How Many Toilets Would You Clean?

To What Lengths Would You Go To Make Your Business A Success?

At 26, Indie Beauty Network member Lela Barker was a newly divorced, unemployed college drop out and the single mother of two toddlers. When most people in her position would have been looking for the nearest secretarial job, Lela was starting her business. She landed an order with a local spa, which covered payment to a website designer. But she still needed good product photos.

          

So she called on her aunt, an expert photographer. But Lela didn't go to Auntie for a handout. Instead, she offered to clean her house from top to bottom in exchange for some product photos. One Friday night, Lela dropped her children off at a relative’s house and drove several hundred miles to her aunt’s house where she spent the entire weekend cleaning toilets, polishing furniture and mopping floors.

She returned home Sunday night with beautiful product photos. Today, her business at Bella Lucce is thriving, taking Lela from across the country and even on numerous trips to the Middle East where her products have taken off.

What's Lela got to do with cleaning toilets? Bear with me and read on.

Yesterday, I got a call from someone who said, "I just need 15 minutes of your time to ask you some questions about starting my business." I referred her to Indie Business Radio where there are hundreds of hours of interviews with experts on everything from trademarks to business taxes to search engine optimization. I referred her to government wesites with introductions to the information she needed, and told her how valuable her local SBA office could be. I referred her to this blog for everything from Indie Business tips to places to apply for seed money. But, she just wanted to talk to me for 15 minutes. I was flattered, and told her my fee. She abruptly concluded the call.

Lela's business is successful in part because she was willing to clean toilets to get ahead, with no guarantee of success. She had no money, yet she gave up something of value, time away from her kids with her head stuck in a toilet, in exchange for someone else's expertise.

I wonder how far yesterday's caller will get in business. I can understand having no money. I've been there, and the budget is still stressed from time to time. But what I can't understand is wanting someone to invest in you when you are clearly not willing to invest in yourself.

Lela could have asked Auntie for free product photos, and maybe Auntie would have obliged. But the fact that she offered something in exchange, even though it was not money, demonstrates that from the beginning, Lela had the kind of character and determination that would be necessary to make her business successful.

So don't expect handouts. Focus on the assets you have and how you can make them work in your favor. And if you want advice, services or products from someone else but you have no money, bring something to the party so you can at least offer something of value in exchange for their investment in you.

And while you’re at it, ask this all-important question:  How many toilets are you willing to clean in order to make your dream business a reality? If the answer is "none," then don't quit your day job.