So, you may be wondering where I have been lately. To be honest, I have been in a little bit of a funk. Things, while not entirely bad, haven't been particularly good either. Sapped of much of my enthusiasm, I haven't had the energy to blog recently.
Let's start with the good news. I have made quite a few sales considering my almost utter lack of marketing. I'll be clear - my entire marketing effort has consisted of one email to friends and family who are close to me, those who I felt would not come down on me too hard for having a crappy
website. Best of all, I have managed to be in a position to hit my sales target for the month of October. My goal is 25 shirts sold. As of today, I have sold 19 shirts. Selling 5 shirts in 11 days seems entirely possible.
Now, I could have put effort into making my current website better, thus alleviating some of my pissy-ness and reticence about marketing my site more widely. But, any changes I would make would amount to putting lipstick on a pig - sure it might make it better, but you're still kissing a pig. Consequently, I have decided to put no more effort in my existing website, choosing to instead focus on my new website. Here's more good news, it will likely be ready by early November. Once that happens, I can begin marketing more fully, hopefully hitting my modest sales targets for November and December, 35 and 70 shirts respectfully.
As for the bad news, I realized early last week that I am running out of cash. My new designs, such as Champ and Red, will use up my remaining cash reserves. What's more, I am in dire straits to find more money to keep paying my mortgage.
To overcome my money woes, I have sought equity loans to no avail - it turns out they look down on people who don't have consistent employment. Go figure. I have looked into getting a bank line of credit, which apparently requires 12 months of operations and stellar credit ratings. I have neither.
Few options remain. I can liquidate my retirement accounts and take the big tax and pre-payment penalty hit. Or, I can charge my mortgage to my credit cards - always a dicey proposition. At the moment, my best bet is still tied to the hope that I can find a near-sighted credit specialist, who can be won over by charm and slick talk. Like I said, things aren't looking good.
With all the above said, I have learned some good lessons. First, for all you would-be entrepreneurs out there, DON'T quit your job before you know how much money you need and have it in hand. It becomes pride-crushingly difficult to obtain money once you are no longer gainfully employed. Second, don't plan on borrowing money for the following TWO years after you start your business. If you're planning on buying a house, a car, or any other big ticket item, you had best buy it before hand because you're not getting another loan until your business has been in existence for AT LEAST 12 months, and in some instances 24 months.
Third, before you begin you business, have a business plan, including a pro forma profit & loss statement, balance sheet and cash flow projections. This will help you to understand the difficult task you are about undertake and forces you to make goals.
This leads to my last lesson: make goals and, more importantly, do everything in your power to achieve them. Don't take "no" or "I'm sorry" for an answer. Make it happen. By doing so, you will find you not only come closer to achieving your overall goal of being successful, but you will gain the pride that comes from the knowledge you have crossed the prior hurdles you've set for yourself. That pride will come in handy and give you the strength you need to over come new challenges. It will also push you to continue your streak of success, and it will bolster you on the "bad" days. I cannot stress how important achieving goals is when starting a new business.
