Kathy Dwyer,
The Tag Group:
Every mistake I have made since starting my business - and there are lots! - had to do with three things:
1. Failing to manage client or employee expectations.
2. Hiring the wrong people or working with clients that were not a good fit.
3. Trying to do in-house what we should have hired outside professionals to do.
Nicole Samolis,
The Events Company:
I always regret taking on the project that I know isn't the right fit for us. Over the years, we've discovered what we do best and can be most profitable at. As a start-up you take all the business you can. Once we were more established we were able to be a little more choosy. We've learned to stay focused.
Cindy Ormond,
Ormond Entertainment:
I have a tendency to become too friendly with my staff. Subsequently I have been lax in following through on a few sound business policies, like non-compete agreements. I've learned that your "friends" will ultimately look out for themselves, and I shouldn't feel 'bad' about protecting my business.
Eileen Brophy,
Brophy Services:
1. Emotionally I get too tied into being a good guy. Being a small company we are more like family. Disciplining is difficult when emotions are involved.
2. I’ve put too must trust in employees to get the job done that haven’t done what I’ve asked. This has almost cost me a couple contracts.
I’ve learned that business is business and at the end of the day, the client is paying for a service that they must get. I do my best to work as a team player, but they realize friendship only goes so far. I also follow up with my employees to make sure what I ask has been taken care of. It is not good to assume that everything you ask has been taken care of.
Julie Briggs,
Syracuse Gift Basket Company:I’ve made SO many…..but there were 2 big ones:
1. If you have a website, it’s really, really important to buy every version of your name that a potential customer might type in while looking for you online (SyracuseGiftBasket.com, SyracuseGiftBasketCompany.com, etc). When we launched ours, I didn’t really understand that and I missed one – and a local competitor bought it. It cost me nearly $10,000 (not to mention several years of lost business) to get the name back. It’s much cheaper to spend the 10 bucks each year to maintain all the domains close to yours – and you’ll have the peace of mind to boot.
2. The other big one was not negotiating the terms of our lease when we moved into our current space. I had a commercial broker representing us, so I assumed that he was looking out for our best interest. That was not the case, and it has cost us a lot of money over the last 5 years. We are preparing to relocate next month, and this time around, I contacted the broker myself and I wasn’t afraid to negotiate for the terms I was looking for. We went back and forth a few times and eventually agreed on something that made both sides happy. I think a lot of women aren’t comfortable with negotiation – I’m not sure why, but getting good at it can save you big bucks.
Anne Messenger,
Messenger & Associates:1. Made 2 bad hires (not terrible for 11+ years in business, but painful nonetheless). Lessons (re)learned: be patient & always check social media profiles as well as traditional references (people + education).
2. Didn’t pay myself: soon enough (should have been from day 1; instead, it took me 3 years to get a regular paycheck) & just plain not enough.
3. Didn’t document non-payment of myself properly for tax purposes and future payback.
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