By Muhga Elitgani, 2014 Venture for America Fellow
I had a problem. There were too many hair products in my cabinet and none of them were working for me. So I challenged myself to make my own hair products for six months and documented it on YouTube. Despite the validation of 29,000 subscribers also looking for convenient and consistent natural hair care, I hesitated to launch the business that offered the solution.
Many factors can deter you from starting a venture. So I rounded up the top three natural ingredients that helped me stop making excuses and start my business, NaturAll Club.
1. Surround yourself with like-minded people.
Work with an existing startup. Take online classes. Follow some of your favorite business blogs and entrepreneurs to get inspiration, advice and tips. If you can't find inspiration around you, create a community like I did.
Tristan Walker is one of my greatest motivators and I have never met him. But my best support has come from my fellowship with Venture For America. They encouraged me to take chances and create opportunities for myself and others.
2. Give yourself a deadline.
Throw yourself a launch party. Sign up for a competition. Do a Startup Weekend--and build a company in 54 hours. If you're anything like me, you need deadlines and pressure to get the adrenaline going.
I based my startup building around the VFA Innovation Fund, which gave me a deadline to launch a crowdfunding campaign and make my business a reality. The campaign helped me tell others and keep myself accountable and motivated.
3. Don't let funding be a deterrent.
Do everything possible to build your business before spending money.
Do research. Study. Experiment. Build your startup's social media. Learn from leading experts. Send surveys to potential consumers. Build your own website. Work until the only thing that is stopping you from scaling, is money. When you reach that point, it will be easier to find the resources because you have already laid the groundwork.
After applying these tips I was able to form NaturAll Club, a monthly subscription based service delivering all natural hair care products for your best and healthiest hair. As I strive be the leader in natural hair care products, I build every new aspect of NaturAll Club from these three blocks. I am so excited to see where this journey will take me and what I learn from every step.
The enemy of starting any business is excuses. Big ideas await. Are you ready?
Muhga Elitgani is a 2014 Venture for America Fellow that currently lives and works in Cleveland, OH. While working full-time at Good Greens, she has built NaturAll Club in her spare time and is officially launching it during Venture for America's 2015 Innovation Fund. Support Muhga and NaturAll club by visiting her Indiegogo page here.