Self-Made

1Seizing sliding door momentsHow making hard decisions can transform your path

Whether you are reading this book because you want to start your own business or you already have a business, I am going to share as much of my experiences of building small businesses with you in this book — both the good and the bad. Nothing in life worth having comes easy; however, when it comes to business and social media, there is so much comparison and misinformation around how challenging it is to run a small business. If you are struggling with self-doubt, a lack of belief in your ability to build a big life from your small business, concerns about managing your cash flow or any of the thousands of other worries you have as a small business owner, I want to start by acknowledging you are not alone in feeling like this.

If you are getting ready to start a business, I also want to prepare you as much as possible for what may be ahead, and how you can better prepare yourself for what it takes to run a small business (see figure 1.1 for what constitutes a small business). This book will focus primarily on ecommerce founders. Ecommerce is a broad category that covers a range of industries, such as beauty, wellness, fashion, accessories, electronics and other industries that trade online.

Figure 1.1 what is a small business?

Taking your first steps

In this chapter, I cover the very first ...