On Starting My Own Business (and Failing)

This is my first post in what will be an ongoing series related to [practical] Customer Experience [CX]. This particular post is to give some background on where things started for me, but does not directly relate to CX except that it’s where my journey began with customer-centric initiatives.

I threw away a promising and lucrative career in finance IT. I was young, and not nearly as smart or as capable as I believed myself to be. I was driven and excited by entrepreneurial fantasies, fascinating technologies, and having my own products and solutions. I was dreaming big, and that part was okay.

I was one year out of college and left my job and started my own business in the medical device industry with my father and one other person (both were industry veterans with a wealth of knowledge, relationships, and sales acumen). I was consumed by providing flawless service, managing product development, and engaging in process improvement. I largely ignored marketing, sales, and finances, as these were the domain of my partners.

I chose to focus on what truly excited me, without accepting any accountability for the big picture. In hindsight, there were a number of things I could have done to improve the health of the business: supporting marketing efforts; lead generation; and trying to close sales. I could have spent less money on product development and process improvement. I could have better learned the ins and outs of managing the business finances and taking the long view in terms of what needed to be prioritized. If I had to, I could go on for a long time about everything I could have done differently.

It’s easy to lament about what one could have done differently, but it’s an important exercise anyway, otherwise what was the value of the experience? On the plus side, the laundry list of missteps I made were not in vain, and the experience provided me with perspective and humility. 

Succeeding in my own bootstrapped startup would have been amazing. But, cliché as it is, it was the journey that has provided value and has been something I have drawn from in every other endeavor I’ve had since then. 

If any entrepreneurs, small business owners, or someone thinking about starting their own business has any questions or is looking for a new perspective or some advice, leave a comment or send me a message and I’m happy to help.