Resetting the Mind

At the end of 2015, I shook up my life.

I left my job because I felt the company and ownership was doing some shady things to both their customers and their employees.

The timing wasn't the best and I didn't have a back-up plan. I only had a part-time job, a bit of savings and one last check. I wasn't prepared to leave.

I mulled around for days trying to determine what my next move would be. After speaking with a close friend, I decided on starting my own business. While I'd had this thought for years, it still filled me with fear to strike out on my own.

I order for me to get this business up and running, I had to do more than go through the motions. I had to change my way of thinking. If I was going to be an entrepreneur, all fears had to be overcome. I had to become stronger, more determined and more proactive.

I had to become a new man.

Here's the thing: I had no clue where to start.

I looked at what I wanted to accomplish beyond starting a business. The first thing that came to mind was getting in shape. Not just walking around and looking good "in shape." I wanted a competitive physique.

Weight training always builds my confidence. To get the competitive physique I desired would require discipline. So would starting a business. I decided to tie the two together.

I'm in the gym no less than three times a week. After a workout, I feel energized and motivated. I take that feeling and pour it into my business efforts.

I feel stronger now at 37 than I ever did and I've made strides in my business plan. While I have a ways to go on both fronts, I'm confident that keeping this fitness-based, entrepreneurial routine will bring success.

With that said, I think it's time to ramp it up.

How would you go about changing your mindset?

Bootstrap Marketing

I am in no way, shape or form a marketing expert and it shows.

As I trudge (yes, trudging is how I can describe it at this point) through the muck of entrepreneurship, I continually put forth effort to get the word about my business.

I've told family and friends, handed out business cards, posted on Facebook and Twitter, bought ads on Google and Facebook, created a Twitter page, created a Facebook page, started a blog, and added my website to Google My Business and Manta.

While I know there's more I can do, this has been my starting point because it's within my budget at this time. Every day, I scour the web looking for more ideas on how to get the word out about my business in new and creative ways. I devour podcasts by Gary Vaynerchuk, John Lee Dumas and Ryan Daniel Moran, gleaning whatever knowledge I can in regards to promoting Equitable Bookkeeping.

I even started this blog as a means to get my thoughts out about my journey into entrepreneurship in hopes of lighting a spark while testing some of the things I've learned along the way.

Whatever I can do to let the world, and more importantly the city of Indianapolis, know that I'm here and I'm ready to work, I'm trying to do. I want your business.

Any ideas on how else I can improve my chances of gaining more clients?

Please feel free to share your thoughts and what you've done to grow your business.

What is My "Why?"

When I was a teenager, my father invited a friend of his over to our house. At the time, I had a picture I had drawn taped to my door. My father showed the picture to his friend, expressing his pride in the talent that we shared (my father is a much better artist than I). His friend looked at the picture, turned to me and said, "You're going to make someone rich one day."

That statement cut me to the quick.Why did I have to make someone else rich? Why did someone else have to benefit from my talents? What about him made him look at me and form the thought that I wouldn't be able to create greatness for myself?

Obviously, this statement has stuck with me for years, pushing me to prove him wrong. And it is this very statement that marks the beginning of my "Why?"

Now, I could say that every day since then has been about me working to prove him wrong, but that couldn't be further from the truth. I did go to college and once I graduated, I went to work for the "Man."

Or maybe it's better to say "Men."

I've had several career reboots, bouncing between accounting (not what I expected being a finance major) and hotel jobs with a smattering of various other positions in an assortment of industries. I couldn't sit still long enough to really make much progress. Sure I earned a promotion here and there, but all I could think of was, "You're going to make someone rich one day."

This statement created a pool of anger to gather in the pit of my stomach as I would look around each new employer thinking that the higher-ups were living the good life on the sweat of my brow. I became frustrated and my frustration led to an unstable career path. I began to think of starting my own business early on, but had no idea of where to start or even what business I should start.

Thank goodness for the natural maturation process that comes with age. What would frustrate me now is a means to an end. I'll help the "Man" make a few dollars while building my own business. And while helping the "Man," I discovered the business I wanted to start.

It took time to calm myself and understand what, to some, may appear obvious. My frustration blinded me from recognizing the path I needed to take, hampering my ability to think and grow properly. While my progress was delayed, I know now that I can still accomplish what I set out to do.

A friend of mine once told me that she knew she was destined from greatness, but that she wasn't sure how that greatness would manifest itself. When I was mentally and physically all over the place, I felt the same way.

Now, while I don't know really how my greatness will come about, I know I have a starting point and that's my business. I work on my business daily because I want to create something that shows what I'm capable of now and what I'm capable of becoming. I work on my business daily because I want something to call my own, something I can nurture and watch it grow through my efforts (besides my beautiful daughter).

I also work on my business daily because I want my daughter to see what she can accomplish if she really wants to accomplish something and gives it her all regardless of what obstacles stand in her way.

And last, but certainly not least, I still want to prove my father's friend wrong.

Tell me, what is your "Why?"

This Entrepreneur Thing is Hard

"Ideas are easy. Implementation is hard." - Guy Kawasaki

Ain't that the truth.

I've been thinking about owning my own business since I was 21 years old and have had many ideas on what type of business I should start. It wasn't until 2014 that I decided on starting a bookkeeping business and it wasn't until late 2015 when I decided to put my idea in motion.

And it's a lot more difficult than I thought it would be.

I started off a bit delusional. Like many aspiring entrepreneurs before me, I thought all I had to do was come up with a business name and get the word out that my skills and experience were available for hire. Now I know it's about much more than that.

My business is just beginning and I'm entering an industry where there are many established competitors. This makes my journey challenging, but not impossible.

For this reason, I keep learning, improving in knowledge about my business and growing my business. If I let the shortcomings and missteps derail me, than my dream of being a business owner will never come to fruition.

I know I can do this and be successful. That's what keeps me motivated to keep going.

Believe and Achieve

"Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve." –Napoleon Hill

Napoleon Hill's statement makes understand why I started my business. I believe that I can be a successful entrepreneur and my business is the first step in making that belief a reality.

It's why every night, from 7pm to 1am, I look for ways to promote my business, improve my website and increase my knowledge. It's why, even when I'm at my day job, I'm sometimes distracted by my thoughts concerning my business and keep a notepad close.

I'm stepping out on faith in my abilities and investing in myself to create something that can be beneficial to other aspiring entrepreneurs as they seek to venture along the same path. 

This is why I play in the dirt. While at times it may be frustrating and require some extra time in the gym, I'm enjoying every minute of my entrepreneurial journey. Every hour I spend learning and growing, seeking inspiration and ideas and trying to get the word out about my business is worth it.

I'm building something and I want to make sure that every beam, every screw, every nail is secured to a solid foundation. This is what it takes to make a dream into a reality.

It's Better to Try...

And I definitely have been trying.

For seven months and in between jobs, I have been slowly crafting my business, pouring into it what I learn from reading books, reading articles, and listening to podcasts. It has been gradually coming together and while my impatient side wants to immediately see fruit, I constantly remind myself that this is a process.

And this process has become all-encompassing.

While at work, my business is on my mind. When I lay in bed at night, the wheels turn as my mind searches for new questions and answers. I haven't been this motivated to learn and grow since I was in college. I no longer wait for inspiration. I'm actively searching for it in every crevice and crack that I come across.

And it's exhausting.

Still, it wouldn't be fun if it didn't take so much energy. I know what I'm trying to do. That's it right there.

DO.

For years, I read about starting a business and had many false starts. Many incomplete business plans (the business plan for Equitable Bookkeeping isn't finished, but that's on purpose). I'm now taking steps to bring my business to fruition and that pushes me. What I learned from reading meant nothing unless I took action.

And I'm glad I'm taking action.

This is such a great learning experience, but I'm not just doing this to learn. I started a business because I wanted to have my own business. I wanted to share my knowledge with others and help others have the best opportunity to have a successful business. Hell, going through the process of starting my own business helps me further understand how my business can help many other small business owners succeed.

So, it's better to try.

If you want to start your own business, then start your own business. Be your own boss. You'll learn a great deal about who you are, what you know, what you need to learn and what you need help with to accomplish your goals. I'm proud of the effort I've put forth to get Equitable Bookkeeping up and running. Put forth that same effort and you'll feel proud too.

It Gets Rough Sometimes

It has been a rough week.

On top of trying to start a business, I have a lot of other goals I'm working to accomplish. Goals that I've only recently decided to seriously pursue... Just like starting a business.

In the midst of my efforts, I see where I am at as of today. Clearly. I mean, it's astonishingly clear. Like a window made of air, cleaned with Windex.

I am humbled.

I've had goals before, but in my present stage of adulthood, my shortcomings scream out at me. They band together and attempt to stifle my pursuit of improvement. The dissolution of the veil of invincibility couldn't be any more apparent than it is right now.

Even with this revelation, I still see the light. 

Yes, there is a bit of cliche and corniness to that statement. Anyone who knows me knows that I can be corny at times.

There's still a tinge of hope lingering inside this clouded mind of mine. I'm not sure of its origin and I don't know what feeds it, but it survives. Eventually, my desire for being better will sustain it and encourage it to grow. 

Maybe then I will have strengthened my weaknesses and patched up a few flaws. Maybe then the dreams of the little boy, teenager, young adult, and experienced adult that dwell inside will begin to come to fruition.

Until that time, I will continue to learn and strive to become better.

I mean, isn't that what life is all about?