubt often set in. But, reflecting back to the importance of point # 1, I had set the path and did not intend to divert from it.
4. Feedback. For the longest time, few people knew what I was up to. That was a mistake. Once I got brave and opened up about what I was doing, I was overcome with support. Advocates appeared from many unexpected directions such as design, accounting, promotions, start-up ideas, and unconditional cheer-leading. I learned to listen to all opinions with curiosity, say thank you, seek patterns in the feedback, and ask questions. Bottom line: Don’t assume that keeping your idea a secret is in your best interest. People want to help.
5. Making it official. Developing the official framework of a business is tedious. The learning curve was high for me in this department. Name and business registrations, learning accounting programs, shipping options, import-export details, setting prices, working with fabricators, logo design, website design and creation, studio and location shoots, labeling, and much more, all take time and patience.
6. Making sales and helping it grow. The thought of finding customers who want what I sell terrified me. What if they don’t like my work? What if I can’t sell any? I needed help and found it with some marketing courses, social media marketing tools, and most important, some good old word of mouth recommendations from friends and associates.
7. Believe. Never stop believing in your venture. I have done my homework but am far from done. I know Lolili will evolve and expand. I believe that I have a product that people truly love and that makes them feel special. The feedback and increasing sales are making that a reality.
In conclusion, I can’t help but think of dear old dad, the ultimate entrepreneur, who would have been smiling from ear to ear. Not at any success I may have but rather at my desire and effort to create something that is mine and to show it to the world. He would know, without a doubt, that I am giving it my best shot.