What Happened to Her Start-Up Business Heart…

Have you ever wondered what happened to her start-up business heart?

 

Dear Boss,

This message is to you, the start-up small business owner who may be working from home today or in a nice little WiFi enabled spot that allows you to get some work done.

Your love of God is written all over all you do. You want to help others, spend quality time with family and friends paired with a spread of good food.

Boss Lady, you share a variety of talents between sitting in the carpool line, standing in the grocery line and sparkling in your business.

A recent study showed Baby Boomers are twice as likely to launch a new business now as Millennials. Reading about this got me to thinking about my work experiences.

Experience is one of the things I lacked in my youth but now my work experiences tally up to a wealth of amassed talents and skills accrued over the years. This can never be taken away from me. I learned it and earned it without a degree!

Believe it or not, as a kid one of my first jobs was pet sitting the neighbors dog. In my teens I did the occasional babysitting but the threat of three-redheaded boys to tie up the babysitter pretty much convinced me it wasn’t the best way for me to earn a buck.

My first summer job was in a local print shop. During the school year my parents let me focus on my studies because I had the rest of my life to work.

Other positions I held in my younger years included waitress in a retirement home dining hall, retail sales in a major department store, and eventually call center sales, training and product development in the travel industry.

The demands of Corporate America were high and the rewards no longer satisfied the entrepreneurial spirit within me. In July 2002 I said goodbye to Corporate  America.

The bright, shiny lights of corporate demands, strong recommendations to do and be things I was no longer interested in faded to black and I was done. I made a graceful exit with a nice separation package and wondered what I would do without my work being my life.

I started living. Spending quality time with friends who were like family to me, I found myself available when they traveled and needed someone to care for their pets. Had I come full circle from my first job as a kid?

It was not a conventional source of income by any means. There were times of feast and times of famine. During the famine other opportunities opened up. Golf tournament coordinator, fundraising events for local businesses, hostess, bartender and personal assistant–I wore a lot of hats!

I met the man who would become my husband and decided I needed to do something more conventional. This is where the journey got really rough: unemployment, church secretary, followed by unemployment AGAIN!

This was not what I had planned. This was not the way my life was supposed to turn out. This was, well, it was just WRONG.

What happened to her start-up business heart was shattered dreams and broken promises. When would I get to see the BIG picture? I knew God had a plan for me but that didn’t stop me from asking, “What now Lord?”

As a child my favorite play role was “the Boss” and I’d sit with pencil in hand and my little notepad where I would pretend to work. I played with intensity, passion and diligence as if it were my life’s work.

Fast forward to today, I am an entrepreneur and I’m sitting here with a pen and paper drafting out my story to share with you the start-up small business owner.

There will be disappointments, tears, and frustrations. Through the highs and lows, peaks and valleys, I have come to know a few things:

• Be YOU! Nobody does it better.
• You won’t like everyone and everyone won’t like you — that’s perfectly OKAY!
• Tears keep you from getting big-headed. Humble begins make a solid foundation.
• No. It’s a complete sentence; don’t feel obligated to explain your no’s.
• Get clear on what success looks like for you because one size does not fit all.

Get clear on what success looks like for YOU because one size does not fit all. #BizTips

Ask yourself from time to time, will it matter in five years, ten years or more?

Look back only to see how you have progressed. Did you ever dream you would be where you are now ten years ago, five years, last year, or even a week ago?

I hope you find encouragement in these words and see how things go according to God’s plan. Walk by faith, not by sight. God will show you the BIG picture.

Life is like a camera…
Focus on what’s important,
Capture the good times,
Develop from the negatives,
And if things don’t work out,
Take another shot!

Until the next time, shine online!

Kim