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Interview with Dawn from PartyBluPrints (Page 3)

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Sarah: Do you feel like you guys were able to do that because you didn’t know how hard it was supposed to be?

Dawn: I think so. Maybe if we had researched it and found out what it was going to take or what people said it was going to take, then maybe we would have been discouraged and thought, “This is going to take too much money, we’re going to need a lawyer, we’re going to have to do this and that.” And I think maybe we wouldn’t have. But being naïve, we just did it.

Sarah: I think that’s actually one of the bigger downfalls for people starting up businesses. They think it’s supposed to be really hard to get the meetings they need to get. The best of the best can’t do that — and then really great people get discouraged.

Dawn: Right, I think that’s right. And the other thing, is that I think you really have to put blinders on to what other people are saying. People will say, “Oh, you can’t do that. You’re too old, you’re past the age where you know what’s hot.” We got a lot of negative feedback. And I was really surprised. The people that you think are going to support you…they might not. Not that they wish you ill, but they might not believe in it.

Which is why when you start a company, you have to really believe in it. And you have to really be able to see it. I mean, who’s to say?

Sarah: You know I think there is always another way to do things. I always like to remember that there is always a human being on the other side when you’re working in business. People who go home to their families, people who are worried about their jobs, you know? And when you’re dealing with a human being, anything is possible. I feel like we make it into a big huge corporation instead of a human conversation.

Dawn: Yes. And when you have a good idea, it’s just a good idea. And people will like it. Sometimes it’s just that simple.

Sarah: Absolutely. Speaking of which, why do you think you guys turned this into a business and not leave it as a “good idea” that night that you first realized you had created “blue prints?” What had you take it to the next step?

Dawn: A bunch of things. We wanted to do more with it. We wanted to work. And knowing that if I wanted to work, I had to make it fit inside the life that I had, which was that of a stay-at-home mom with three kids. If I was going to work, I had to be home by 3:00. At that point, those were my constraints. So I wanted to create a business that would fit inside my life. So that was number one.

And wanting to make money.

And I think the other thing is that if you know there is a need out there, a market for something, and you can fill that need, it’s a great feeling. You actually feel good about yourself because you’re helping. And that’s really how it started out. We were helping our girlfriends. They would say something like, “I have friends coming over, but the kids have ballet and I’m running around doing this and that. What can I make that I can just heat up and that everyone’s going to love?” When you keep answering all those questions, you think, “I’m really just going to write this down. I bet a lot of people could use this!”

Sarah: That’s cool. And it’s interesting when something like this turns from a hobby into filling a void.  It’s like the void in the marketplace starts to call to you, and not the other way around. Did you have that experience? … (cont)

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