March 13, 2006.
Starting a business can be lonely, and sometimes you can wake up in the middle of the night and think, "Am I crazy? Will anyone even buy my product? Why am I doing this?" There will be bad days, tough decisions, lack of funds, lack of sleep, and tons of stress. This is when you need to call in a professional, a cheerleader that is - someone that will support you unconditionally.
I am lucky, I have one - and I am married to him. My husband is my biggest supporter and he will move mountains for me. When a supplier dried up I was willing to give up on the product, he searched the Internet for weeks trying to locate another one...and he did. He will come up with marketing ideas, how to save on shipping, where to cut costs, he will also pat me on the back when I need it. When I am exhausted, spent, feeling like no one understands the pressures of running a business, he always listens (and he must be tired of my rant). He tells me he is proud of me over and over.
I thought I had one big hairy cheerleader, until this weekend. We had a grand opening 'Open House'
at our new office space. About 75 friends and family came to see our new space and offer congratulations. The kind words and the oohs and ah's were so unexpected. I just smiled, and said thank you, claimed it was all smoke & mirrors. It was very overwhelming and humbling, I am forever grateful for all their support and kindness.
John Sortino writes in his book, "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Being a Successful Entrepreneur" that everyone needs a cheerleader. When you are down you need someone to tell you that your idea is great. Someone that encourages you to take the plunge, take the risk, do whatever it takes to succeed. He claims that your mom may a great one for the job (like the Outback Steakhouse commercial, 'nobody loves you like your mum'). This is great advice for any entrepreneur, especially us 'mompreneurs', the support is like oxygen, you can't live without it - or succeed without it.
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