Hello and welcome to my blog all about quitting my job and starting up my own business.

First blog posts are a bit strange.  You know that no-one except your mum and a few of your mates are going to read them.  So you feel a bit silly and self-indulgent writing great swathes of advice and anecdotes.  But that doesn’t stop you putting in hours of effort, just in case anyone else stumbles across your posts. 

Then you have that anxious anticipation, wondering how many followers you’ll get (and persuading your mum and mates to sign up from various random email addresses to boost your numbers…. ahem).

so why am I making myself do this..?

Mainly, to give me something to do whilst everyone else out there is making an honest living.

But also because even though I’ve been quite successful in my career, I always admired people who started up their own thing.  And even though I’ve helped run and shape businesses, I’ve still always had the sense that “starting a business” is this mystical thing that only natural born entrepreneurs can do.

I don’t feel like an entrepreneur.  I definitely don’t look like an entrepreneur.  Hmmmm, maybe I’m not cut out to be an entrepreneur….

how hard can it be?

I think that a lot of us (me included) are scared off by this idea that in order to be successful in business, you have to be this dynamic, well-connected, wheeler-dealer with big, game-changing ideas and ready-made speech bubbles of marketing spiel coming out of your mouth.

But then you look around and realise just how many people are starting and running their own businesses.  Your hairdresser, the local shopkeepers, your friend who does freelance graphic design.  And none of them look like Richard Branson.

So I’ve decided to write this blog to give myself a focus for starting up my own thing.  To jot down tips and advice that I find along the way and share that with you, my 3 loyal readers (thanks guys!).

I’m not a natural entrepreneur, but I am a natural encourager and if I can encourage just a couple of people to have a go at doing something for themselves, then it’ll all be worthwhile.

I would love to get feedback on posts (please play nicely!).  Also, if there are topics you’d like to know about, then shout and I’ll do my best to cover them.

Thanks for reading and hope to see you again soon.

Caroline x