It takes a special person to be an entrepreneur.  For most business owners, the “work-life balance” concept is just a fictional story that people write about.  It’s a fun concept to think about, but even on vacation, you are constantly concerned or thinking about your business.  You will lose sleep over your business and likely prematurely age.  After the first year of operating my business, I swear I looked ten years older than I actually was.  Many resources are available to help you along the way to starting your business.  The Small Business Administration has many great resources explaining the nuts and bolts of starting a business.  I will share a few things I learned along the way from the School of Hard Knocks.

1) Do a self-inventory before you jump in

Do you have what it takes to start a business?  You may have the greatest idea, concept, or plan, but it takes certain personality traits to launch and run a business.  Are you self-motivated?  Confident?  Resilient?  Self-disciplined?  Humble?  Goal-Oriented?  Do you have a good support system?  There is a certain amount of inner emotional strength that you will need.  I can’t begin to tell you how many highly emotional moments my business created for me.

When they say blood, sweat, & tears, that is not just a saying but is very literal for many entrepreneurs.  I put all three of those into my business.  I clearly recall the Saturday morning I came into work to find my entire center flooded from a burst pipe.  I had an entire schedule of parties booked that weekend (one even traveling down from Canada), and the full team was looking to me for leadership.  After calling a restoration company and an insurance company and breaking numerous little kids’ hearts when I had to cancel their birthday parties, I went into my office, locked the door, and cried.  It was a devastating moment.  Another very emotional moment was our terrible month; the cash flow wasn’t there. 

As I transferred money from my kids’ savings accounts to pay employees, I felt overwhelmed. Many workers were unappreciative, and some even stole from me. I couldn’t help but cry. Not all moments in business are sad or tough. During these times, you rely on your support system and inner strength to help you reach the next positive moment. 

Sometimes, you feel like quitting and giving up, but it’s not like a job where you can just put in your two-week notice.  You must have the drive to push through and keep moving forward.  Your staff and customers depend on you, which is a heavy load. Before I opened my business, one of my good friends said, “Careful, it’s really lonely at the top.”  Boy, was she right!  You don’t truly understand that statement until you live that life. However, anyone with a business knows what she means.                     

2) Write a business plan & identify your market

This is harder than it sounds.  Here, the trick is to offer what people want to buy, not what YOU want to sell.  These are sometimes different.  This is where a very accurate feasibility study comes into play.  Especially in the amusement industry, what you want to offer and what your area will support may differ.  I encourage you to focus on a niche.  One of my biggest mistakes was thinking I’d have a better chance of success if I tried to be everything to everybody.  That is typically not true.  Even in the restaurant industry, it’s much better to be known as THE place to go for XX than to have such a diverse menu where everything is average.  So, figure out what people want to buy, create your niche, and be the BEST at that one thing rather than just average at many things.     

3) Money! 

Determine your costs and budget.  Yes, I know this is more nuts and bolts of starting a business, but make sure you overestimate expenses and underestimate revenues when planning.  When you are excited and passionate about a project, you tend to get to the point where you are just trying to get the numbers to work for the bank loan.  The banks have such strict guidelines because they protect their assets, as should you.  Step back from the excitement, consider the break-even point, and think about potential failure.

96% of businesses fail within the first ten years.  80% fail within the first 18 months.  Does that mean you shouldn’t start a business?  No.  It simply means that you need to conduct thorough research.  Have plans B, C, & D.  What is your plan to pay off debt if your business doesn’t make it?  What is your plan to support your family if your business doesn’t make it?  Pay special attention to ensure you have sufficient cash flow and working capital.  Get the cash flowing into your business quickly.  Vendors don’t care about your EBITDA or profits if you can’t pay your bills.  After you are open, find new ways to save money to increase your revenues exponentially.  This is a relatively simple concept, but it’s not always easy to apply.  Make more…spend less.  To increase revenue, you have essentially three options. 

1. Raise prices (get your customers used to this from the start).  Prices should creep up with inflation, and your guests shouldn’t expect the price to be the same for ten years unless you set that expectation.  Don’t do that.  Your expenses will increase with inflation, so the cost of goods and services must also rise accordingly.
2. Attract more visitors to your center and encourage them to spend more time. This can be achieved through targeted promotions, effective packaging, and strategic upselling. 
3. Attract more visitors to your center.  This can be achieved through effective sales and marketing.

4) Don’t get into the discounting trap – add value.

I have seen businesses that open with a discount and continue to discount as they go, often discounting themselves out of business.  Again, you have been setting expectations with your guests from day 1.  If they expect a coupon or discount every time they come in, you will soon see that they will be waiting for the following one before they come, and they will not come without one.  You also cheapen your product/service and attract a different clientele than perhaps you want.  I’m not saying that you shouldn’t run promotions, but be careful that they add value rather than a discount. 

These need to be targeted promotions with a clear start and end date, as well as a call to action.  This should either entice someone to spend more than they were originally planning to spend or entice them to come to your facility when they wouldn’t usually have come.  Ensure you aren’t “discounting at the door” or offering guests a discount for something they were already prepared to pay full price.  Be sure to test and measure everything that you do.  Get actual data on how your promotion did.  Was it successful?  How do you measure that?           

5) Focus on sales & marketing

Marketing is becoming increasingly more complex, yet also simpler at the same time.  Social media makes it easy for business owners to interact with their guests.  It is also very easy for them to mess it up.  There are many mediums to use; you must have the knowledge and skills to measure your sales and marketing campaigns.  Again, just like specializing in your niche in the industry, if you are not a marketing expert, it may be more beneficial to hire an expert to take care of this for you than to try to do it yourself. 

A good marketing campaign that is tested and measured is worth its weight in gold.  The same thing goes for sales.  Typically, in our industry, when discussing sales, we usually discuss group sales.  Hire a skilled group salesperson and make this a primary focus.  Again, test and measure their success.  Both positions will attract more people to your door, thereby increasing your revenues.  A good salesperson is like a good accountant; they will generate more revenue than it costs to have them on your team.     

6) Learning more = Earning more

Earlier, I mentioned being humble as a trait for entrepreneurship, but honestly, it is a trait that any great leader must have.  True leaders don’t ever think that they know everything already.  Einstein said, “Once you stop learning, you start dying.”  I believe that is true, and you can learn something from everyone you encounter.  My kids always teach me lessons all the time… (although sometimes it’s a lesson in patience).  It would be best if you were open to learning and actually seeking it out.  

7) Get a coach

Top CEOs, politicians, and public figures invest in a business coach.  Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, and the CEO of Intuit have all utilized business coaches and acknowledge that they serve a vital purpose.  A good coach will not only provide you with objective feedback, but they can also broaden your network and offer fresh ideas.  

Although starting your own business may not be for everyone, these few things provide more insight, so you can be better prepared than I was if you decide to take that leap.  There is so much more to opening and running your own business that I couldn’t possibly discuss everything in this article.  However, if you’re considering this and would like someone to run ideas by, feel free to drop me an email, and I’d be happy to discuss my experiences further with you.   

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