My First Full Year as a Business Owner

I’ve thought a lot about how to write this blog – what’s important is that you know that it took me a while to type out the words, to thoughtfully say the things that I wanted to say, and that I decided that I’d tell you the whole story.

Owning a business is just hard, guys. It’s super hard. I never thought it would be easy, but part of being a business owner is all the incredible self-doubt that no one ever wants to talk about or admit, and that’s crazy talk.  In the spirit of realness, I’m going to tell you the moment that I thought I made a horrible mistake, and what came from that moment.

The first week of January 2016, I sat in my closet and cried.  Who on earth quits a perfectly good job that pays them great money that they love? I officially did not have a steady source of income from someone else for the first time in my life.  I had worked for 19 years for someone else, always knew exactly how my bills were getting paid, but that day I was crying in my closet.

I was done with work. I had a few amazing clients already, but I could stop for the day.  Wren was asleep, and I didn’t know what to do since I was used to working 50+ hours a week, so I started organizing my closet.  I was going through my clothes, looking at things that I didn’t need anymore because I didn’t live that life anymore.  I could work in pajamas all day if I wanted to (turns out, I actually really like meeting with people and putting makeup on… I discovered that later).

I remember that day so vividly.  For someone who has the worst memory ever (to do lists are my best friend), I can remember exactly how that day went down.  I sat in my closet, lost my mind, and called my best friend. You guys might remember the “Baby bird, you gotta fly” blog – and if you don’t, here it is. It was short, to the point, and sweet, but I wasn’t sure how transparent I could be back then.  “Baby bird, you gotta fly” is what my best friend said to me that day when I called crying.  That I made this choice because I knew that I could do it. He was right.

I just spent a solid 2 hours going through images from the last year from the 25 (!) photoshoots that I participated in for an “Instagram recap” of all the awesome things that I did in 2016. It made me sit back and laugh at that girl in the closet last January (do you follow me on Instagram yet? Follow me here… and get ready for epic pics as well as pics of my precious kids because they are).  If I only knew then what I know now – the things that I’m capable of. I’m not saying it in a way to brag, I’m saying it because I know that there are people out there who feel the same way.  I have clients tell me all the time that they aren’t sure that they’re cut out for whatever their field may be.  We all have that crying-in-the-closet moment at some point when we start our businesses, or maybe for you it will come a little later.  It’s totally normal to even get them every once in a while once you’re a superstar, because it’s daunting and scary to own your own business, but also completely amazing.

My point is that it gets better.  It’s not always going to be like that.  Any good business owner is going to self-doubt – because what makes YOU a great business owner is that you know that there’s a need for you, you know that you can’t be complacent in your life, and you know that in order to move forward and be successful, you have to grow and adapt your business.

I signed 4 clients this week.  FOUR. I used to call it a great month if I signed two (and it still is a great month when that happens!). My business has grown in ways that I didn’t think possible – I certainly didn’t realize that the styling part of my business would be what it’s become.  I made my goals for the year – and not only made them, but exceeded them.

12 months is a long time.  So much has happened.  Here’s what I know: I’m not that girl in the closet crying anymore. I might have my moments (and those closest to me might see them more than I care to admit), but that’s the beauty of being a business owner.  You know what the other beauty is? Looking at your portfolio, your life, the things that you’ve done over the course of 12 months, and realizing that you did that.  You. Yes, I had a million people who made it possible. I’m so grateful to the clients who trusted me to get things done the way that they wanted them, and believed me when I said that they could fly. Those people are the reason that I’m successful – with their help, I was able to prove to myself that I can do this, that I do it well, and that Misty Saves the Day is here to stay.

Baby bird, you do have to fly. It’s a thing. It’s my mantra now. It’s kind of how I live my life, and I love it.  When you have those moments where you doubt yourself, you have to hold on to the incredible successes that you’ve already had and belief that you can do this.  You’ve got this.  Owning a business is hard and we all freak out sometimes.  It’s what you do with those freak out moments that can make or break whether or not you’re successful.