By Cambridge Who’s Who Member and Contributing Author Cheryl Nordyke

When my business partners and I decided that we wanted to venture into entrepreneurship by starting our own e-commerce business, we knew that there would be so much to learn. We had chosen an industry that we did not have any experience in but a great deal of interest.

It seemed a little overwhelming at times but then I would reflect on every position I had ever held. I thought about what made me successful in those positions and realized that my success had always come from reaching out to the experts in the industry I was working in at the time. If I had a problem or did not know how to do something, as long as I knew how to get the answer, I was okay. I also determined which responsibilities I loved and excelled at and became an expert in those areas. In the areas where I didn’t have an interest, I developed relationships and sought resources to provide me with the skill set I needed to succeed.

Another strategy I learned from numerous mentors was to document and share my knowledge. Following their advice, I became the go-to person in all of my positions. This made me more valuable to my employers and helped me to excel in my career. From the age of 15 at my first job until I started my own business, I never had to look for a job; I was recruited for every position I held.

Breaking New Ground
When my business partners and I made the decision to go into a new business area, the question became, “How do we start a business with no apparent experience?” I soon realized that between the three of us we had generated over $20 million during the last 10 years for other companies. Combined, we had backgrounds in business development, marketing, public relations, customer relationship management and finance. We had more than desire and focus; we had sound experience and knowledge in key business areas. And just as important, we knew that we could learn or find someone who had knowledge and experience in areas we were not familiar with.

My first visit to the bookstore got us started on our business plan. The Internet gave us statistics to analyze the industry. Our stop to the Small Business Development Center enlightened us with the funding obstacles we would face and gave us access to resources we never would have thought of seeking.

Next, we stumbled upon a website called StartUp Nation that takes a completely new outlook on starting a business. First you develop your life plan and then analyze the life you want before even considering writing a business plan. The website has a blog, forum and newsletter area – all of which offer a wealth of information.

We then took a trip to our local county’s Economic Resource Center, which provided us with even more information on preparing a business plan. At this point, the cost for all our outside informational resources was zero dollars.

Another great online resource was http://www.gobignetwork.com/. This website allowed us to connect with vendors through a program called Vendor Seek. This is what we used to find our web developer. We spoke to more than 10 web developers and focused our attention on those specializing in e-commerce. We found a company that has been developing e-commerce-based websites for more than 10 years and offers numerous features necessary to running a virtually seamless and efficient website. In addition to providing a great website, they act as a resource center for setting up our site and structuring our discounts and coupons.

Lining Up Your Team of Experts
When we set out to create jewelry, we were introduced to a designer, Jessica Fields. Jessica has been in the fashion industry for several years – her own high-end line of jewelry is sold in boutiques around the country. Her expertise in the industry and access to manufacturers, packaging companies and design resources has not only set our company apart from others, but has also saved us the time and energy needed to pursue these options on our own.

Other experts and vendors that we used to fill in the gaps in our own business skills included credit card processors and others who were familiar with online businesses. We decided on First Data as our processor and used Authorize.net as the gateway. Both companies have proven to be knowledgeable and efficient in handling the issues we face as an e-commerce business.

Starting a new venture is both exciting and stressful. Just remember that you do not have to be an expert in every area. You simply need to know where to find experts in areas where you lack expertise and how to utilize their knowledge base to build your business. Follow these tips and you will be well on your way to running a successful company:

She was recruited for the job and, since she had been a customer of the Massachusetts-based software company for four years already, she knew the product and knew that she could sell it. So, with a cut in pay, but the promise of big earnings if she worked hard, she decided on a fresh start.

It didn’t take long for Cheryl to reap the benefits of what she sowed. She was the top producer during her first year at the company. For the next nine years she continued to be the top producer and brought in more than $15 million in upfront sales revenue in addition to a high percentage of ongoing revenue in monthly support fees, add-ons and the like. So when her employer eliminated her position as New Business Development Director, it came as a total shock to her. For the first time since she started working at the age of 17, Cheryl was unemployed.

During the last 20 years, unemployment rates have gone up and down as this country watched the dot-com era boom and then fall to recession before it slowly recovered, only to see a country wage a war it could not afford. During all of this, Cheryl and others just like her have had to adjust. But adjusting and coping was not enough for Cheryl. What made her successful in sales was her different outlook and approach to problem-solving, and it is what has turned her unemployed status to that of entrepreneur.

During her time at the company, Cheryl was able to help long-time friend, Carrin Torres from California, obtain consulting work at the same software company in the finance department. When that ended, Carrin went back to being a stay-at-home mom and when her struggling marriage ended, Carrin needed to look for work again. The work turned out to be much less than she needed to support four children; not only the future looked bleak, but so did everyday life. The issue of underemployment is as much of a financial shock to families as unemployment.

Faced with a search that could take months to land her a job at her previous six-figure salary, Cheryl took a chance. She put all of her life savings and retirement account on the line and decided that if she could make a good living for someone else, then she could certainly do the same for herself.

Teaming Up

While working at the software company, Cheryl met Kim Wierman. Kim was re-entering the workforce full time after spending 12 years at home raising three sons. Her husband’s health issues, plus the high cost of his health insurance, had Kim looking for a job with good benefits and time to spend with her family. She thought she had found the ideal situation when a marketing job presented itself. She was able to cross-train for several weeks to build her skills and confidence since she had been far removed from corporate life for more than a decade. The marketing job turned out to be more than she expected, but Kim welcomed the opportunity and worked hard to reach the goals set by the company. Ultimately her hard work did not pay off and her job was also eliminated. A managerial position was created in its place with the same description. Kim was not offered the new position or any other at the company and became involuntarily unemployed. Three weeks later, Kim’s husband died suddenly of a heart attack, and she was faced with being the sole provider for her family.

The expression, “Success is when preparation meets opportunity,” rang true with this trio. In the years before moving East, Cheryl and Carrin had dreamed of becoming writers and had started a book of reflections on everyday situations. Cheryl was able to introduce Kim and Carrin to each other, and the three of them went on to finish the book.

In the search for a reminder to be grateful, Cheryl, Carrin and Kim decided to wear a bracelet representing gratitude. “We were off on our quest to find the perfect piece of jewelry, but nothing out there spoke to us,” said Cheryl. Kim knew of someone that might be able to make them a bracelet and doors that they never imagined began to open.

“We met two women and worked with them for over four months and had nothing physically to show for our efforts. In the middle of working with them, another door opened and someone offered to introduce us to a jewelry designer named Jessica Fields. When our first road came to an end, we decided maybe the other road we had been offered might be worth pursuing. Jessica was exactly what we were looking for. We shared our vision and our story. We wanted jewelry that was beautiful and something you actually would want to wear and give as a gift. However, we also wanted something that would have meaning; one that would say to a recipient, ‘we are grateful for what you do’ and for the wearer it would say, ‘remember to be grateful.’”

A new business, Wavelet Productions, LLC, was born out of this search for the perfect reminder and with it Waves of Gratitude jewelry, apparel and an online community were launched. The entrepreneurial spirit with which these women approached unemployment is a mind-set that some people do not dare choose when faced with job loss, divorce, or any other new or unforeseen situation.

“We are flooded daily with negative information from our employers, the media, rude drivers and other unhappy, angry people,” comments Cheryl. “The jewelry, and the whole business we’ve created, is meant to remind us that we have a choice to not react in the same way when in a similar situation. We can choose to be grateful and not experience whatever it is that is making others so unhappy.”

The company was founded on the premise that there is something to be grateful for in every situation and in each day.

Giving Back

Waves of Gratitude will be giving a percentage of all sales to carefully chosen charities and causes. “We are going to be giving a percentage of our profits for 2008 to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure (a charity focused on breast cancer),” said Kim. “However, our cause will be wellness. We may be focused on cancer, but we will represent the positive statistics related to breast cancer survival.”