The Truth About Entrepreneurship

 I always knew I wanted to be my own boss. I wanted to set my own rules. I wanted to live, travel, and work as freely as I desired. I've always hated the 9-5 grind. A product of older parents, I knew firsthand how working hard for someone else can become a mundane task with few rewards.

I am a natural leader. I've never fit in with any particular crowd. A lot of people know me but I'm not popular and they don't really know me. I thought I would be a clothing designer. I love fashion and I love making people feel good about themselves. However, I don't dress to the nines or really cared about how clothes look. I think I really just appreciate when others feel really good about themselves and who they are from the inside out.

My first business that I launched was a home-based food business with my partner. That was hard work. I do hope to own a food business one day but right now that is a little too demanding. I have supported my dad's seasonings for over a decade and after my mom passed my dad needed something to keep him occupied so we went into business together. The business took off by storm and within a few short months we were making money and featured on the radio! Kinfolk Coaching was a dream of mine that launched after I became frustrated while working with the Department of Mental Health. Running a nonprofit is no joke when you want to save the world but the work you put into others leaves you questioning if you can even save yourself. I have a few more business ideas but so far these are the ones that have left my journal and came to fruition. Just watch. Within two years, I'll be working full time for myself. But to the point...

People don't tell you about the long, long nights and early mornings. They don't tell you about missing out on parties, celebrations, and time with family and friends you can never get back. They don't tell you about the fights with your partner because so much of the relationship revolves around the business(es). They don't tell you that the people you would give your life to never share, comment, or make a purchase to support your business. They don't tell you about waking up in the middle of the night to jot down ideas. They don't tell you about the many, many hours of research to create a perfect product or service. They don't tell you about the feeling that you could've, should've, would've done more. They don't tell you about the financial investment/sacrifice it takes to have successful businesses. They don't tell you how hurtful it is when people overlook your hard work because it's just a "little business".

They also don't tell you how addictive the feeling of success is. When you put out a product and/or service that people not only need but truly enjoy; it pulls you in. The reward to know that you were designed to affect someone's life in a way that makes them want to come back and spend more money and tell all of their friends. Being an entrepreneur is not for the weak. Being successful at what you love is a whole other story. That's the chapter I'm currently writing.

I don't know what's in store for all of my endeavors but I do know that I wake up excited every morning to be able to share my products and services with others. I know that I am truly and sincerely thankful for the public support and the times my businesses were mentioned in rooms and conversations I wasn't a part of. I am grateful to anyone who believed in me at times I doubted myself. Most of all, I appreciate the experiences that landed me where I am. Without those experiences the highs and lows of entrepreneurship wouldn't mean as much. No matter if you have a patented product or idea that no one else has thought of or you want to start a business in a saturated industry; believe in yourself and the power that you have to be great at any and everything you put your mind, time, talent, and resources to,