Its been about 3 months since my last blog post. Now, a lot of people may wonder what happened to the travels and sartorial commentary on Indian fashion industry. The truth of the matter is, it was time to get started on my own brand of clothing that is about to launch in the U.S.
In the last 3 months, I have been getting my product and designs ready, figured business administration needs such as trademark, registration and even which accounting software to use (oh yes, a self employed person has to do everything- literally:)), got samples, networked, traveled and went through the many pitfalls of sales that I had not even imagined would be a challenge. I guess I have been busy trying to get my brand Avni of the ground.
I thought I would take a moment today to educate entrepreneurs or wanna be entrepreneurs about some trials and tribulations of starting a business. I am still going through most of these on a day to day basis, but am learning to work more efficiently as a result.
1)Working for oneself: Now, this may seem like the best thing in the world, let me tell you it is tougher than being in meetings in the corporate world all day. You have to keep your self self motivated, engaged and most importantly- not bored. Yes, you may love what you do and the vision is so clear in your head, but being by yourself all day, everyday has so many repercussions on the mind that it will take monumental efforts to get out of feeling lethargic. Take frequent strolls outside for fresh air, listen to music, use café as your “office” and most importantly keep the vision clear and in front of your mind at all times. If life gets too frustrating alone, get happy hour with friends a couple of times a week to blow off some steam.
2)The buck stops with you: You are the only one who can make a decision for your fledgling company. There are numerous times when you will question decisions and sometimes even wish you had someone else making it for you, but at the end of the day each decision you make will determine the direction and fate of your vision. (Believe me , I have begged and even fought with my husband on decisions that I felt he should help with because fear of making decisions that could be wrong is so high). No one and nothing can have more passion about your vision other than you and you have to trust that, even if the decision is wrong. Ultimately it is the learning that will help you succeed.
3)Fear of sales: Don’t ever for one second believe you will not be scared and anxious. You will be having nervous twitches and sleepless nights regarding sales. I decided to do it the easy way by just emailing people and maybe calling after (even that was a fear that made me procrastinate), but obviously with all this negative energy nothing worked. Finally, I had to haul myself out and face buyers face to face, so I started cold calling in person. It is LIBERATING. Don’t believe me? Well, how about this. Close your eyes and think that this is going to be the day that you will exchange the most wonderful positive energy with someone. Whether you will have sales or not, they will remember you and as you get better at it, will have good conversations and you will get publicity and some leads. I wear my own designs and walk into stores and it makes a huge difference to me and to them.
4)You are the one person show: Everything from printing, to accounting, to even figuring dry cleaning needs is part of the job. Being self employed is not glamorous and certainly not easy. I had to read books on trademark filing, pattern making, accounting and at the same time start thinking about my next collection all around the same time frame. Its multi-tasking on steroids and one has to be the jack of all trades to get it right. Also, if you are as anal and controlling as I am, you probably want to do everything yourself to start.
5)Breaks are important: Now, you may think you have to work extra hard for yourself because you really are on the go 24 hours a day. It’s true that there is no substitute for hard work, but breaks and stabilizing your stress and mind is as important if not more. If you are stressed out and continue working- the work will not be good and you will feel miserable. Take a break when you need to- could be middle of the day or evening or weekend. Initially, I had this constant urge to fill every minute of my day with thoughts of work and why I am not working more. Coming from a job where I had meetings non stop- even over lunch, I felt this constant need to be busy. Not a good way to be self-employed. Just as you were miserable in your job, you will be miserable as an entrepreneur and eventually lose sight of the vision and passion.
Well, this is some food for thought. As I mentioned before, I go through most of these trials on a day to day basis- but at the end of each day the thought of seeing my brand come to fruition is well worth it. :)
