Let Me Break Off a Lil' Entrepreneurship 101
(Excerpt from my book "Her Hustle is Holy: How to Start a Business God's Way and Live Your Best Life!). Click here to purchase your copy!
Starting a new business is exciting! I might be one of those you would call a serial entrepreneur because I always have business ideas flowing through my head waiting for the right time to launch.
I own at least 100 domains because as business ideas come, I will usually right away secure a domain name related to that business idea should I decide to pull the trigger down the road. May as well be prepared. Some folks even buy and sell domains as a side hustle!
After years of working in Corporate America without much fulfillment and a strong desire to be my own boss, I started my first business over 20 years ago, a model and talent agency called Brown Sugar & Spice Talent Management. I’ve always had a passion for the business side of the entertainment industry. My oldest son did some acting and modeling for a talent agency in our hometown, so I had some exposure to the business but not a lot of hands-on experience before launching my agency.
My agency focused on managing talent of color, as it was needed in my hometown, hence the name Brown Sugar & Spice Talent Management. While on production sets with my son, I was often asked if I had family or friends who could join a production already in progress as they wanted more minority representation. At that time, I was in college, but it was something that I noted and tabled in the deep recesses of my mind. I had a college degree to obtain!
Welcome and come on in the room! You are at the right place, in the right season. It’s time to start your business God’s way! It’s likely that God implanted a vision in your heart to start a business. He may have even given you the blueprint or glimpses of it and told you that is what you are purposed to do, and now it has been impressed upon your heart that now is the time to start. Well, you already have! By reading this book, you have taken that first leap of faith in starting your business. Congratulations! Raise your hands in the air and wave ‘em around like you just don’t care who is watching because God deserves all the praise!
You are a rare breed. Trust me, by reading this book, you’ve already done the hard part .... starting! Most people never take that first step toward entrepreneurship. They get stuck somewhere between the thought of the idea and turning their thought into action. They fail to join their faith with God and realize their dream of starting a business. They fail to learn the skills and adopt the tools needed for successful entrepreneurship. Instead, their dreams and visions lay dormant for years, unrealized, and their purpose unfulfilled. In fact, many dreams have ended up in the richest place on earth--the graveyard. Don’t let that be you.
You see, the graveyard is full of potential that was not realized. It’s full of multi-billion dollar businesses that never launched. It’s full of cures for all types of diseases that were never made available to the sick and dying. It’s full of solutions for many societal problems and consumer needs that could have stopped many insanities or improved quality of life. Unfortunately, the graveyard is where so many God-given creative ideas and witty inventions died a slow death and will never see the light of day. But by reading this book and starting your entrepreneurial journey, you are boldly declaring, “No, sir, no, ma’am, not me, not my dreams, not my purpose! I will not let my dream and purpose slowly rot in the grave!” Give yourself a high-five; you deserve it!
Starting a business is fundamentally about recognizing a problem and finding a solution. Newsflash! It isn’t something you do just because it sounds good or someone told you it is a good idea. Solving problems is where the money is at!
Creating a business requires clarity on the exact problem you solve, but first, you must understand your ideal customer’s “pain point(s).” Pain points are specific problems or challenges your customers face that they need solutions for. Understanding these pain points is crucial to starting a successful business, as it allows you to create products or services that directly address your customer’s needs.
Identifying and addressing pain points involves actively listening to your audience, observing their behaviors, and understanding their frustrations, inefficiencies, or gaps in their current options. You must know your ideal customer in and out, through and through, but more on that later. By addressing pain points, businesses create deeper customer loyalty and make themselves indispensable. Many successful businesses have been started on this very premise of solving pain points.
A common example is Uber, which solved the problem of unreliable and inconvenient taxi services. Airbnb solved the problem of limited, quality lodging options for travelers. Spanx solved the problem of finding comfortable and effective shapewear under white pants. Warby Parker, Vooglam, and Zeelool solved the problem of expensive prescription eyewear. Jeff Bezos, when creating Amazon, did his homework and understood the immense growth of the internet and the number of consumers online who were looking for products to purchase from their laptops in the convenience of their own homes, without the need to drive to a crowded mall, and wander around mindlessly.
Speaking of wandering around. Who remembers the problem we all experienced back in the day, walking around a video store for hours, being unable to find your favorite video for both mom and dad and the kids, and everybody trying to come to a consensus? Netflix understood our pain and rescued us by offering a DVD-by-mail service, which later became a streaming service. Now, can you imagine a world without Netflix?
To read more about my experiences and entrepreneurship 101 concepts you need to know, click here to purchase your copy of my book "Her Hustle is Holy: How to Start a Business God's Way and Live Your Best Life!"
