Puke Packs & Sick Sacks: When Entrepreneurship Strikes - Seek Peer Support!

Meet Jen Jenkins. A long-time friend from growing up. She was the head of our high school student council. You just knew she would go on to do good work. She was (and still is!), as they say, a total "doer."

After a long career in the non-profit world, Jen got inspired to start her own company. Oddly, it was while she was sick as a dog, alone, on the couch of her D.C. apartment and far away from loved ones. [Here's the story in the Washington Post.] Her idea? To create MommaLu Remedies - company that sells beautifully designed care packages that can be sent to sick people in their homes, away at school or picked up while traveling, for a little TLC. [Watch this video of her company getting featured to see how it works.]

The Secret Weapon to Entrepreneurial Success: Peer Support

When Jen called and told me she was doing it, I was thrilled for her. I have so much respect for ANYONE who decides to give entrepreneurship a try. It's tough, very tough, to start your own business. Most people just don't have the patience, confidence, and stamina to do it. But Jen, as I told you, is a doer. I know she will keep growing and learning as an entrepreneur until she makes it.

The funny thing is, the longer I'm an entrepreneur, the more comfortable I get with the reality that I don't have all the answers. I've learned to just keep pushing forward until I make progress. However, what I do need is peers who understand what I'm going through and can motivate me to keep going. People I can talk with who can offer up their own experiences to help me find the answers I'm looking for. The bigger my business gets, the more I find myself reaching out to other entrepreneurs to get their perspective. Peer support is a secret weapon for entrepreneurial success! Sometimes, just talking about my situation and challenges with another entrepreneur is all I need to move forward.

Jen Offers Some Entrepreneurial Peer Support

[This picture is Jen with her Mom, the inspiration behind MommaLu Remedies.]

Recently, while updating each other on our business progress, I asked Jen three questions about her early experiences as an entrepreneur. I wanted to share them with you. It's a good reminder to all of those out there thinking about starting their own company what they can expect - and a way to give you a little peer support too!

What's the hardest part about starting your own business?

"There are so many challenges when starting your own company because there are so many details and "firsts" to face - but I definitely think the rewards outweigh the difficulties. I would say that probably the hardest part about starting my own business was taking the plunge and finally making the decision to take the risk to focus full-time on creating a successful venture. Especially since I had never done anything like this before and my previous career and experience was completely unrelated. Stepping away from stability and a regular paycheck is scary! But, so far, the journey has been really exciting - (and there is a long way to go.) I will say that securing financing has been surprisingly difficult as the expectation of banks and investors is that your company has to be established for a number of years with lots of sales before securing a loan. This makes it difficult since most start-ups need the initial capital to get things going."

What's the worst thing someone ever said to try to dissuade you from going out on your own?

"After making the decision to move forward with the idea and to build MommaLu, many friends reacted: "Oh…...you're actually doing that???" I wouldn't say this was the worst thing, but it did make me question their original support of the idea! I also met with a ton of people with various backgrounds to get advice before and after the launch (I'm still doing this!) Post-launch I met with a couple of successful businessmen who told me it would "never work" -- This was discouraging and I thought a lot about their advice, but I also felt confident in the market research I had conducted and the business plan I had prepared prior to the launch. And, mainly I went with my gut."

What's the most surprising upside to starting your own company?

"Seeing and hearing positive feedback about my very own original idea from complete strangers is so rewarding! I try not to act surprised when people say, "Brilliant idea!" or when they love the packaging, but I really have to suppress my surprise. I love knowing that I've created something that makes people smile. I've also been pleasantly surprised with the amount of help and support friends and friends of friends have provided. It is so nice to know there are so many people out there who are willing to take the time to help!"

I'm sure Jen will have her fair share of challenges, all of us entrepreneurs do. But, nobody can ever take away the fact she stepped up and took her entrepreneurial idea to the next level. An achievement she can always be proud of. More importantly, she is building her peer network, one entrepreneur at a time. Something I know will help her achieve even more success on her own terms!

If you want to read more of what I've written, check out my articles on Inc.com.

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Some other posts I've written:

• 10 Things Recruiter Won’t Tell You (But I Will)
• 4 Words Control Your Career Decisions
• Worst LinkedIn Summary Ever
• 10 Reasons Happy People Get More Job Opportunities
• 3 Techniques To Fight Unemployment Stigma

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