Wow. I didn't see that coming. The work, that is...fast, furious, and frenzied! When I launched my business back in June of this year, I figured I'd still have some time to work out the fine details like tweaking my website, creating voiceover samples and demos for my marketing and social media, and continuing to perfect (or at least streamline) my audio engineering skills before work actually started coming in on any consistent basis. Boy, was I wrong.
Wrong in the sense that I had none of that extra time, and wrong that I would be prepared for the windfall when it happened. Just like the title to this blog attests, I was busy clicking around on the aforementioned projects when the BOOM came. June and July were quiet, except for the odd job here and there as a result of the marketing that I had done to launch my business and the visibility that this gave me for a short amount of time - yay! However, August was sizzling (in more ways than one) before she ever showed up, and I wasn't prepared.
On the subject of preparation, how does one actually prepare for an onslaught of business that overwhelms you like a tsunami? One doesn't. I guess that's where that old saying 'trial by fire' actually comes from, cuz I am still smelling the smoke of the aftermath. This is the part of the blog where I mention that I am HAPPY that this work came my way, and EXCITED that I am actually rolling along in my new business! I don't want this post to give the misperception that I am feeling some kinda way other than good about my business. I am merely telling my story in the hope that someone else who is starting a business and hoping to have time to do more preparation before it takes off is here and taking notes. Yes, I was prepared enough to start my business and hang out my shingle, BUT I just didn't expect that the work would come so soon. So, back to my story. I suddenly found myself with a VERY full queue of jobs, and about 90% of them had hard and firm deadlines. My promise was to turn these projects around in record time, and I had no other choice but to deliver..and FAST! I found myself making more coffee, staying up later, and starting work before the chickens just to get it all in and delivered in time, and early if possible. And weirdly, it felt great! This crazy pace continued all throughout the month of August, and it was only after I delivered my last files before Labor Day weekend that I was able to sit back, review the amount of work I got done in a short amount of time and take a very deep inhale of satisfaction and gratitude. A sense of accomplishment began to grow, and while I definitely needed a holiday weekend with the family to recuperate and refresh myself, I felt absolutely exhilarated at the thought that my business is now officially OFFICIAL.
I guess if there's a moral to this story, it's that we should never assume that we will have time to dot all the i's and cross all the t's. We just won't. If we prepare ahead of time and step up to the plate to swing, we'd better be ready to run. Cuz maybe, just maybe, you'll hit a home run on your first time at-bat. But now I'm just mixing in more analogies.
Here's to all of you new business owners and reinvention artists out there who have been preparing to open the doors and start doin'...get ready for the BOOM, baby!
Cheers, Rho