Ten years ago, I started Noesis Marketing. I had never thought of myself as an entrepreneur or launching a business before then. For seven years prior to that, I had been working remotely for an international company. When that came to an end I began interviewing for a new position, but somehow my heart wasn’t in it. It wasn’t that the positions weren’t of interest. I realized that I didn’t want to go back to an office work environment (sound familiar?). Even though I had people reporting to me and I had a boss, I had basically been on my own for so many years and I didn’t want that to end.
It is often said that life is a journey but owning my own business has been a journey in and of itself. When I started, I felt a bit intimidated. Moments of imposter syndrome would creep into my head.
Probably the biggest thing I learned is that there’s more to running your own business than just being good at something. What, I have to sell myself? The work won’t be there waiting for me on my desk?
I’ve learned about tools that make it easier to run my business and help serve my clients better. But more importantly, as I celebrate the 10th year since I launched my business, it's a good time to reflect on what’s important and what has had a positive impact on my business. Here are some of the ah-ha moments that I have realized along the way.
- My experience in the corporate world has served me better than I expected it would.
- I now know what I like to do and what I don’t like to do, and I have developed my business around that.
- No client is exactly like another, even in the same industry.
- Some things about me will never change. I’ll never be comfortable working a room, but I can easily create meaningful relationships with people one-on-one or one-on-a-few.
- I’ve learned how important it is to listen, and I hone my skills for this every day.
- What sets me apart from others in my field has become clear to me, which helps me focus my business development efforts.
- Management is one of my strengths. I am really good at keeping things on track and moving things forward.
- It’s important to take time for me and my personal pursuits.
- I’ve developed meaningful relationships with so many great people and I hope they will continue for years to come.
I’m looking forward to the discoveries I will make over the next 10 years!
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Deborah D Clark,DTM (Thursday, 17 March 2022 11:08)
Congratulations Nina! So happy you are safe & doing well. So happy for you!