Even if you are on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.
—WILL ROGERS
EVER SINCE SHE COULD REMEMBER, LIZANNE FALSETTO had wanted to be a fashion model. When she turned seventeen, she signed with an agency in Japan and left her Seattle hometown for faraway Tokyo. For the next ten years, she pursued her dream, modeling across the span of the globe.
Due to her fast-paced, on-the-go lifestyle, Lizanne was always on the lookout for a healthy snack she could pack in her purse, but there was nothing on the market that was as nutritious as she wanted. Lizanne decided to stop searching and make her own. She was no stranger to the kitchen, hailing from a large, traditional Italian family who shared a deep love and passion for cooking and eating. Engrained in her memory are the hearty dinners they indulged in together that usually lasted for hours.
Lizanne began experimenting with her grandmother’s most-requested cookie recipe, eliminating unhealthy ingredients and replacing them with good stuff. Soon enough, she created her own protein bar that was rich in protein and other nutrients, had no sugar, and was gluten free. Friends and fellow models who tried the snack loved it and always asked for more.
At the end of her modeling career, Lizanne moved back to the States. Settling in Los Angeles, she wondered what she was going to do with the rest of her life. Together with a food consultant, she decided to tweak her recipe and create a nutrition bar called thinkThin. There is so much more to this story, but I am amazed at how a simple idea that started in the kitchen ultimately turned into a booming company that in 2012 reached just over $70 million in sales and is continuing to grow.1
In chapter 2, we talked about the importance of coupling what you’re good at with an existing need in a market that you can fill. And in the previous chapter, you learned about the possibilities and options of starting your own business as a way to increase your household income.
While there are multiple ways to make money other than running your own business, if this is the route you intend to take, this chapter will offer practical tips to help you get out of the gate and well on your way to success. If you are not yet totally sold or interested in starting your own business as a way of supplementing your finances, you will still glean insight (and in the next chapter I will continue to offer a slew of other non-traditional ideas and tips).
It’s important to note that because there are countless business ideas out there, it is impossible to offer you a step-by-step plan tailored to your particular idea. I encourage you to find specific resources (books, podcasts, blogs, websites) that align with what you decide to do. I’ll share a list of some of my favorites at the end of this book.
Determine Your Why (a.k.a. Your Mission Statement)
You’ve probably heard the term “mission statement” many times in the course of your life. It may seem like something that’s boring, hokey, or inconsequential. But here’s the thing: if you can’t explain to me in two sentences or less what your business is about, you won’t be able to develop a clear action plan and specific strategies to implement your plan.
Not too long ago, I was at a writer’s conference that offered would-be authors the opportunity to connect with agents and publishers in order to hopefully procure a mutually beneficial book deal. Many publishers attended the event and scheduled meetings with budding writers.
The problem? Very few of the writers had a concise and unique “pitch” for their book. I know because I interacted with many of these men and women at lunch, after sessions, and during breaks. When I asked them, “What is your book about?” the majority of them responded with vague, long-winded, beat-around-the-bush answers. Granted, these same folks had amazing stories, great passion, and a burning desire to write a book. But few had a polished and clear-cut purpose for what kind of book they wanted to write (or were writing) and why. I loved their hearts, but I was sad to think that their lack of defining and refining their proposed book idea was probably going to hurt their chances of getting a book deal.
Enthusiasm, excitement, and determination won’t get you anywhere if you don’t know where you are going.
When I first started working on this book manuscript, my number one priority was to define what the book was going to be about. I didn’t want to hem and haw anytime anyone asked about the subject matter. Nor did I want a theoretical and illusive definition. I wanted it to be clear and direct. (By the way, some people call this an elevator pitch, when you can articulately summarize an idea in about thirty seconds, the time it would take you to ride up or down an elevator with someone.)
It took time and discussion with my team members, friends, and husband, in addition to a lot of personal reflection and consideration, to finally land on my pitch for this book. I was thrilled to be able to effectively communicate the one-sentence objective for this book when asked, which was “to encourage women with practical ways they could increase their income, multiply their impact, and not lose their joy in the process.”
Crafting this mission statement allowed me to begin writing with confidence and precision. I knew exactly what my end goal was for this book and could focus my energy on making that happen.
Before you begin to think about what your next steps are, what you need to get in place to launch, and how you’re going to market your idea, I urge you to take a step back and craft a concise statement to represent your business.
To help draft your mission statement, consider the needs you are going to meet or the problems you are going to solve through your business. I talked about this in chapter one.
Successful businesses aren’t just ideas that sound great; they fill a void or solve problems that people deal with on a regular basis. If your proposed business idea isn’t doing any one of these things, there’s a good chance it’s not going to succeed.
When people ask me what MoneySavingMom.com is all about, I always reply, “We serve as a one-stop shop to help busy women save money and live their lives with intention.” Can you pinpoint the needs we serve through this statement? They include things such as:
• money worries
• budgeting
• finding fulfillment
• living with purpose
• the challenges of time-crunched living
Everything we do at MoneySavingMom.com aims to fulfill our mission statement. By defining it, we know what we’re about. And we also know what we’re not about.
Almost every day, we have opportunities pitched to us, either for guest posts people want to write, companies who want to work with us, event coordinators who want me to speak at their upcoming events, or media outlets that want to interview me. By knowing what we’re about, we are able to accept only the opportunities that are in line with our mission statement. This is part of what makes us an intentional business.
A mission statement helps you to refine and define what your business is about. It allows you to stay focused on your target. As you think about your mission statement, let’s read a few from some well-known companies. You’ll see how each example encompasses what the business is about and is clear about the needs it fills.
IKEA
At IKEA our vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people. Our business idea supports this vision by offering a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them.2
Trader Joe’s
The mission of Trader Joe’s is to give our customers the best food and beverage values that they can find anywhere and to provide them with the information required to make informed buying decisions. We provide these with a dedication to the highest quality of customer satisfaction delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, fun, individual pride, and company spirit. Quoted in Lindsay Kolowich, “9 Truly Inspiring Company Mission Statement Examples,” Hubspot, August 20, 2014, accessed July 21, 2015, http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/inspiring-company-mission-statements.
Harris Teeter
The Harris Teeter aim is to be absolutely the best grocery retailer as measured by each and every customer. The Harris Teeter mission is to: take excellent care [of] our customers; take excellent care of our fellow associates; keep our stores clean; sell only fresh products; keep our shelves properly stocked.3
Define Your How (a.k.a. Your Action Plan)
After you’ve decided upon your mission statement, you’re ready to draft your action plan. If you read any business books or attend classes on how to start a business, one of the first things you’ll hear is the concept of creating a business plan. This is a detailed layout of how you intend to fund your business, how quickly you anticipate it will grow, and how much income you estimate you’ll make. While I think there is value in creating a business plan to think about your long-term dreams for the business, I believe a business action plan is much more valuable.
In the previous chapter, I stressed the importance of doing your research. Have you talked to other people in your particular field who can offer specialized advice? Have you bounced your idea around to others? Have you researched the market to determine what value you can offer and where you fit in? Have you determined the particular licenses or qualifications you will need to run your business? The research you have done will help you answer the following questions that will frame your action plan:
1. What kind of business will you run? Online? At-home? Brick-and-mortar? Direct sales?
2. How are you going to fulfill your mission statement?
3. What is going to make your business stand out from your competitors?
It’s not enough to dream; you need to do. Turn your dreams into realistic execution steps. In increments of three months, six months, and one year, think about and answer the following questions:
1. What do you want your business to accomplish?
2. How big do you want it to be?
3. How much income do you want it to produce?
4. How much product do you want to sell?
5. How many hours do you want to work per week?
Because this is preliminary planning, some of these answers may simply be guesses; but this is your first step to determine your action plan and the goals it will require.
After you’ve answered the above questions, downsize these big goals into smaller, executable chunks. Think about what you need to do now in order to reach those mile markers.
For instance, let’s say you want to start a cake decorating business. You’ll want to start by setting the date you’ll open your doors to the public. If it’s six months from now, work backward to determine your action steps. You will probably need to do the following:
• research food handling laws
• find a commercial kitchen or space to use
• take some classes
• create a website
• design advertising materials (fliers, business cards, local ads)
• network with other local businesses (party planning companies, catering halls, and so on)
If you want to open a day care in your home, you will probably need to do the following:
• research and procure appropriate state licensing and other requirements.
• create a play-oriented, child-proof space
• design policies and procedures for children and parents
• advertise and market your day care
• purchase toys, books, and furnishings
• plan out how your daily routine will look
• seek advice from other people who run day cares
Regardless of the business you are pursuing, you probably have a list of items running rampant in your head or notes that you’ve jotted down of things that need to be done to get your business on its feet. They may include the following items:
• create a website
• advertise and market your services and products
• buy supplies
• target potenital customers
• create a blog
• build a social media platform
Some of you have long lists of different goals and actions to execute, but you feel stuck. You may be overwhelmed and lack clarity on where to start. If I’m describing you, ask yourself, “What is the most important thing right now?” For instance, building a website may initially be more important than creating your product. Or, creating your product may be more important than acquiring customers. Then, ask yourself, “What is next?”
These two questions will help you create and follow a road map to bring your idea to fruition. Once you answer the first question, follow with the next one, then repeat. This process will also help you keep the momentum going.
I’m frequently asked, “Crystal, how do you do it all?” I think the important thing to remember is that I have slowly added new things—like Facebook, Twitter, an e-mail newsletter, and so on—to my plate. If I had tried to set up everything all at once, I would have been completely overwhelmed, and probably not have done a very good job.
Don’t try to do everything at once. The best way to avoid getting burned out or stuck is to start with one thing at a time. You can’t dive headfirst into social media, network with your local community to drum up business, and learn how to maximize traffic on your website all at the same time (and do it well). Stick with one action item, and when you are comfortable with your pace and progress, continue to the next step.
When I created my Facebook page for MoneySavingMom.com, it took a lot of time and thought to regularly update it at first. I had to learn how to post links and different types of posts, what worked best, and what types of posts were most effective. Then, I had to practice doing it over and over again. As I continue to update my Facebook page on a daily basis, it has become something I do without much thought. It’s almost as habitual as brushing my teeth. Now, I’m just as excited and dedicated to doing it, but it doesn’t take anywhere near as long as it used to.
Pace yourself when you start setting up your business. Challenge yourself to try new things little by little. Don’t implement every action item for your business at once. Pick one or two things to focus on at a time before you start experimenting with new ideas or implementing new goals.
Things to Think About
As you take the beginning steps to set up your business, here are some building blocks to consider including in your action plan.
Brand Development
Don’t rush through this part of the process. In fact, I’d say this is the most important thing to consider once you know what your business is going to be about.
Branding is crucial. Think about it this way—you don’t just represent your brand; you are your brand.
The name you choose for your business and website should (1) encompass your mission and (2) clearly articulate the purpose of your business. I have found it helpful to make a list of all the possibilities. Brainstorm and write down every name and idea that comes to mind. It doesn’t matter if an idea seems silly or crazy, just write it down. Get your creative juices flowing.
As I mentioned before, don’t rush into a decision. Take a week or two to consider potential names. Ask a few trusted friends to give their input. Think long-term. Is your name going to allow your business to grow? Do you absolutely love it? Say it over and over again. Picture it on big screens, billboards, websites, and magazine covers. Do you still love it? Is there anything about it that just doesn’t seem right? If so, go back to the drawing board and keep trying. Eventually, the name will come.
Word to the wise: don’t use weird spellings. They might be cute, but they aren’t practical when people are trying to look up your business online. For instance, about a year before I started MoneySavingMom.com, I started a frugal-living site called SimplyCentsible.com. It was a fun play on words but a nightmare for people to search for and remember (and while I don’t necessarily think it was entirely the name’s fault, the site never got off the ground). If you have to spell your business name out letter by letter when you tell people about it, you should probably consider another name.
In the same vein, it’s becoming more popular to use a name that is a made-up word (think Google, eBay, or Pinterest). While these can work well if your brand takes off, in most cases, I think it’s much better to choose a name that actually tells others what the business is about. If your name defines you, you are well on your way to establishing a strong brand.
Many will disagree with me, but I believe that unless you are a celebrity, someone with a large offline following, or have written bestselling books, it’s usually better to choose a name that encompasses your business mission instead of using your actual name. People won’t think to search for your name if they don’t know it, but they will think to search for the topics you are writing about.
Brand strategy and design firm Lippincott created the name Sprite for the citrusy Coca-Cola soft drink. Stemming from the Latin word spiritus, for spirit, it means “elf, fairy, or goblin.” When the product was released in 1961, it was marketed as something refreshing, lively, and energetic. What a perfect name! The same company also came up with Verizon. It combined the Latin word for truth, veritas, with horizon. The combo created a name that suggested a reliable and forward-thinking company.
Ever hear of the company Stat.us? Of course you haven’t! But back when Twitter was still an idea, this was the original name the folks in the boardroom came up with. Cofounder Jack Dorsey wasn’t pleased with the branding results and eventually settled on Twitter, defined in the dictionary as “a short burst of inconsequential information.” Fitting, wouldn’t you say?
Back in 2007 when we were first brainstorming ideas for a frugal, money-saving blog idea I had, we had a huge advantage. Because blogs were still pretty new and very few frugal blogs existed, I had a wide-open field when it came to a website name. My husband and I spent a few weeks tossing around many different ideas. We finally landed on MoneySavingMom.com after much deliberation. We let the idea sit for a few days to make sure that we loved it; it turns out we still did, so we went with it.
Eight years later, we still love the name and never would have dreamed how strong the brand name would be. In fact, it cracked me up at first when people started referring to me as the “Money Saving Mom” because I never started the site thinking that the name referred to me. I just thought it was the perfect way to define my mission—to help moms save money. But now that most people know me by “Money Saving Mom” versus my actual name, I’ve finally resorted to owning it.
When you land a few names that may work well, check to see if the domain names (the .com website addresses) are available to purchase before jumping ahead and settling on any one name. Many, many domain names are already in use or have been purchased by someone who is hoping to resell them at a higher price. You can search to see if the domain name is available to purchase on DomainsBot.com.
Even if you are planning to have a local, brick-and-mortar business, it’s always a good practice to have a website—even if it’s just a simple, one-page site advertising your services. We are such an online, internet-driven society that you could miss significant marketing opportunities and exposure by not setting up a website.
When you decide on your name, purchase and set up all variations of that name online. For instance, we own MoneySavingMom.com, MoneySavingMom.net, and MoneySavingMom.org. However, while I did set up Twitter and Facebook profiles early in the game, I waited to jump on the Pinterest and Instagram bandwagons. As a result, @moneysavingmom on Instagram and Pinterest.com/MoneySavingMom was already taken, so I had to use @themoney savingmom on Instagram and Pinterest.com/msmblog.
Marketing
A few months ago, I was getting my hair done at a salon I had never been to before. The stylist and I started chatting away like old friends. In our conversation I learned she was also the owner of the salon.
As we shared stories about running our own businesses, she said something that absolutely shocked me. When asked about how she drums up business for her hair salon, this woman replied, “Instagram!” I couldn’t believe it! Especially because, up until then, I’d never heard of any brick-and-mortar business using Instagram for effective marketing. She shared with me how every day she posts pictures of before and after haircuts and color as well as formal updo hairstyles she has done. She tags these pictures with hashtags that include the city where the hair salon is located. While this business owner’s shop doesn’t have what many would consider a large following on Instagram, these pictures generate a lot of likes, attention, and, most importantly, new clientele.
I was immediately inspired to re-evaluate my own strategies when it came to Instagram. I realized I had never even considered using hashtags or finding creative ways to build my brand on that social media site. You better believe I started posting more often, using relevant hashtags. The results were outstanding. I was amazed at how many new followers I gained in just a few months from putting a little effort into Instagram! It goes to show that there are many, many creative ways to build your brand online and offline.
Think about your business. How do you plan on acquiring customers? How will you promote your products or services? How will you create awareness around your brand, your value?
I want to encourage you to start by exploring every free option you can come up with before investing a lot of money into paid advertising. Over the years, I’ve spent very little on paid advertising. It’s not been a priority for me when there are so many fantastic free options that work well.
Offer try-it-for-free services. If your business is such that you could offer free consultations or samples (whether music lessons, personal training sessions, or free tastings of your delectable goodies at local supermarkets), this is a great way to build up a clientele. Create parameters for what free means and what it entails so you don’t waste too much of your time and effort (and end up losing money in the long run). For example, if your business is tutoring high school students, you can offer a first-time lesson at no cost but charge for future sessions. If you sell skincare, offer sample-sized products for your customers to try for free but charge for full-size quantities. Also, be sure to offer a special discount after the freebie to encourage the potential client or customer to hire you or purchase more of your products.
Tawra from LivingOnADime.com wrote,
The best thing we have learned about marketing is don’t be stingy! When we self-published our cookbook Dining on a Dime we gave away hundreds of copies for review. Yes, we had to pay for the shipping and the books, but the free advertising from it was worth much more than we could have ever paid for!
Encourage word of mouth. Once you’ve built up a small customer base, encourage your customers to spread the word. You can even reward them for doing so by offering a discount coupon or a freebie if they are willing to share about your business with others.
Annaliese has taught music lessons for more than fifteen years. She has offered reduced rates or even free lessons to children in financial need. The very families she has helped have graciously recommended her as a teacher to others and this has resulted in many new students.
Cross-promote other businesses. You can drum up a lot of business by developing relationships, helping other people out, and forging mutually beneficial agreements with other companies. For instance, if you bake and sell wedding cakes, you can network with wedding dress boutiques, tuxedo shops, florists, and wedding photographers. Offer to share their contact information and business cards with your potential clients and ask them to do the same.
Nicole is the president and founder of the Baby Sleep Site (BabySleepSite.com). She offers some great advice based on her many years as a business owner.
I’ve worked hard to forge partnerships with companies that also cater to moms, and this has yielded great results—it’s been a solid, reliable way to drive new traffic to our site, but even more, it has resulted in some strong relationships that have paid off over time. For example, I have a small network of bloggers that I love, and our relationships are so solid now that if I have a new product launch coming up, or if I think it’s time to host a giveaway, I can usually just say the word, and they’re happy to help (and vice versa, of course!). I see partnering with other like-minded companies as a long-term marketing strategy—while it might not pay huge dividends in terms of additional traffic or increased sale volume right away, it pays off consistently over time, as both businesses grow.
Use social media. When I first started blogging and running an online business, social media didn’t exist. Today, it’s one of the easiest and most effective options for new businesses to grow. It’s an ever-changing market, but I encourage you to hop online, start exploring social media, and find people in your similar niche who are successful. Analyze what they are doing and determine how you could take their ideas and make them work for your business model.
Don’t just pay attention to people who are in a similar niche, though. I also get inspired by those who are far, far outside my niche, whether famous musicians who stay grounded and true to their roots, philanthropists doing great things around the world, and anyone who risks and commits to see a dream come true.
When it comes to social media, put the most time and effort into where you see the most traffic, attention, or response. If Twitter posts are pulling in customers, focus on that outlet. If Pinterest creates more chatter than Facebook, keep plugging away there. Work whatever marketing strategies work until they stop working.
Ella and her husband run a small used-car dealership. She is responsible for advertising and has managed to do a great job for next to nothing. She says:
I built us a very inexpensive website that gets us 70 to 80 hits a week. Not tons, but not bad for such a small-town business. I post pictures of all of our cars on Facebook, put some car listings on Craigslist (we are very picky now as they charge $5 per car listing), and all listings go on Nex-Tech, a local Midwest classifieds site that charges only $3 per month and 50 cents per listing. I make sure I answer all e-mails and update our listings a few times a week. It works for us!
Nicole of the Baby Sleep Site also offers,
Create branded content for Pinterest—this is so easy to do. You don’t even need Photoshop skills—my team uses Pixlr.com and PicMonkey.com to create our branded content (both are online tools that are super easy to use). We started creating pretty, branded pictures to accompany our blog articles, and we’ve found that this has helped increase Facebook sharing of our blog articles, not to mention getting many more people to share our content on Pinterest than we usually would have. This is a really easy, low-threshold (and free!) way to increase your reach.
Networking
Joyce owns a lawn care company and says that through joining a local networking group, she is able to share with other business owners the “why” and “how” of her company. She has formed relationships with the people in this group, and they have given her many referrals over the years. She also says that it has been a great source of encouragement and information about growing a business.
Building relationships with other bloggers, entrepreneurs, and business owners is a great way to not only learn much but also open up doors for networking. Let me be clear: networking in my mind is not about building relationships with people because of what they can do for you. To me, it’s focusing on giving to others.
When I first started out, I didn’t have much to offer others. I didn’t have many customers, I hardly had any traffic, and I knew very little. But I was determined and eager to learn.
I looked for opportunities to develop relationships with others and did what I could to encourage them. I joined Yahoo! Groups on entrepreneurialism and met a lot of amazing and inspiring folks through these groups. I participated in some great discussions that led to friendships forged outside the group. Not only did these people willingly answer my many questions but some of them even offered to promote my business to their customer base, often giving me a short mention in their e-mail newsletter or allowing me to write an article for their site or e-mail newsletter. Even now, I am amazed at their willingness to promote me, a blogger just starting out, with nothing in return! As I look back, I know their kindness played a big part in not only encouraging me to keep going in my entrepreneurial journey but also helping others discover my site. Some of the same people who stumbled upon MoneySavingMom.com years ago are still loyal readers today!
As my site has grown, I have committed to pass on what those folks did for me by helping to promote others whenever it’s a good fit for my audience. This is one of my favorite parts of blogging: getting to introduce my readers to other amazing friends, colleagues, blogs, sites, products, and other resources I find helpful.
Just last week, a blogging colleague sent me a lovely thank-you e-mail. A woman who had been reading her blog for years through my recommendation had approached her in church. She was so excited to meet a loyal reader and just as excited that I had referred her site.
I love celebrating others, especially by being able to promote them. I view my blog as a sort of hub where people gather with questions and I point them in the direction of other blogs and resources that will benefit them and their family’s particular needs. I can’t be all things to all people, but I can do my best to help readers find a good fit for their particular situation or answers to the questions I am unable to answer.
Unfortunately, because I have a large platform online, I’ve experienced many uncomfortable situations where people act interested in becoming my friend but I soon find out it’s only a front to get something from me. Shortly after meeting me (and without investing in a relationship), they ask me to link to them, promote them, endorse their book, introduce them to other people, put in a good word for them—I could go on and on. I know many people who have used my name, purporting a relationship that didn’t exist, just to get their foot in the door with other companies or people. Trust me, there are much, much better ways to grow your business than using others as a step stool.
This is why I’ve become a big believer in focusing your efforts on giving to others without expectation of return. Find people doing a great thing and encourage, endorse, and do all you can to celebrate them. Be genuine and have zero expectations. Oftentimes, these sincere relationships result in some cool opportunities, but because you’ve started them without any expectations, you won’t face disappointment or hurt even if nothing ever comes of it.
I think there is a great need for us to be less competitive and more celebratory. Life is much more fun when we celebrate people anyway! I have also found that when someone celebrates me, it makes me want to celebrate that person even more. Plus, it shows that he or she is a true friend.
Not too long ago, I attended a conference sponsored by a well-known author and speaker. At the end of the event, I reached out to this woman on Twitter just to let her know that I appreciated her and would be happy to pray or do anything for her that I could.
I was thrilled when she responded. We had a few interactions via text and a phone call. I loved being able to encourage her. While I was hopeful that I could forge at least an ongoing acquaintance with her, I didn’t have any expectations beyond that.
A few weeks later, she asked if I would be willing to partner with her on a project. I was floored and honored because her request was so unexpected. In one of our conversations, she mentioned how she was hounded by people who wanted her to do this or that for them and how she struggled with having to say no quite often.
We continued to talk for a bit and finally, curiosity got the best of me. I asked her point blank, “Why did you ask me to partner with you on this project? You don’t know me very well and there are so many others who are much more qualified to work with you in this capacity. Why me?”
Her response surprised me! She said,
Crystal, with all the requests I get, I never even consider partnering with someone if they haven’t first built a relationship with me. If a stranger or someone I barely know asks for a favor, I never say yes. But if someone has taken time to invest in and build a relationship with me, I will not only seriously consider their requests, I will also actively look for ways we can work together.
You spent money and invested time of your own volition to attend my conference, and you didn’t ask for anything from me. Because of that, I could tell that you were someone I wanted to invest in and partner with.
She was right. I attended that conference solely to learn how to be a better speaker and writer. But by investing my time and money, I communicated to her through my actions that I wasn’t out for a favor. I’m so grateful that not only have I partnered with this amazing woman on multiple projects but, more importantly, she has become a friend and wise mentor.
You can never be too generous. Think about the people in your life who have encouraged you or given you valuable advice. Return the favor by doing the same for someone else. It is so satisfying to help people, especially when they are working hard and not expecting someone to spoon-feed them or pave their way to success.
Sometimes All It Takes Is Showing Up and Giving Your All
If this is your first time starting a business, you may feel a bit intimidated or even scared. Any new venture comes with its share of fear. You may wonder,
“Will this idea even lift off the ground?”
“Is the market big enough for my product?”
“Can I juggle my business and my life?”
“Can I compete with similar services available?”
While in chapter 7 I’m going to talk in-depth about the fears of risk and failure that hold some people back from pursuing ways to earn income, I want to encourage you that fear is normal. I also want to commend you for being brave enough to try something new to better your life and the lives of those around you.
Recently, I was asked to be the keynote speaker at the Flame Fest Ball (an event sponsored by FirefighterWife.com, an organization that strengthens and supports wives and their firefighter husbands). I was excited about this event—and especially excited to get dressed up fancy and speak at a ball, of all things! As I rode the elevator down to the hotel lobby, I felt confident (and a bit like Cinderella).
And then I actually stepped foot in the ballroom.
As my eyes gazed over the many couples dressed in their finest, my former confidence disintegrated.
I gulped. What did I have to offer these incredible folks? All around me sat strong and muscular men who willingly risk their lives fighting fires. Next to their sides were equally strong women who endure long days and lonely nights while their firefighter husbands are on duty.
I looked at the strength and courage represented in the room and felt very small. Who was I to stand on stage delivering a message of hope to them? After all, I’m a girl who struggles with anxiety. What do I really know about courage?
But then I remembered . . . sometimes courage is just showing up.
I had a choice in that moment: I could choose to be swallowed up by fear and self-doubt, or I could choose to give it my all, praying that the words I shared would be impactful to those in the audience.
As I got mic’d up, I made a decision to give my all. I left the feelings of fear and insecurity behind, asked God to fill me with courage, and then stood behind the podium, owning this amazing opportunity. When I walked off stage, I knew that while I may not have given the most eloquent talk, I had given it my all.
Fear cripples. It suffocates the life from you. It keeps you from even trying. It whispers things in your ear like, “You’re not good enough.” “You’re not qualified enough.” “You’re a failure.”
But hear me on this: you can push fear away and assert your way toward courage by just showing up and giving your all.
This may mean simply waking up in the morning and doing one thing to move your business forward. Like reading two chapters from a book that teaches how to design a captivating website. Or committing to writing a blog post every day. Or making an appointment with that CEO to get marketing advice. Or tackling your business plan, one goal, one action item, at a time.
Whatever you have to do, show up and give it your all. The rest will follow.