This blog post will be a bit more personal than usually. Just a few days ago I hit my first milestone – 3 months in business. 2nd of May 2016 was the first day that I can officially mark as the day when I started my own business. Lots of things have happened since then and I think it’s time for my first reflection on the journey.
It’s been 3 months since I decided to take a leap of faith, started truly believing my gut and started my own business. In 3 months I’ve learned a lot and (that’s the best part) realised that I am able to support myself. For the first month I didn’t believe I could do it, but now I’m thinking about the next steps of growing my business.
Why me?
I was playing with the idea of having my own business for few years and always postponed it because I felt that ‘I wasn’t ready’ that I need to learn more and get more experience. Even though I’ve been working in social media for several years now, I wasn’t sure if I’m good enough to make it on my own. Mostly I wasn’t sure ‘Why me’? Why should someone choose me over my competition?
Recently I’ve realised that many freelancers and business owners felt the same when they started. Self-confidence and belief in yourself is a crucial part of success. If you don’t believe in yourself, why others should?
Why me? Because of you! On a meetup this week someone mentioned the most important answer to this question – because at first, you’re not selling your services or skills, you’re selling yourself. And as long as you’re passionate about what you’re doing, you enjoy doing it and you genuinely want to help people, you’ll succeed!
Myths and truths
I’ve also realised that here is lots of myths and misconceptions about starting your own business. The most common I’ve heard are:
To start a business you have to have lots of money
Myth! There’s always another way to get your business going!
I absolutely love this inspirational video from Evan Carmichael appropriately named ‘You don’t need money to start a business’.
Starting your own business will allow you to work only 4-days a week
Myth! If you want to start your own business just because you want to have more time for yourself, your friends or family, than you’ll fail. Starting a business is a big commitment and in first few years (usually 3-5) you’ll be working harder than you ever did before! Are you ready to invest all your free time (6 or even 7 days a week?), and extra energy into your business for few years to have 4-day working week (or 3-day week) in the future?
Running your own business means you can be your own boss
Truth! Most business owners I’ve met are people who like to be in charge, who are natural leaders and like doing things their way. Running your own business gives you freedom to do what you want the way you want (as long as it’s the right way and brings you results). You can manage your time, you can meet many interesting people and learn lots of new things.
Just be you!
The biggest lesson I’ve learned about having a business is, that running a business isn’t about competition. It’s about pushing yourself out of your comfort zone, building relationships and doing what you love.
Do you have a similar experience or completely different? Would you add any useful lessons? Let me know in comments or tweet me at @lenkakopp. I would love to hear your stories!
