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How I Quit My Day Job

How I Quit My Day Job

As a military spouse you may dream of starting a business that will sustain you through every move.  My business came in the desperation to work from home while caring for my injured soldier.  I became instantly successful; quit my day job in nine months, and five years later business is wildly successful.  Want to know the secret?  I don’t have it!  This article is not going to tell you how to create the American dream and become a top entrepreneur.  I am going to tell you the one thing I did right, and then everything that I did wrong so that you do not make the same mistakes I did.

The right thing that I did was clearly define my why and I stuck to it.  Throughout the years many would tell me that I should grow, or switch my products to overseas manufacturers.  My why included working from home; not growing it out of the house and adding employees.  Even when tempted I stood my ground and resisted the offers.  My why got me through 16-hour days, dealing with people that didn’t understand what we were going through transitioning out of the military, and balancing duties as a wife and entrepreneur. Staying true to my why made me successful beyond my dreams.

Now, that we established the most important thing before starting your business, here is a list of what I did wrong so that you do not make the same mistakes. Check out the links on the bottom of the article to give you the resources that I wished I had when I started my milspouse business:

  1. I did not create a business plan.
  2. I did it alone. I never, ever asked for help. I taught the business to myself with YouTube videos.  I stuck to what I could learn online rather than reach out for help.
  3. I didn’t get a mentor.
  4. I didn’t create my tribe. I isolated myself and forgot to enjoy life. I ended up depressed and burned out.
  5. No back up plan – I created a revenue stream based on one platform.
  6. I didn’t say no to my customers and I gave away too much for free……gifts, coupons, discounts; I give away so much for free to friends and family and it put me in a financial bind.
  7. I never taught anyone to how do my job.
  8. I cried too much. Just let stuff go.
  9. I didn’t plan for my financial future.
  10. I didn’t plan for success; which happened faster than I had a foundation for my business.

Write down your why… create a vision board…look at it when you’re in get discouraged…rely on your tribe…ask for help.

Here are the free classes that I took to become a successful entrepreneur:

https://www.missionnextvtc.com/

Join our military spouse Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/americandreamumilitaryspouse/

Connect with me or learn more about our program:

schuyler@americandreamu.org

 

 

 

 

Phil Randazzo

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