I was just sitting here, reflecting on all I have accomplished in the past few months. I have been working hard on getting my business up and running. As I get closer and closer to it officially being ready to go, I realized I have learned a lot throughout this process. So I started to writing about it and figured I would share! 

Four things I have learned….

Things change.

Where I wanted my business to be when I started planning and preparing for it is nowhere near where it is going. I have changed my mind about so many things and added so many new ideas to what I am doing. I have learned a lot and been inspired in so many different ways while building my business. There has been things that have not gone as planned. Through all of the ideas, trial and errors and more, I know that my business will continue to change and evolve over time as I find more inspiration and learn more. As long as I keep my core values as the root of my business, it will all work out. 

You don’t have to do it alone.

I mean this in so many different ways. There is A LOT that goes into starting a business. Its not something that happens overnight. You will need support but you may also need tangible help as well. It takes a lot of time and energy to get everything right and you don’t have to do it on your own, in fact you shouldn’t. Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help. Three things that I have asked for help with that make a lot of it easier on me are…

  1. Having @xteam_tofu help me build my website. He is a web developer, long time vegan and started me off with Eat Feel. Live. as a blog. He is also the genius behind the name (he said “eatgoodfeelgoodlivegood.com is too long aka he saved me). And now he is in the process of helping me throughout building my new website which will offer health coaching, workshops, events and more.
  2. Working with affiliate programs. This is another way to grow your audience. For example, I want to reach not only an audience of people who already follow a plant-based diet, but I also want to invite others who are not plant-based, and may want to be but don’t know where to start, or even those who are not planning on switching to a full plant-based diet but want to learn about the benefits of incorporating more plants into their meals, so I decided to work with Nutriciously to share their guide with everything you need to know about being plant-based eating. Affiliate programs are like sharing additional resources with your audience, things that will benefit them but you are not able to do on your own. (Because you can’t do it all, even if you want to! I know how your entrepreneurial mind works.)
  3. Having @roulette_travel over at Instelite, take some control of my social media. Social media has never been my forte and it is important to grow an audience. They helped me find people who are interested in what I am doing. Building my niche audience.

Which brings me to the next one…

Have a niche.

When I was learning about this through the Biz Rocking Portion of the CNE Program, I thought, nah I don’t need to do that. Everyone will be interested in this. A larger audience is better. Welp, I was wrong. It found out quickly that if you narrow down who your target audience is, the more likely you are to attract people who are really interested in what are you doing and from here you can build a community. And this is the goal for my business, to build a community, a safe space, make others feel welcome, accepted and happy. Share love, support, guidance. 

Make sure you are passionate about it. 

Building a business means a lot of your down time will be spent figuring out all the back roads to get your business up and running. You need to be determined, motivated and ready to face some obstacles and challenges. If it is not something you are passionate about, it will just become another one of those jobs that you want out of. But if you love what you’re doing, it will all be that much more worth it in the end.