I am very likely a one-time founder. As someone who assumed I would retire after spending several more years in corporate life, I had plenty to learn as a founder and business owner when I finally did strike out on my own. I started my business after turning forty. I never went to business school, took an accounting class, or marketed…anything. I love entrepreneurship and say every day that this is both the best and least stressful job I’ve ever had. That is one of the best-kept secrets of becoming a founder. The headline is if I’ve been able to succeed, then so can you. On the fence? Don’t doubt yourself. You have what it takes.
In honor of Women’s History Month, I’d like to share a few nuggets for the new and aspiring women founders out there.
You can grow a multi-million dollar business with zero sales experience.
I do a bit of speaking and podcasts to raise awareness about Reverb. But honestly, the best tool for letting people know who we are and what we do has been social media, especially LinkedIn and Instagram. Simply sharing my thoughts and feelings works well for me. I don’t have a strategic master plan for my social media which keeps it authentic. I just post what I’m thinking or feeling in the moment about business, work, and life as a working mom. That resonates with the right people and is a constant expression of the company’s brand and values.
Anticipate change, so it doesn’t catch you off guard.
Dive in, and be open to change, especially in year one. I find that if aspiring entrepreneurs are curious and motivated to do their own thing, they rarely regret it. There’s a lot of self-imposed pressure to define your offerings and get it right out of the gate. Clearly, it’s worth spending time, doing research, and creating a business plan. But what I learned early on is that no matter what you think you’ll be doing, it’s going to change when you start working with customers. You’ll find what you do and don’t enjoy. Customers will ask for things you didn’t anticipate, and that’s going to shape how you work and what you do. Plan to take in all of that feedback in the first year, and by the beginning of year two you’ll be ready to do a strategy update and website refresh.
Find the balance between focus and flexibility.
I am always trying to strike the right balance between being focused and being flexible enough to leave room for growth and new opportunities. Something that’s helped me sharpen my focus recently is not only having clear team and individual goals but having really clear goals for myself as the CEO. I shared my goals with my team, advisors, and my leadership coach. They keep me accountable and prevent me from getting distracted. Focusing on what’s most critical to the business helps me say no to things that sound interesting but are distracting and add less value. When I find myself saying no repeatedly to the same opportunity I pause and ask “Should this be a yes?”
Differentiation is about being genuine.
Reverb’s values including Kindness and Flexibility set us apart. Not only do we hire kind team members, we expect kindness from our partners, vendors, and clients. We are more than willing to walk away from business if we find that an organization does not treat their team or ours with kindness and respect. If you focus on what you’re good at and live by your values, those things will naturally set you apart from your competitors.
Founders can have work-life (or life-work) balance.
Balance is something I’ve worked hard at. I learned long ago that, with two kids and a big career, some sacrifices are required. I also learned to set clear boundaries. When I interviewed for my last corporate job, I told them:
- I work hard, but I don’t work every day, night, and weekend.
- I have a coaching practice I plan to maintain on the side.
- I will be late on Fridays because I take my daughter to school.
They welcomed me, which was a good reinforcement that I could do both things well if I stuck to my priorities and set clear expectations. Now, I wake up early, and use the morning to meditate, exercise, and maybe pop in a batch of homemade granola. When I shut down for dinner, I’m done for the night. I can still get overwhelmed, and when that happens I use a number of perspective-taking techniques in order to get things back into balance.
To quote a friend who was a working mom with a big job and three kids under the age of six, “Life doesn’t work every day, but it works.”
