Day 6: “My breasts have had a brilliant career. I’ve just tagged along for the ride.” – Pamela Anderson, an actress of advanced proportions
This quote helped changed my impression of Pamela Anderson. I respect people who can laugh at themselves, but more importantly, there’s something to be said for knowing your strengths and your best, ahem, assets.
That’s easier said than done, especially for entrepreneurs. We have to excel at many things besides our core competencies. Yes, it would be great to be able to outsource those tasks that we don’t like or aren’t good at, but sometimes, especially if you’re bootstrapping, there’s little to no budget.
Of course, the first step is recognizing those weaknesses in the first place. I’m a dreamer first, a writer second, and a marketer third. Sales, until recently, has been way down on my list of abilities. Organization, while I know how to do it, is one of my least favorite activities. And while I get a kick out of building my website and love saying “I did that!” I am NOT a developer, nor am I a designer. By doing it all myself, The Local Tourist‘s growth has been admittedly slower than it could have been.
But now TLT is skyrocketing. It’s becoming one of those “overnight success stories” that took a decade to be told. Why? What’s the difference?
I’m getting out of my own way. I’ve realized that bartering is great. Getting a great price on a new server allowed me to hire developers to help me move the site to its new home, and now I have a go-to team when I need tech help. This year I’m partnering with designers who are going to take the site to the next level. I’ve focused a great deal of my energies on building my “TLTeam”, a growing group of contributors who are writing about Chicago. While I love writing, to build a business I have to let others do what they do well so I can take those big dreams and make them reality.
It’s a challenge, realizing that there are things I’m just not good at and letting others take the lead. I’m sure it wasn’t easy for Ms. Anderson to admit that she’s not the best actress in the world. But boy, does she have some amazing breasts, so why not use them for all their worth?
My grandma always said “If you’ve got it, flaunt it.” It works for fashion; it works for business. Wise woman. And so, apparently, is Pamela Anderson.
This is Day 6 of my attempt to write a blog post for every day of the year, prompted by “Wild Words from Wild Women“.