It's Not a Hobby

This is something I say over and over to myself on a daily basis. This is not a hobby, this is not a hobby. When you first start a business or launch a product, everything is new and exciting. It feels like a new project off Pinterest. But there comes a point when this "hobby" becomes a business. I'm not sewing for fun anymore, I sew to improve my product. I don't work on the web site because it's fun and new, I work on it because I want it to be the best face of my company to my customers. I just did it...my company. I need to tell myself over and over that this isn't just something I am trying out for fun. This is MY company. I own it. I own the ideas. It keeps me up at night. It costs money, it makes money. So why is it so hard to take myself seriously at times? Is it because we play shop owner as children and even though we turn into grown ups, we are still kids at heart? If I don't take myself seriously, why would someone else? I need to believe in myself and what I'm doing in order for other people to believe in me too. What keeps me going...UnderBib Baby is my company.

www.TheUnderBib.com

Raising a Businesswoman

One day my daughter, Ella, said "Mommy, I want to make bibs with you when I grow up". It touched my heart and made me realize that even though she is 5, she sees that I am trying to create something. I don't know that she always understands it to be my "job" but she knows that I am working towards something. I always believed that there was an idea out there that would take me to this place of having my own business or career. I went to school to work in the entertainment industry. When I realized it wasn't conducive to having the family I wanted, I got into real estate. Luckily having kids coincided with the market going down and I knew deep down, it wasn't my calling. In the back of my mind, I always thought there would be a different path for me. I have always had an inventive mind but nothing had developed until Ella was born. She started drooling which gave me the idea for the UnderBib and I decided this was the product that was going to go the distance. I want my children, especially my daughter, to see me succeed. And more importantly, I want them to see me work hard for something even when it's tough and I want to give up. I want Ella to know that she can do anything anyone else can do and to be a more confident woman than I. I don't care what Ella decides to do when she grows up. I only want to know that she won't back down when times are tough and that she will believe in herself and her abilities and love what she does. What keeps me going...knowing my perseverance is an example for my children that they will hopefully take with them through life.

How do you start a business?

There are a million books out there about starting a business. There are a million companies willing to help you launch a product...for a "small" fee. There are even shows about how businesses become successful. But most of these resources only give an overview. I want to know the details. I wish there was a manual that tells you step by step how to bring a product to market. I will make a confession. I spend a lot of time Googling terms I have never heard of. Net 30, buttons by the Gross, SEO, Line Sheet, Marking and Grading, what? I majored in Mass Communications in college. At 20 years old, I thought I wanted to be an executive in the entertainment industry. Well, I had a great college experience but didn't take any courses that apply to business. So I have a product, I have a website, I even have figured out how to sell my product on that website but now I need to get into stores. Each step leads to another and wouldn't it be helpful if someone held my hand and said, this is exactly what you need to do next. Oh, and here's the money to do it. I spend a lot of time looking at what other companies are doing to see what I like and don't like. I wish I could call the owner up and ask a million questions. How did you decide on your packaging? Did you have one person design and another print? Did you print locally or oversees? Should I do a trade show or try to stick to online sales? Where do I go from here? And I always want to know...how much money did you start your business with? I worry that's a personal question so I never ask. I sit around imaging that they must have had a lot more money to work with to have gotten to this point in their business. Or is that just an excuse? What keeps me going...every day I become a better businesswoman from the things I learn from others.

Day 1

Today I hate being a business owner. You can have a good idea, you can have a good plan, you can know the direction you want to go but you need lots of money to be able to do it. Oh, and did I mention lots of time. I bow to all the moms that run their businesses out of their homes. Each one of you deserve a medal. My kids are 5, 3, and 16 months and my mind is in a million places at the same time. I'm sitting at a desk with toys at my feet, a crayon stuck in the printer, and a drawer that won't open all the way because a bottle of glue was left open and has sealed the contents to the bottom. I have one eye on my computer and the other on the time so I don't miss my daughter's kindergarten pick up time. What keeps me going...the hope that my work and dedication will pay off so I can watch my kids and business grow up together.

Why I started a Blog

I didn't start a blog because I am a good writer or have a lot to say. I started a blog because of a conversation I had with a computer guy about SEO and my website. He said..."you need to have a blog, it will drive people to your website". I didn't want to say it at the time because I still wasn't even quite clear on what SEO was but I had no interest in writing a blog, nor did I think anyone cared what I had to say. If you look at my previous couple posts on my UnderBib Baby Blog, you can see, I had nothing interesting to talk about. I love my product but it's hard to find something to write about it every day. I did realize that I do have a lot to say about starting a business while being a mom and so from this day forward, you will hear what is on my mind, what my day is like, how I am feeling about my business, and many other things you may or may not find interesting.