By Chrissie VanWormer
Sometimes, when we’re feeling the pressures of running a small business, we get so caught up in worrying about when the next check will come in, fretting over an employee who seems to be falling down on the job, or maybe focusing on a customer who is trying to micro-manage a project, that we forget why we even started doing our businesses in the first place.
We’re tired. Maybe we’re feeling a little ragged around the edges and sometimes we even find ourselves glorifying the job we left when we decided to strike out on our own. Remember how nice it was to work 9 to 5? Oh, and regular time off. Wow, what a treat that would be! I have a friend who runs a small auto repair shop and he often jokes about having to take a paid sick day. Yup, he says a paid sick day is one of those days that you work with a stomach virus because you need to get paid!
I’d like to share a true story. I have a friend who is a very talented clothing designer. She has run her own business for a number of years now but recently found herself struggling to maintain her faith in herself. Her coffers were depleted, jobs were not coming in and she needed money to start what she knew would be a great collection of her own designs. She was sure she could make it happen but as the song goes; she was “running low on faith and gasoline”.
Right around Christmas time last year, she took a drive to New York City for a visit to the fabric district which just happens to be her own personal nirvana. She had shopped all day and was feeling exhausted so decided to stop for a cup of tea. As she sat contemplating her dream and the outcome of the day, a feeling of discouragement washed over her. Why couldn’t anything be easy? She sent up a little prayer that went something like this: “I’m sure I can make this happen but I’m running out of steam. I don’t know what to do. Please send me a sign that gives some kind of an indication that I’m on the right track.” As she doodled on a coffee shop napkin, a Salvation Army Santa rang a bell outside the window. Suddenly a bright light flashed on just across the street causing her to look up. The red, yellow, blue and green and white lights practically shouted, “Believe!” There it was; a sign…both literally and figuratively.
So what's the point of all of this? Making a small business work is hard... and many times it takes everything we have. And let’s face it, some days really stink. But in the end, if we BELIEVE we can make it happen and we’re smart about how we do it, we CAN make it happen. Life is a lot about believing; believing in ourselves and the gifts God gave us. The doing is taking that proverbial bull by the horns and making it happen. Is it easy? Absolutely not. Is it fulfilling? You bet!
