Small Business Revolution

2Why? Tough Questions, Tough Decisions

I FREQUENTLY SPEAK with small-business owners around the country. Sometimes we have the chance to sit down over coffee or a meal—or, more recently, over Zoom. I have certain questions that I've found to be most useful in understanding their businesses. Perhaps the most important question: “Why are you doing what you're doing?”

With some of the businesses we see in the SBR series, the answer may be: “I love to bake.” In the case of Ohm Nohm Bakery & Cafe in Season 5, Episode 5, we met the owner, Jessamine Daly-Griffen. She was a devoted mother of kids who needed gluten-free baked goods. For her, the original “why” was “I couldn't find healthy and delicious baked goods for my family nearby, so I decided to make them myself.” That's a wonderful example of taking matters into your own hands and solving a problem. I tip my hat to her.

Here's the interesting thing: your “why” may change over time, and that's okay.

However, I cannot overstate the importance of being clear with yourself about why you are starting or have started a business. While your “why” may adapt at different times, what cannot change is the ability of the business to create sufficient income to support its owners and workers. That is the point of a business. If it can't support the owner and workers, it probably isn't a business at all.

When we look at Jessamine's gluten-free business, she could have just continued to bake those items at home for her family. Instead, she ...