The Art of Starting

So, we are open for business. As luck would have it we are looking for exactly that... business. I wish I could tell you that we had an amazing plan. I wish I could tell you we know exactly what we are doing. I wish I could tell you we have an array of clients singing our praises. But the reality is we have none of those things, we are a start up and we are flying by the seat of our pants. I don't want to scare any of you business owners that might be considering using our services. Make no mistake we can do the work, we will not stop until your project exceeds your expectations. But I don't want any reader to think that we have pinpointed our perfect strategic plan. Because right now, as I write this, we are freaking out.

So we have a business license and a UBI number, what's next? You see, like most start ups we formed out of necessity. I was let go from a Fortune 500 company and my partner was working a job that he could no longer physically perform. So we said "Hey, I know what we should do, we should start a marketing company, you know one that builds websites, and does branding, stuff like that." And E:35 Creative www.e35creative.com was born. There was no great choir of angels and no red ribbon cut with cartoonishly large scissors. It was the just the two of us, with a nervous blessing from our wives, saying "Yeah, we can do this."

The actual "work" part of business isn't the problem. We can execute the work, get it done on time, and within budget. The problem is that nagging doubt that we can be successful in this economy given our lack of a plan. While ingenuity, passion, and nose-to-the-grindstone work is certainly needed, none of those traits replace strategy, right? Because right now our strategy is, "let's go sell some stuff." That's a little over the top, but not a complete exaggeration. My father, a brilliant consultant and strategist is shaking his proverbial head. Or maybe his literal head. Regardless, there's shaking going on.

While my stomach has been in knots since we made the decision, it is drowned out by the stories I've read about companies becoming incredibly successful by any measure simply because the owner had the guts to take a risk. The plan fell into place later, the strategy made itself known and the clients started calling. None of which would have happened if they didn't say "Hey, I have and idea..."