Close your eyes, take a deep breath, exhale, and think about freedom…what comes up for you? I imagine myself in a giant meadow with my face looking up to the sky twirling around and trying to take it all in—are you feeling my Sound of Music vibe?
Then, my mind shifts and I am thinking of Elsa the lion cub from the movie Born Free, oh how I cried and cried with that one. Such a contrast, right? That’s kind of how I feel about being a business owner, the pendulum swings both ways.
Some of us may have had dreams of owning our own business from a very young age…who didn’t love playing with a toy cash register and grocery cart? And how good did it feel earning all that money from babysitting during the summer?
When we finally entered the workforce, we were most likely provided a uniform, trained, and thrown into the lion’s den (aka drive-thru), only to come out victorious! The older we got, the more we would start to spread our wings—we wanted to share our ideas, receive recognition and move up in the organization. This isn’t enough for everyone, some people have dreams of being their own boss.
When I ventured out to start a retail business, I didn’t have a clue of what I was doing and assumed people would figure that out and try to stop me. I remember thinking I’ll just keep moving forward until I hit a brick wall.
What I was creating was somewhat unique at the time and I didn’t even know how to define it. But nonetheless, Funky Trunk Treasures was born!
It didn’t take long to realize that every single job and skill I ever had prepared me for this moment in time.
I loved to clean and organize, I was creative and knew a lot of artists, I knew my way around Quickbooks, didn’t mind paperwork, enjoyed social media, and yeah I like meeting new people. I could do whatever I wanted when I wanted, and how I wanted. And I declared that I would wear jeans every day. So much freedom!
Remember it swings both ways…balance was usually out of reach for me, and retail is a brutal business.
Not knowing how many people would be walking through my doors on any given day, was nothing but stressful.
Managing an average of 65 artists was a job within itself, did I say I like meeting new people? Yeah, still a lot of work and stress there too
And on top of that, we were open seven days a week…The responsibility of cracking that rent nut every month had me frozen with fear most of the time.
It has been a few years since I closed those retail doors, and I still run into people all the time who tell me how they loved the store and miss it.
Some women ask me if I miss it, and honestly, I say, not for a minute. But I am proud that I pulled on my big girl panties and went after a dream—no regrets
Looking back and knowing what I know today if I had a tribe of businesswomen and resources to help prepare me, my experience could have been so much better.
No matter how things appear on the outside, we all need support and we all have the ability to lift others.
So dream big my sisters, be fearless, and fear less—you’ve got this!
Kimberly Cline is a Co-Creator, Image Guru, and Cheerleader who believes the universe is conspiring to help you prosper! Experience Connection, Growth, and Gratitude at SuccessYourWay.com.