A Reflection on Entrepreneurial Experiences

A little bit of background on how I got into entrepreneurship: it started with me braiding hair. That was the first business I ever ran when I was a teenager. My parents didn’t really help me when it came to doing my hair, so I had to learn how to do my own hair. People saw the styles that I was doing to my own hair, so they wanted me to do theirs. This eventually led to me taking photos of my hair and my clients’ hair and uploading them on Tumblr and Craigslist. I was getting more customers online through those platforms.

I took an on-and-off break from doing hair, but I’ll get back to where braiding hair got me in a second. A couple of years later, I ended up in a domestic violence shelter. Through the arts and crafts sessions we had there, I wanted to take the hats I was using, take pictures of them, and upload them to Etsy.com to sell my products. I tried making necklaces and jewelry and uploaded everything onto Etsy, but it never really took off. I made maybe two sales while using Etsy, but I enjoyed creating the site, taking photos, uploading pictures, and crafting different descriptions to promote my business.

It was the same for braiding hair; I enjoyed using Tumblr and learning how it worked to promote my business. Eventually, I moved on from doing hair to photography. I used Craigslist to showcase my work and search for gigs. I got hired for a few events, including a fashion show. However, I realized that the equipment I had was super basic, which made me wish I had the confidence to use it effectively. At that time, I didn’t feel that way, so I ended up quitting photography and returned to braiding hair.

I would travel to braid hair and put out many ads on Craigslist, testing different approaches to see which ads worked best. While on Craigslist, I found a program that helps people enter the tech field. I took the program and started a blog called Chicago Art Life Media on Blogger, Google’s blogging platform. What I loved doing was going around Chicago, attending different events, taking pictures and recording videos of those events, then blogging about them.

By the time I graduated from the IC Stars program, I wanted to be a blogger highlighting various resources and events related to art and tech in Chicago. However, after graduating from IC Stars, I was convinced to take a corporate job because in order for me to be a boss, I needed to learn how to be an employee. So, I started my first job at ThoughtWorks as a quality analyst. Initially, I loved it; learning about different tools for testing websites and working with team members on various projects was fulfilling.

Four years later, I felt the itch to leave and wanted something different. I did another program through IC Stars called Enterprise Next, where we discussed what type of business we wanted to run using the Lean Startup model. My idea at that time, was a co-working space for mothers that included daycare services—a safe space for women entrepreneurs where they wouldn’t have to constantly worry about childcare. However, due to insurance policies and regulations regarding daycare services, I realized it would be too hard to start this type of business.

I then got into social media management for others but soon discovered that many people didn’t want to create their own content; they preferred handing it off lazily. While I generated numerous ideas, back then people wanted behind-the-scenes glimpses of those running businesses rather than generic content. It was difficult to convince clients to show their faces or share what happened behind the scenes.

So, I stepped back from social media management but realized that web design could be a viable way for me to earn money. Over the years, I’ve learned about various systems—my common thread being platforms like Craigslist, Tumblr, Etsy, Blogger, WordPress, and Squarespace. I’ve spent countless hours understanding how these platforms function and their features; for instance, Shopify is better for e-commerce businesses while WordPress suits more established businesses.

I began offering web design services where my differentiator was explaining complex systems like WordPress and Zapier in simple terms so clients could understand how these systems would benefit them or solve their problems. For example, one client needed help migrating multiple websites from her GoDaddy account into separate accounts for her customers; this involved downloading files onto my computer and managing databases through CPanel.

I also worked with another agency that required assistance creating a staging environment for their client’s website; we built out their site on this staging environment while developing templates for pages and blog posts before launching into production. In my marketing operations role where they used Kajabi for classes and WordPress for their website alongside LinkedIn for customer recruitment, my job involved ensuring Zapier worked smoothly between these systems while verifying sales reporting accuracy with Google Analytics.

One of my favorite experiences was managing a live event using a video streaming platform where they trained me on its operation before running production for their virtual conference. Additionally, I’ve helped many small businesses build websites through quick projects where I’d gather information from them and provide actionable items needed for completion.

Another enjoyable project involved working with a design agency using Bootstrap for CSS/HTML/JavaScript in building out a website for Rhode Island’s housing project—allowing users to assess living areas based on safety ratings versus education rankings.
Since then, I’ve started conducting workshops within the community—a hidden talent I’ve recently discovered. IC Stars hired me as a program manager for their teachers’ bureau program where I’d develop curricula for community organizations focused on tech education.

Lately, I’ve been creating content for LinkedIn and Facebook; Facebook invited me as a creator allowing me to showcase what it looks like behind the scenes as a creator while sharing my earnings in real-time—currently assisting someone fighting the opioid crisis in Chicago by improving his speech using AI techniques.

For another organization looking to partner with me on curriculum building aimed at students learning her website-building platform—a CMS system competing with Wix/Squarespace—I’ll take on several roles: marketing operations support by creating necessary systems/tools; acting as an advocate/influencer sharing features/tools of her platform; working directly with customers once onboarded teaching them how best utilize this tool.

Now, I get to work with an organization where we’re fighting poverty in Chicago using agile methods and being close to the people who need our help the most. I travel to different cities to pitch our project and host meetings in Chicago with community leaders and organizations

What sets me apart is my passion lies in technology’s rapid growth potential—how quickly one can transform ideas into reality through leveraging available resources without needing vast financial backing typically associated with starting businesses traditionally perceived as barriers preventing success among underserved communities—especially women who may feel trapped financially due relationships or circumstances beyond their control.

Throughout challenging moments—whether homelessness or job loss—technology offered alternative routes toward stability enabling personal growth opportunities previously thought unattainable by many individuals facing similar struggles today! My mission focuses on simplifying complex concepts so others can understand them leading them toward transformative experiences resulting in newfound clarity regarding possibilities available within tech entrepreneurship space!