“Ok, good night”
“Don’t worry, I’m watching till your safely in the house, and I’ll SMS you when I get to mine”
A second before we finally part ways
“Sapir, what’s our schedule for tomorrow?”
“Well… pick me up after you drop them in the kindergarten”
That was our conversation late at night when we actually managed to go out after a long day of working, picking the kids from their kindergarten and spending numerous hours with dozens of screaming kids (ours included) in a crowded jamboree. A conversation of 2 very tired working moms.
But before we were mothers and had a baby together (as we call our business) we started as friends. Our first encounter was when we were 7, Sapir got lost on her way home and I helped her find it. we always say it was friendship at first sight. From that day we became inseparable. We continued walking together in many roads, elementary school, high school, military service, university, falling in love, break ups, travels and so much more.
Only when we landed our first jobs, we suddenly had different schedules and commitments. But as soon as we got married and decided to start a family, we got back to our old habit of doing things together (and yes, we even made sure our kids are the same age)
As expected, motherhood change our priorities, our dreams became more practical and climbing up the corporate ladder seemed like a hazy dream while we were never getting enough sleep and constantly changing diapers. We finally understood what everybody was talking about work-life balance…. Or the lack of it.
We both realized we wanted to become independent and create a business where we determine our schedule and goals. Though we each contemplated the idea separately we soon started talking about it and decided we’ll do it, as always, together.
Then the hard part came… what are we going to do? What kind of business we want to create? It took as days, months, years to figure that out. In the meantime, we had so many ideas, so many failed business plans, so many diapers, so many days with a sick child at home, so many setbacks…
For a long time, we felt frustrated, wondering if we made the right choice, asking ourselves if we can be both mothers and entrepreneurs. Along the way we added 2 more kids to the mix (1 each, again coordinated) and realized what it meant “the more, the merrier” and not always in a good way… our dream of starting our own business seemed to be slipping away.
And then came the day when we gave up, a great idea we’ve been working on for months fell through, the business plan just didn’t add up. We were devastated and deflated. But sometimes hitting rock bottom is an opportunity to start with a clean slate.
Out of the blue, Sapir suddenly said, what if we make jewelry with a meaning, I looked at her half excited and half doubtful and let my doubts run wild
Are we ready to start again?
I just told myself 10 minutes earlier it’s time to take a break
What if this doesn’t work out?
Do I have the energy to immerse myself in a new venture?
Is it another waste of time?
I feel drained
BUT at the same time, I felt a tingle of excitement, something just clicked. We’ve always loved design, fashion and style, it was our passion (from the purchasing side at least) for years we always talked what and where to buy and how we would improve designs if they were ours… so making jewelry that also has a meaning suddenly felt like BINGO!
A rush of energy swept us, and the ideas came pouring out. We were ready to make jewelry that has added value and meaning, using symbolism, and letting our clients the opportunity to tell a story close to their hearts.
Again, we went, researching what is meaning, where do we find it? mysticism? Gemstones? Women circles? We started searching and documenting our experiences. At the same time, we learned how to design a product, how to find the right manufacture, how to package and so much more. In 9 months, we learned more than 3 years of university.
To keep ourselves focused we set a fixed date to launch our jewelry brand. We got so much support from our families, our husbands stepped in, our mothers spend extra time with their grandchildren, and everybody was onboard!
To be honest, it was a roller coaster, and some days it felt like we’re only descending, and yet 9 months after we started, BE SEMBOL was launched (our joined child). We felt happy and proud. We finally did it!
The road was crazy, but it was totally worth it, to try and fail, to keep going, to search again and again for the right idea. It was all worth it because finally after a long while of focusing on others we had something of our own. It almost felt like after giving birth, exhausting, painful, scary, but at the same time fulfilling and rewarding. We fell in love with our new child… ahm, business.
And just like Like a child, a business needs to be nourished, educated, improved. The challenges keep coming and the hard work never ends. Everyday we face endless decisions and ideas about how to improve and grow our business keeping it fresh and relevant. What we realized id that the important thing is that there will always be new challenges, but that part of our fulfillment is learning to overcome them.
So, if you’re a mom and you’re thinking about starting a business, we have a few tips
- Don’t be afraid to dare – if you can dream it you can do it
- Ask for help- family, babysitters, whether it’s free or paid, learn how to ask, and accept assistance from others
- Don’t give up – when you feel overwhelmed, look at the big picture and remind yourself what you’re trying to achieve and what was your initial idea. You need to re-fall in love with your idea over and over again
- Find people who support you and stay away from the ones that tell you you’ll never make it
- Breath
- Occasionally take a minute to tell yourself you’re doing a great job
- Make sure to designate time to the important people in your life- a date with your partner, a weekly day to spend at the jamboree with the kids, meet for coffee with a friend. That way nobody will feel left out
- Talk about your ideas – great advice can come from unexpected places
- Don’t give up + follow your dreams – a good mom is a happy mom
- Just do it – so you’ll never have to look back and regret you didn’t take the chance
From mothers to mothers we wish you great success. Aim high, you might hit the moon or at least a star 🙂
We are cheering for you!
Sapir and Mor
