Welcome to the tough and exciting path of starting your own business where a person with a single idea tries to shake things up make a difference and change the way things are done. My journey from a person full of dreams to someone who runs a business is long and surprising and has its share of ups and downs.
Coming up with an idea is like bringing a baby into the world. It is delicate and full of promise and needs a lot of care to grow. I started with a simple idea for a mobile app that would link farmers in the countryside to people living in the city. I came up with the name FairFarm while driving alone through the flat fields of the Midwest.
Bringing an idea to life takes a lot of research planning and careful thought. The way people talked felt strange to me and made me a bit uncomfortable. Words like market validation and competitive analysis felt totally unfamiliar to me but I jumped right in wanting to get a grip on what was going on. I used things like industry reports online classes and advice from experienced business people.
The path to starting a business is rarely straightforward. I worked a few part-time jobs in marketing to save up for my business. I spent a lot of late nights learning about technology and figuring out UX/UI designs and scrum development. Every time I got a cheque I moved a little bit closer to finishing my first FairFarm prototype. When it was finally set up it ended up crashing way more than it actually functioned.
Then it was time for the tough world of startups: trying to get money from investors My first pitch went really badly. The tough questions showed problems in my business plan and made me question what I was trying to achieve. This was a key moment in my journey. I found out that my ability to last and adjust was really put to the test and I realized I had to change my approach instead of just throwing it away.
Getting into the market was a tough task. Farmers and consumers were doubtful and the updates kept having problems while we watched our money run low. This experience showed me how to negotiate better deal with people and understand what others expect from me. I also realized that achieving goals takes time and effort.
After putting in a lot of effort over the years FairFarm slowly started to gain some attention. We got more money to keep going and started doing more things while our number of users kept increasing. These days FairFarm is a popular app in the Midwest that helps people get fresh fruits and vegetables directly from local farms.
When I think about the past I appreciate all the mistakes I made all the times I stumbled and all the moments when I questioned myself. Starting a business is a tough journey full of unknowns but if you keep going you might find a sense of freedom that feels exciting. Success isn't only about chasing your own goals. It's also about making a difference for others. I can confidently say that I run my own business.
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