Doubt & Fear & Starting a Publishing Company

Today I’ve been struggling with anxiety and self-doubt. Can I do this? Do I know enough? There’s so much I don’t know about running a corporation. What if my business doesn’t make any money? What if I can’t fundraise and go broke? What if I don’t get enough well written submissions? What if  I can’t hire qualified editors or book designers? What if I fail? What if this is a bad idea?

It is a struggle today to take a deep breath and remind myself that everything is figure-out-able. I am good at learning as I go. I’ve worked in publishing for over five years and it is really the only thing I do know a lot about. If there is anything at all that I could ever be successful at, it would be running a publishing company.

Still, this is scary. Doing new things in different ways goes against my grain as a taurus and an introvert. But if you want to have different results, you must do different things. Currently, my income is pretty low. I need to build a successful business from a state of being technically broke. I do love a good challenge! I think I will use this diary to document this journey. The ups and downs and fears and mistakes.

The only time I really feel like I know what I’m doing is BEFORE I start doing it. Once I begin, I’m filled with fear and doubt as I move along. I never used to be this way. Maybe I’m getting old. BUT, if Colonel Sanders can sell a chicken recipe at 65, then I can most certainly sell books!

Deep breath. On to trying to make my website look professional. If anyone is interested in giving me feedback on my website, let me know in the comments and I will give you a link. I currently am NOT happy with the look of my website and don’t know how to make it look better. But maybe I’m being too critical and I really don’t have anyone else to look at it for me.