Starting your own business is exciting but stressful. The first couple years can be especially rocky as you refine your product and learn about your customer, but it is important to not let your business failures affect your confidence as you get your business going. As a fellow small business owner, here are some ways I found to keep my confidence up.
1.Remember why you started
My sister Vivian and I decided to start our own retail business in 2006. We are both from Brazil but lived in the conservative culture of Utah at the time. We saw that many women were looking for trendy clothing that still fit with their modest, conservative lifestyle, so Bohme Boutique was born.
During the first year we didn’t make a lot of money, but we stayed focused on what our ultimate goal was and used the time to experiment. Staying focused on the idea behind our business helped us push through that first difficult year.
2.Research
By 2007 our company was in debt. We had experimented with various clothing lines but decided we needed to try opening a retail space, rather than working from home. We tried opening a small space in the mall, which had a limited amount of success.
Based on our results we looked back on what we had done to determine what would really help our company be successful. Having the information we needed to know how to make our business successful made all of the failures worth it.
We were able to start expanding our business with the confidence that we would succeed. The takeaway: research will be there for you when you or your friends and family start to doubt your business idea.
3. Reach out to Others
Small business owners have a community all of their own. If you are unsure how to proceed with your business or feeling unmotivated, reach out to other business owners. Many business owners are happy to help with advice or a listening ear.
Family and friends are great, but they may not have the passion for your business like you do. Other business owners will understand why you are putting so much on the line for your business.
Fernanda Bohme, the founder of Bohme Boutique, is an expert on small business and the retail industry. For more information please visit here.