Sitting in my comfortable corporate office, 5 months pregnant, I told a colleague that I was thinking of jumping into business. His response: not sure this is the right time for you. Pronto, I jumped on the bandwagon. Naïve or not, that decision changed my life.
Almost overnight, my priorities changed. I could think of nothing else but the arrival of the baby and set-up of the business. Out went solo shopping trips, fiction books and spa appointments. In came intensive research and online buying of essentials, baby-stuff and development courses.
Now my baby is 20 months old, the business is about 1 year in operation, and life hasn’t been either boring or easy! Looking back, here are some insights that I have gathered during this remarkable journey.
1. Getting information is the easy part
Have a question? Google it.
Getting information on any topic will be easy. Actionable and practical advice would be more difficult to find. I read a load of pregnancy books, but that didn’t prepare me for the sleepless nights, or helped me on the first night back from the hospital when my baby howled all night. I cried and felt inadequate.
At the same time, I would have a new business idea almost every day. Once I zeroed in on the details and started executing it, it proved to be a completely different ball-game. I carried out a survey for my first product idea and it was torn apart by the audience. Naturally, it didn’t proceed. I thought I was prepared because I had the knowledge, but I wasn’t because I didn’t have the experience.
2. You’ll acquire new skills all the time
I had never done business deals or wooed prospective clients as part of my previous roles in corporates. I did not know how to make a business plan when I started. I did not even know how to manage employees, set up office, process paperwork or process invoice. It was a very sharp learning curve. I began to do more public speaking even though it scared me. I began going to more networking events even though I’m shy. I started approaching strangers and talking to them. It didn’t come naturally at all, but once I figured out how it worked, things became easier.
3. There will be many failures along the way
At one point, my baby was fed the wrong formula dosage. But all was okay thankfully.
There were many months when I worried about paying salaries. We survived.
A client refused to pay me citing ridiculous excuses. My cashflow suffered. Ultimately, it all passed.
There were times when I questioned my ability. The trick is to keep going. Setbacks can teach you a lot. Of course there will be times when giving up will be the wise thing to do, but do not do it simply because it’s the easy thing to do. Do it because it is the right thing.
4. Prioritization and scheduling will save your life
I tried to have it all – and that was a recipe for stress. So I gave up on the less important things. I selected my priority areas – in life, in business and on a day-to-day basis. I would avoid people who wasted my time. Google Calendar became my best friend. My whole day and sometimes even the entire week was planned in advance. I even put in slots for regular work, for meditation, for exercise, for spending time with my baby, for spending time with hubby and for personal reflection.
5. You can’t do it alone
As much as I would like to think and act like a superwoman, the truth is I couldn’t have done it alone. Hiring a nanny saved my life. Hiring my first employee was another life-saver. It allowed me to focus on the right things. I spent some quality time with my baby. I focused on growing my business. I wrote my first book at the same time.
6. Books can teach you a lot!
Even before I started the #ABookAWeek2017 challenge, I had realized how much there was to learn from books, especially for my professional growth. I had grown up as a bookworm who was fed on a steady doze of fiction books. Books had mostly been about entertainment and inspiration. But reading non-fiction books made me realize how much I had missed out on. Not only does it teach you to take a more critical approach towards the world as opposed to fiction where you immerse yourself unquestioningly into the author’s world, but you also benefit from the lifetime of experiences and insights that most authors bring to their books.
7. You will lose sleep
Sleep will take on a different level of importance. It becomes a precious commodity that you look at longingly, but seldom achieve fully.
Many babies don’t know how to sleep. Some take years to settle down into a restful slumber. My baby is one of those who aren’t blessed with the sleep gene. But the baby won’t be the only thing keeping you up at night. A difficult client, the state of your bank account or a creative job might all take your sleep away.
8. You will reach your breaking point, more than once
This one is the part that others won’t see...because you’ll hide it really well. Nobody said it was going to be easy, but you won’t realize how hard it is until you’re neck-deep into it. The trick is to keep persisting and keep working. In most cases, it gets better. The baby grows up, becomes more independent and goes to school. At work, you’ll start to master the game, learn how to deal with people better and figure out how to make better decisions.
9. The right people around you can make a lot of difference
Most people won’t get it. Reactions will range from pity to jealousy, but nobody can understand the trials and tribulations of setting up a business from the outside. They may sympathize, but the emotional roller-coaster rides would be alien to them. As such, it might get lonely at times.
Be it your husband, your family or your close friends, having the right people around you will make a lot of difference. You’ll need them often, you’ll lean on them for advice, for support and sometimes just to listen.
Talking to other business owners, founders and industry professionals will often give you a release, along with a feeling of ‘I’m not the only one going through this’.
But in the end, it will feel immensely satisfying. You'll be in love with your baby and your business. Tough or not, there’s no other place you’d rather be.