Hey Partner!
How's your summer going?
July marks five years since I formed Moonshine Design on a hot, sweaty summer day, sitting in my parents’ living room in South Dakota while the kids watched Hamilton on Disney+.
I was side-hustling during those days while working in-house to help make ends meet. I wanted to be more professional, and being through a few layoffs before I've always appreciated a good contingency plan.
Moonshine Design was named after the Moonshine Gulch Saloon located in the old mining town of Rochford, SD.
Side note > If it seems oddly familiar to you and you’re a country fan, here’s a fun fact. Big & Rich filmed their “Big Time” video there. If you look real close, you might see an old business card of mine stapled to the ceiling.
It reminds me of my happy place on the forest service roads behind our old cabin in the Black Hills. We’d pull up now and then for an ice cream sandwich or a pop after a long dirt bike ride.
Fast-forward to today, and looking back on those early days in business, it felt like the Wild West, and mistakes were made.
As the wise Yoda would say, “The greatest teacher failure is.”
In the spirit of passing on what I've learned, here are my top five mistakes—what I did wrong, what I learned, and how I aim to fix it. I hope it helps you along your journey.
Mistake #1: Putting All My Eggs in One Basket
In the first year of my business, nearly all of my revenue came from one big whale of a client. I was busy as hell. Hustling and making good money, but then they decided to bring all the work I was doing in-house. My raging river of income dried up.
The Lesson: Diversify your client base or income stream. Clients come and go, and come back, but never make one client your whole world.
Today, I serve a diverse range of clients across multiple industries, including nonprofits, building materials manufacturers, and the toy industry. If a client needs to adjust their marketing for one reason or another, it won't devastate my business.
Mistake #2: Operating as a Lone Wolf
I worked in-house part-time remotely for 13 years (pre-pandemic) and although I was part of a team, sometimes I felt more like an outsider.
There were times I'd need feedback on project and it was radio silent. To meet the deadline I’d push forward, hoping I’d hit the mark in the dark. Sometimes I’d get lucky, mostly it meant more revisions and rework. I found this way of working lonely and isolating.
The Lesson: Collaboration and direct communication with key stakeholders leads to better outcomes. Better ideas, less rework, and stronger relationships.
Today, I go straight to the decision-maker when I have a question. If I can't reach them, I put the project on hold until I get more clarity. This way, I avoid rework and endless revisions.
I combat the isolation by surrounding myself with lots of different communities. Right away, I joined Ilise Benun’s Simplest Marketing Plan (SMP) group. I meet with creative friends on Zoom to share ideas and learn. I hip-hop like a fool in a dance class with mostly moms over 40, and I love setting off the decibel alerts hooting and hollering with the Bunco Babes.
Mistake #3: Saying Yes When I Should Say No
I’ll admit, I’ve taken on projects I wasn't the right fit for. Or, I’ve undercharged for my services and let scope creep in. I was also networking willy-nilly, scheduling meetings with unqualified leads, who sucked my time away. I’d work crazy hours to meet crazy deadlines. I wouldn’t be clear on my deliverables in estimates, leading to client confusion.
The Lesson: Set clear expectations and boundaries so you can say yes to projects and clients that are a good fit (like Log & Timber Solution above.) Be realistic about the time it takes to complete a project and what you are delivering.
With the help of my CLB and SMP communities, I tightened up my pricing and deliverables on estimates. Now, if a client doesn't have the budget I adjust the services included to fit their budget.
Mistake #4: Trying to Do It All
It’s a cliché that business owners wear lots of hats for good reason.
Once you’re done with that brochure project, it’s time to put on your social media manager hat. Oh, wait! You need to get your taxes done. Time to put on your bookkeeper hat. A client needs a video, switch to your video editor hat and so on and so on. It’s exhausting and unsustainable. Inevitably, things fall through the cracks.
The Lesson: Getting help is not only good for your mental health, but also for your bottom line, and makes for happy clients. Setting up efficientprocesses also frees up time, so you can focus on what matters most.
Ask for help. Collaborate with trusted creative partners. The above is from a recent video shoot a Summit Paint & Stain in Frisco, CO with the fabulous Randy Penn.
I’ve also fine-tuned my processes for a smoother and more efficient workflow. Asana helps me keep track of projects and deadlines. I have a sticky note system and a bullet journal for capturing ideas. Do what works for you.
Mistake #5: A Blurry Vision
I was in a state of panic and freaked out when I was restructured out of my job. I just wanted to work, I was reaching out to everyone and anyone on LinkedIn and email. I only thought of the connections as a means to an end.
I was also all over the place with my messaging. It was confusing, I was trying to talk to everyone at once—consumer products, building materials, toys, etc.
The Lesson: Your focus determines your reality.
Once I started focusing on industries that played to my strengths and had experience in the building materials and log home companies, my business began to take off. One fellow even said he called because he hunted, and the postcard I sent had a hunter on it. He felt like I totally understood him! Bingo!
That About Wraps It Up Folks…
I hope that helps you along your way. I had a lot more mistakes that didn't make it in and honestly it was hard to choose. Reply to this email and let me know what you've learned along your winding path. I'd love to hear from you.
