Imagine the tranquility of a beautiful August morning, the sun casting a golden glow over the serene waters of Squam Lake. As I sat there thinking about my future, little did I know I was about to make a big, bold splash into the world of entrepreneurship. The calm surface of the lake contradicted the whirlwind journey that awaited me – a journey filled with risks, challenges, and, ultimately, triumphs. Jumping into the deep waters of business ownership has taught me some important lessons. I hope you don't mind me sharing a few insights from navigating the currents of competition, innovation and entrepreneurship.I was reminded of my leap into business ownership and entrepreneurship this past fall when I attended an Entrepreneurship Summit at my alma mater, Washington and Lee University.  It is one of my favorite weekends. I have the opportunity to meet new people and hear the amazing stories of how they built their companies. There are a variety of businesses represented at the Summit, but most deal with tech, food or clothing. Then it struck me! I realized that I deal with all three of those categories almost every week. An important fact I learned is that entrepreneurs that receive funding are between the ages of 22-28. and I jumped into the game at the tender age of 47 - without any VC funding! Let’s go back to the beginning again. Sitting at the dining table looking at beautiful Squam Lake, I had a kernel of inspiration and a lot of support from people who made me feel like I could do anything!  What I didn’t know at the time, was the complexity of actually running a business. I knew I could sell. I knew I was creative. I knew promo and how much I loved helping my customers find the perfect product for their event, or gift for their end user, employee, etc. But the rest was a mystery!  Some might say I'm impulsive, but I prefer to jump in feet first, trusting my ability to figure things out as I go. I mean really - how hard could it be?  Yes, I know NOW exactly how hard it can be.

I also know I was lucky! I had worked really hard to earn the trust of some great clients and I was fortunate that some great ones came with me when I leapt.

At my first Entrepreneurship Summit, I remember thinking "why would anyone work for free for years?" I understand now that they were willing to delay some immediate gratification to build long term rewards that could be worth much more. I could have just stayed put with a nice income, good benefits and a job that did not bring me much joy. I put myself in a position to be very successful, but also in a position to fail miserably. Betting on you isn't easy - but I did it.

Some people are great at managing other people. I don't think I was one of them. When the business was just about me, things were easy. But I really wanted to grow and that would require adding people! And adding people adds complexity. Managing a business is time consuming and hard.  What are the right steps to take that will help a team grow? I had no idea. I quickly realized that managing people is a skill that you have to learn.

The past year has been transformative for me professionally and personally. After 5 years of “driving without a license,” I took the time to find mentors. I hired a business coach. I have even read books. My favorite of late is "The Ideal Team Player," authored by Patrick Lecioni. Doing these things has completely changed how I approach my business. I also did a tremendous amount of self-analyzation about what my passions and strengths are, and how I envision the future for myself and my company. I have worked hard and taken great care to develop a team with a new system of accountability. We have added a CRM and are embracing more technology as it is presented.  After a lot of time pondering and working on myself and my company, I finally built a foundation and a place I know I can lead and grow from. It is fun again!

While building my business might be fun now, I still know that every day will bring a new challenge. I recently told my coach that I struggle to see myself as the boss. We have spent a significant amount of time discussing that topic. I am a natural leader and certainly like to be in charge, but the mindset of being an owner wasn’t mine until very recently. That coaching and my recent association with PromoKitchen had made a HUGE difference in my outlook.

This is my final reflection from this past Entrepreneurship Summit. I realized that like many amazing women, you are never too old to reinvent yourself and become a badass business woman! Remember what Martha Stewart says, “it’s never too late to build an empire” – watch out world!