One of my friends is doing a paper on me for college. It's about a woman entrepreneur...which I happen to be. I was so flattered that she asked to do hers on me...so of course I said yes. I thought she had really good questions, so I wanted to post the Q and A here :)
-How did you come up with the name "Edub" for your company?
Edub is just my initials- EW :)
-How do you balance your priorities (family, business, leisure time, etc.)?
My family is always first. I plan work around Riley's naps and "play time." I don't work on weekends or when Sean is home, unless it's imperative that I get a design out. I work in the mornings usually and start cleaning and cooking around 4. I'm still working on finding leisure time, but I enjoy what I do, so I guess that is my leisure time!
-What kind of advice do you have for other women looking to start their own business?
For women starting their own business: Have confidence in what you are doing, and find a niche (something that people will want). Having said that, start small. I had big dreams, so it was easy for me to get overwhelmed. By just starting out with $10 jobs, I knew I could grow from there. I'm still in the growing stage, but I know I couldn't have done this if I didn't believe in what I was doing.
-How do you see the future of Edub? 5 years, 10 years down the road?
5 years- I plan to do websites in the near future, but I also want to be more knowledgeable, so I might put everything on hold to get a bachelor's degree in graphic design. I'm thinking it might take me a few years since I don't want to go full-time. In the mean time, I want to start a printing business to attract more customers (I lose some because I don't print :P) And I'm going to start a scrapbooking business.
10 years- By now, the kids will all be in school :) So, I want to do this full-time while they're at school. I also want to have a few employees to help me with the printing and designing. This is where the whole dream big thing comes into play!
-Also, could you give me a date/time frame of when you learned graphic design, then found out about etsy stores and started bidding, and when you made your own business?
Timeline: First off, I've been doing graphic design for forever, but I only used paint. My dad told me to go into graphic design, but I didn't listen :) Parents really do know what they're talking about!
February 2007- Started digital scrapbooking...realized I was pretty good at it!
August 2007- I started writing and designing my company's handbook. This is when I really got interested in graphic design.
April 2008- Moved to Arizona. My company still let me keep my job, but the business was really slow, so I mostly practiced designing while I was there!
July 2008- Lost my job with my company, so Sean and I lived off our savings for the rest of the year. I really started brainstorming about what I could do...
April 2009- Started designing logos for $10 on etsyI have since raised my prices (obviously), and I get about 2 or 3 clients a week!
If you have questions, or would like to know more, just leave a comment!!
