Overcoming Adversity to Start a Business

Ever feel like you're facing a shortage of time, a lack of funds and a laundry list of responsibilities? While some entrepreneurs may have advantages, like specific skills, money or connections that help them toward startup, most don't. Nevertheless, many entrepreneurs manage to start their businesses despite these challenges, and even in the face of larger hurdles like family illness, bankruptcy or divorce.

Life's ongoing challenges and unexpected curve balls can become an easy excuse for not moving forward with a good idea or a sound strategy to change your life. But they can also be a motivating factor when it comes to making big changes, like starting a business. Here are examples of some of the women entrepreneurs featured in my book Secrets of Millionaire Moms who've made it big, despite major roadblocks--and some advice on how you can succeed in the face of adversity, too.

No Money, No Business?
When Karen Belasco founded her cookie company, Good Fortunes, in 1995, she didn't have money to spare. But demand for her giant fortune cookies dipped in chocolate--a confection she created for a party she'd planned--soon took over. Rather than say "no" to the many requests for more, she took a risk, borrowing money from family members to get the business off the ground. Since then, Good Fortunes has grown to become a multimillion-dollar business with a significant list of celebrities and Hollywood studios as clients, among devotees across the country.

Like Belasco, many entrepreneurs start with little money. In fact, women often go into business to create a livelihood on their own terms. No family to borrow from? There are other methods to finding the money you need, including increasing your current earnings, cutting and stretching your budget, obtaining personal loans through mortgages or credit cards, finding investors, finding a partner, trading services, vendor credit or securing a business loan.

Personal Hurdles
Rachel Ashwell founded her highly successful business, Shabby Chic, as a newly separated mother of two children under the age of 2. She needed a way to support herself, so she took a chance on her business idea, scouting flea markets, babies by her side, to buy furniture she could refinish and sell. She worked through these initial hurdles, eventually growing her empire to include retail stores, a brand of furniture and accessories, five design books, a TV show and a licensed line of products, Simply Shabby Chic, sold exclusively through Target.

Another successful entrepreneur, Madelyn Alfano, was opening her second restaurant in the late 1980s when her baby, Max, was diagnosed with a genetic disability that would require a great deal of medical attention and personal care. Despite the emotional hurdles in her life, which would also include a divorce, and the time she needed to devote to Max, Alfano simultaneously grew her business, Maria's Italian Kitchen, to include 10 highly successful restaurants and became one of California's top women restaurateurs. Today, she says, her personal obstacles have made her a better businesswoman and a more patient employer. And her success now allows her to give back to causes she supports, one of which includes helping other children with disabilities.

Personal challenges will always threaten to get in the way of business, no matter what you do for a living. However, if you believe your efforts and hard work will put you in a position to help you and your family, you can persevere. In fact, it's often these personal challenges that motivate entrepreneurs to achieve more. Many successful women entrepreneurs have told me that working toward a larger goal can serve as a purpose to get up each morning, even when other parts of their lives aren't going smoothly.

Lack of Time
Teri Gault was working three jobs to support her family when she came up with the idea for The Grocery Game, a web-based service that helps consumers save hundreds of dollars on their monthly grocery bills. She says starting the company basically meant a total lack of free time and very little sleep, as she used every extra minute to make her business a reality. Today, The Grocery Game is a multimillion-dollar company and her time is much more flexible.

The words "mom" and "weekend entrepreneur" seldom conjure up images of free time. And most women I know--whether they work outside the home or not--are already multitasking to the max. But with all those juggling skills down pat, women also have the wherewithal to handle a lot at one time. And that's exactly what an entrepreneur does on a daily basis--juggles tasks, takes on new challenges, faces unexpected crises and solves problems.

When it comes to finding the time to start a business, prioritizing your to-do list is critical. Unfortunately, some activities may need to take the back burner for a while, like hobbies, dates with friends, social events and, yes, even sleep. Balance will be off for a while and you may need to learn to put your guilt in the linen closet, but if you're committed and want to make it happen, it won't feel like as much of a sacrifice.