I've been told by more than one person that it takes a new business an average of three years to get up and running.
I did not understand that until recently.
It will be three years this July since I started Agnosco Training and Coaching (with people still calling it "Agnostic" or not being able to pronounce the word).
Year 1 was about getting over myself. The easy part was the external: the business cards, logo, vision and mission statement. The hard part was the self-doubt. Who was I to start a business when I had no business know-how, no list, no business plan and no strategy for getting out there and getting noticed?
Year 2 was about trial and error. I ran a couple of workshops from community centres, with attendances ranging from zero (the Goal Setting one) to 6 (for Confidence and Parenting). I experienced every possible emotion as I tried to articulate to others in my tiny and not very confident voice what it is I actually do, because all the while I had this huge cloud of negativity and self-doubt hovering over me. So I was sort of moving forwards with my big hairy audacious goal but also regressing every time my inner critic got louder than my desire to make a positive difference in my community.
At the same time, just by getting in the game and hanging in there, I was getting clearer about who I am and what I stand for, what I value and where I want to have the most impact.
Year 3 - some things have fallen away and other connections have strengthened.
Last July, I ran a parenting seminar on the Five Love Languages at church with a friend who trained at the same coaching school as I. It was well received, but then I did nothing for the rest of the year because I had nothing else to offer save my individual coaching packages, which was too big a leap for most people.
In the first quarter of this year, a seemingly random conversation on FB with another friend who had trained at the same coaching school (how do they keep popping up?) turned into a brainstorming session. It was an indicator of my willingness to bust through my fear boundary that I agreed to meet in Williamstown, a 30-minute drive away in a suburb I'd never driven to by myself before. We met a couple more times and got so enthused about our overlapping vision for parents that we committed to run a parenting seminar together: Raising Emotionally Healthy Kids. We then mapped out a strategy (and this is where we went further than I did in Year 2) that would allow us to go beyond the one seminar to offer our attendees much more depth, knowledge and application.
We had 6 very enthusiastic ladies turn up. At the end of the seminar, my friend offered them the opportunity to upgrade to a half-day workshop on Emotional Intelligence, and 3 signed up on the spot, with one lady signing her husband up as well.
We offered two timings: a Wednesday morning and a Saturday morning, after asking the attendees what days and times they preferred. So we now have two attendees committed to each of the half-day workshops, an intimate number which will allow us lots of room for improvement I'm sure.
In the meantime, a couple of friends mentioned that they would like to attend the parenting seminar but can only come on a Tuesday night. So we've organized a separate session for them, and promoted the event to our contacts. Last Sunday, I received a text from a lady I recently met, saying she and two friends would like to book in for this seminar. So we now have 6 attending the 2nd seminar.
I also have a lady who can only come on Tuesday morning, and I suggested to her that we run it from her home and she could invite her friends. She has a large social network with a strong word-of-mouth culture and I am looking forward to sharing my content with her and her friends.
Personal connection, which I had undervalued in Years 1 and 2, has started to pay off. I have recently been invited by an acquaintance who is a local business owner and has supported me in the past by allowing my event flyers to be displayed at his business premises, to speak at two events he is organizing. It's a win-win for both of us. He gets sponsorship and a guest speaker. I get to raise my profile locally.
Another local business owner, the owner of the dojo my child and I go to, distributed my event flyers to their school families. She is very selective about who she promotes, so I am grateful for her support. I guess it helps that I've been a regular for nearly 2 years now, both as a parent and as a student.
Then there are the small groups I belong to, some of which have individuals whose strength is championing others. They are happy to spread the word to their friends and contacts and do my marketing for me in a way I could not replicate, just because they share that special connection of trust and rapport with their friends.
We are now in the pleasant position of being booked out for May and June. This is a long way from even a few months ago, when I kept having to reschedule or cancel my venue bookings because of a lack of response.
So what have I learned?
(1) Don't go it alone. Find a partner to work with who shares your values and vision, the all-important WHY. Having a partner halves the work and the pressure, and doubles the creative output and fun.
(2) Keep serving and connecting where you are. You never know when a connection will lead to an opportunity. Do it with a clean intention of wanting to serve and make a difference, not because you hope to get something out of it. And when you finally do get the response you want, make sure you follow up and keep the connection alive with useful information and personalized contact.
(3) Believe in yourself and your vision. God has designed you with a unique purpose and fitted you for a job that only you can do. It may take longer than you expect, but it will be worth it.
(4) Stay in the game. Building a business and building relationships take time. People need to get to know you before they will trust you enough to buy your services or products. It's not about you. It's about human nature - it takes 7 exposures to something before the average buyer will consider saying yes. Meanwhile, get to know where people are in their lives and what they need, and find out if you have what can help them solve their problems. Keep getting seen and heard, keep refining your skills and content and offerings, so that when the time is ripe, they will know who to contact.
