I know because I have built a publishing business from scratch with limited finances. I have one priceless asset – my passion!

One of the niggly things that can be tough about building a business is the investment it takes to get off the ground and sustain it. To get to a place where your newly established business is making money can seem like ages. Let’s face it, during this time it is tough to keep justifying the passion you have in your vision but you will get there if you are determined to. Realistically it often takes longer than initially anticipated but one thing is for sure is that when time and circumstance aligns, magic happens.

Being rigid can be detrimental to success so try as best you can to stay open to venturing down paths you never anticipated coming your way. Be open to new experiences, collaborations and growth.

Some of my tips for creating cashflow are:

  • Be resourceful: Your business may grow at a slower rate than you hope but remember ‘slow and steady wins the race!
  • There are many stages of business, you may not be at the stage where investors are interested but there are other ways to create cashflow through offering a service, selling a product or something else that will create revenue. It doesn’t have to be forever and it will be with the intention of being paid back when your business is more sustainable.
  • Be current and move with trends as much as you can.
  • Be open to being creative when approaching your business cashflow. Be open to opportunities you may have not considered before that are in line with your brand.
  • Building your profile = building your value. When you invest in yourself others will be more prepared to invest in you.
  • Cashflow = Growth.

I want to briefly share my financial journey with you in the hope that it may help you through the dark days of your business.

In 2012, after a negative self-publishing experience, I researched how to publish books and with only the knowledge I accumulated through self-publishing I applied to become a publisher through Lightning Source and was accepted.

Inner light publishing was born to share inspiring stories with the world. Of course, it costs money to publish books and lots of time so I chose to invest $50 a week to get it off the ground.  I soon realised it would take more than that and so I partnered with ikoala.com to sell publishing deals which turned out to be very popular. We were lucky the books that came our way fitted with our brand and it all worked out. My business partner and I chose to go our separate ways and so I paid her out and moved forward with Serenity Press. Now it was all on me! I had ikoala deals to fulfill and a rebrand to pull off. I decided to take everything step by step and keep moving forward as best I could. Whenever I needed to create cashflow, an opportunity would happen to present itself. I know this was because I was open to it finding me.

As things progressed I found the perfect business partner for my business and we grew into a traditional publishing press in 2016. Financial commitments would get bigger and I could no longer offer publishing deals because we were no longer a vanity press and so we would have to sell more books but to do so we had to expand our distribution network and decrease the cost of production. This all takes investment! But with my business principal of being open to opportunity and taking things step by step we organised our first writing retreat, in an Irish Castle. This would create the cashflow we needed to invest into our business and to sustain growth.

This cash injection allowed for us to invest in the business at a time when it was needed. We are now servicing a wider distribution network, attracting bookselling authors and have practically sold out our second retreat before we even launched it!

Yes, I have taken risks at times but is that not what being an entrepreneur is all about? Here’s a definition I found “An entrepreneur is a person who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise.”

Add to this being a mum and you have someone almost superhuman. It takes a lot of courage to raise children and pursue your ambitions. That is why winning an Ausmumpreneur award in 2016 was such an amazing experience for me and one of the best things I have done for my business.

My journey has been at times stressful when it comes to creating cashflow. I am fortunate that I have reached a point in my business that I can be selective about when I need to create cashflow and things are flowing quite well now. It takes time for this comfort to come.

The most important thing is to never lose your passion, everything else will fall into place once you have this essence close to the heart of your business.


About our Ausmumpreneur Expert :

Karen is founder of Serenity Press, a boutique publishing press based in Perth, WA that services clients with their established global distribution link. She is passionate that a publishing experience should be a positive one and likes to manage things at a personal level with her amazing team. Karen would love for you to join Serenity Press on their journey as they grow from strength to strength bringing amazing books to the world. Everyone has a story within themselves that deserves to be told. Get in touch with Karen here.