Join Trade Organizations

We found our national trade organization soon after we published our first issue. At the annual conference, we met people like us, who didn’t mind that we jumped in with questions before we said hello. We subscribed to several trade publications that proved helpful; they gave us ideas and showed us what things other publications were doing that worked (sometimes we followed up with a phone call to the publisher who’d been written about). The library reference desk is a good place to start looking for trade organizations and publications.

Agree on How to Disagree

Many entrepreneurs start off with more than an idea; they have a partner or two. At the urging of our accountant, we drafted a simple agreement about when to call a halt if things didn’t work out and how to divide the assets or the debts. When my partner’s job responsibilities grew and she had to bow out after three years, the split was amicable.

Homegrown Business
The magazine has grown slowly; it only moved off my dining room table and into an office after three years. Another lesson learned: If you work at home, your business needs its own room. Otherwise, your life and your business will spill over into each other. For most of the time it’s been a labor of love — or a headache that won’t go away — depending on the day. But this year I will finally be able to take out a nice salary and even consider starting a second publication.