10 Things I Learned My First Year in Business

Well, I did it. I survived my first full year in business. Crazy.

I always dreamed I’d be own boss, so much so it actually got me in trouble at my old job. Whoops! But you know what, all of that, all of the bad shit, the negative experiences, the sad experiences… it all led me to where I am today so I’m extremely grateful for that.

Anyway, it’s been a long, LONG, tumultuous road filled with ups and downs, stress, frustration, excitement, anxiety, and freedom. I’ve been able to do an insane amount of things I would have never been able to do working for someone else, truly, and that has been all I’ve ever wanted.

Alright I’ll stop being so emo now and just tell you the 10 things I learned my first year in business…

1. you don’t know what you’re doing

I once took a class that talked about our knowledge base and turns out our brain is cut into 4 different sections – what we know, what we think we know, what we know we don’t know, and what we don’t know we don’t know. Kinda confusing, right?

Well I have to say after talking to countless other freelancers, consultants, influencers, and entrepreneurs, most of them don’t know what they’re doing, they just figure it out along the way. This is NOT a bad thing. This shows you’re confident enough to try it and resilient enough to get up if you fall.

The truth is, no one actually knows if they’re doing the right thing, saying the right thing, being the right way, we’re all just kind of faking it until we make it but the problem with success is you never really feel like you’ve “made it”… There’s always something you could be doing better, more money you could be making, more meetings you could be having, more products you could be selling, more, more, more, which is both a blessing and a curse.

::end rant::

2. there is room for everyone

Yes. There is room for you and 500,000 other influencers in this space because you know why? There is only one you and there is only one her and him and them. There is more than enough opportunities, clients, and money for everyone.

I can honestly say I went into this industry full-time thinking I’d have so much competition and it would be impossible to find work, but it’s all unfolded perfectly. I mean, don’t get me wrong, there have been times where a client chose to work with someone else over me and that sucks BUT when one door closes, another one opens.

3. it’s hard to find good help

I knew hiring would be hard and finding someone with a lot of experience within budget would be a challenge, but I really feel like people are just getting lazier and lazier these days. Like, if you can’t find something or you don’t know something, FIGURE IT OUT! Make Google your best friend.

So because of that I’ve wasted a lot of time doing tasks I’ve given to other people because they’re either too slow or can’t figure it out for themselves. I know I’m being harsh but some people just need to get it together and learn how to hustle, ya know?

4. it takes money to make money

If you want to make money you have to invest money into your business. That’s just the way it is. You cannot get by on not spending a dime on your biz.

Whether it’s hiring a coach/mentor, website designer, graphic designer, running IG ads, doing a giveaway, or paying for email marketing, you need to outsource some work to other people for everything to run smoothly and professionally. You can’t do it all.

I resisted this principle for a while until things just got so out of hand I couldn’t do it anymore and I haven’t looked back since. Sometimes doing things the cheap way actually ends up costing you more in the long-run.

Investing in yourself and your business is always a good idea.

5. no one cares like you care

The fact is no one is going to care about your business the way you care about your business. No matter how many followers you are, how much money you have, how powerful you are, how good your employees are, no one gives a shit like you do. At the end of the day it’s your loss, your gain, your baby, not anyone else’s. So keep your expectations (not to be confused with standards) low and you’ll never be disappointed.

6. live below your means

If my mom has taught me anything it’s to “save your money”. She has preached this since I got my first job at 15 and I never understood it until my late twenties. Now that I’m older and a business owner, I do everything I can to live below my means.

Being self-employed is completely unpredictable – one month you’re up, the next month you’re down, and the next month you could be out of a job completely. You just never know which is why you need to save, save, save!

You want a financial safety net in place in case anything were to happen. Honestly, you should really think this way even if you don’t have your own business.

7. there is no gauge

One of the more difficult lessons I learned my first year in business is that there’s no performance gauge. You have no idea if you’re doing a good job, a bad job, or if you’re just doing ok.

You don’t have a boss leaning over your shoulder telling you what’s working and what’s not. You really have to be that person for yourself and sometimes it’s hard to separate yourself from your work and to look at things objectively.

8. not everyone is a “good fit”

When I first started NAB Media Group I had this genius idea that I was going to work with anyone and everyone because I’m a hustler and that’s what we do. Wrong. Well, some people may do this but I don’t think it actually builds brand equity.

I don’t want to be decent at a lot of things, I want to be really great at one thing so I can be a master, an expert, the go-to girl for XYZ. And in order to dominate a certain area you have to weed out those who won’t help you get there.

Maybe it’s a client in an industry you’re unfamiliar with or maybe it’s a customer who isn’t willing to pay the full amount… it’s difficult to turn down money but sometimes it just has to be done.

I’m a strong believer that when you say no to something that isn’t a “good fit” the perfect fit will come along shortly after and be even better than the last.

9. following up is no joke

The follow up method I use I “stole” from the book Sell it Like Serhant. It’s intense, grueling, and time consuming but boy does it yield results.

I hate following up, I really do. I just want kick my feet up on my desk and have business flow to me effortlessly but your first year in business is anything but effortless. You really have to go out there and make shit happen and the way to do that is by following up with everyone in your network so you’re top of mind always.

10. it can get lonely

During my first year in business I often felt lonely. Unlike a traditional job where you’re surrounded by coworkers, working for yourself is quiet and uneventful for the most part.

I’m an only child so I’m used to being alone but this was just like, a little much.

Anytime I would go out and socialize I felt anxious and uncomfortable like I was a caveman. No joke, I feel like my social skills went out the window which is why I’ve made it a point to attend more events and get out more so I can flex my socialization muscle like I used to.

Have you ever worked for yourself? If so, what have you learned?

xx

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