The year of 2013 has come to a close. The last few weeks of the year flew by and business owners and entrepreneurs charge ahead into the next year. There are no guarantees for the year ahead. Whether there will be a ton of hurdles you’ll have to climb or the year will bring a lot of new things to your business, the year of 2014 is a complete mystery in this moment. What doesn’t stand as a mystery is what lies behind us. The past year is brimming with all sorts of stories entrepreneurs can tell about their business. Perhaps it was a year full of firsts for an emerging entrepreneur as they build their business up from the ground. Or perhaps a business owner opens a new line of products that customer rush to order and talk about. There are many things that can happen in 12 months. This isn’t to say that negatives don’t still creep in. For every business owner there is a time when the hurdles seem much too high to ever climb. But as the holiday season is upon us and the feeling of joy settles in, celebrating your proudest business accomplishments can be a small gift to you as a business owner. Below are some of the proudest moments in business from entrepreneurs across the country.
In the case of Digital Third Coast’s Taylor Cimala, the year of 2013 was all about her victories in hiring the best people for her needs. “I would say that our biggest accomplishment of the year was making the right hiring decisions. As with any agency, the people you surround yourself with on a day to day basis are the biggest components driving the success of the company. As one of the co-founders of Chicago based digital marketing agency, Digital Third Coast, I am proud to be kicking off 2014 with a 50% growth in our team (10 full-time and 2 part-time to start 2012 and 18 full-time to start 2014). We've certainly hit some bumps in the road along the way, but I can proudly say that our team has never been better and we are excited to tackle new initiatives in 2014.” As hiring the right people for your team is a huge accomplishment, becoming excited for your business to be settled with the right workers is truly a feat to be proud of.
For Auria Abraham of Auria’s Malaysian Kitchen, the year of 2013 became a year of a lot of huge changes. “This year I launched a line of small-batch produced Malaysian condiments for the specialty food markets. I began in April, and by August 1st I was
in a commercial kitchen making my first large batch! Within six weeks, I had the product selling at 7 fine food retailers here in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Long Island. My product – Auria's Malaysia Kitchen Hot Chilli Sambal is the only product of its kind on specialty food store shelves. I am extremely proud to be the first Malaysian to share the delightful and diverse cuisine of our nation with the world. In 2014, I plan to expand on the line by creating a 2nd and 3rd product, and looking forward to seeing my products on more and more shelves every month!” For any entrepreneur, getting your product out and seeing positive reaction is an ultimate celebration point.”
Though launching a product and getting it out of the gates are huge accomplishments, defining yourself as an entrepreneur and what roles you want to take is just as big an accomplishment as explained by Matt Shoup of Shoup Consulting, “2013 has been an awesome year, my team and I have accomplished a lot! Hands down my proudest accomplishment for the year is defining myself. I am Matt Shoup and I am a Leader, I am a Connector, I am an Encourager and I am an Inspirer. My purpose in life is to inspire others to discover and leave their legacy and I struggled with how to do that until I could define myself in language that made sense to me. As a result of defining myself my companies are not only more profitable but attracting better employees and customers. With this self-definition I can see exactly where I will be personally and professionally for years down the road. One of my core beliefs is that, as an entrepreneur, your business is an extension of yourself so if you don't have that self-definition then who is showing up to work and leading the company? Success can definitely happen without self-definition but significance is impossible.”
No matter what has happened over the course of 2013 within your business, entrepreneurs should be proud that they have their business running in the first place. For all the struggles and issues that may arise, the triumphs and excitement always overshadows the bad. So as entrepreneurs and business owners close the book on this year, now is the time to focus on celebrating all the good you have done and all the good that will come in the year ahead.