Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Sally Pasley Vargas, writer and lifestyle and food photographer, located in Lexington, MA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
I am a writer, photographer, and educator specializing in food writing, ghostwriting, and food and lifestyle photography. I have published four cookbooks and write a weekly column for The Boston Globe Food Section, and contributed to the website Simply Recipes. I teach recipe and food writing, cookbook writing, food photography, and cooking. I occasionally work as a personal chef and also create client recipes specific to people with food allergies and health issues.
Tell us about yourself
In my early twenties, I moved into a countryside yoga community with a restaurant, where I began cooking. Our neighbor was a French chef in New York City with a summer home nearby. He mentored me and sent me to the Culinary Institute of America for a short stage with the pastry chef. My career ‘happened’ from there; I did not purposefully create it! Surprisingly, it fits, and I love using my strengths in myriad ways.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
My superpower, if you’d like to call it something, is being able to re-invent and pivot as the world of food and my place in it evolves. I transitioned from my work as a chef to writing and photography (the latter acquired through google university.) Merging my different skills and strengths into a patchwork of freelance work and teaching has been both challenging and exciting.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
Being able to pivot and adapt to circumstances is an essential part of owning a business, and it can be daunting. As a creative, one also needs to appreciate the importance of marketing and set aside much more time than you anticipated when you started out. Getting help and delegating tasks that you are not good at are also two very important ingredients to growing your business.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Know your why: write out a vision statement. Why do you want to create this business? Who are your ideal clients? How will do you want to feel about yourself in this kind of work? What, specifically do you want your profits to fund for you beyond paying the bills? Write it as if it has already happened. Revisit your statement every morning. You can even make a vision board to keep you on track.
- Write it down and make it happen: Write down your goals for the year (or even three, five, and ten years out) and break them down into chunks of time that are achievable. Include your financial goals. Use a journal often to brainstorm ideas around your dreams as well as your problems. When you write down your worst-case scenarios with a question of ‘what I could do if that happens’, you’d be surprised at what ideas might come through. It also helps release anxiety.
- Track your money: Keep a spreadsheet and update it regularly (monthly if not weekly) with sales and revenue. Set up an electronic system that connects to your bank for tracking.
- Invest in yourself. Don’t be afraid to spend money on getting help from experts if it makes sense and you feel confident that such help can grow your business.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://sallyvargas.com/
Facebook: facebook.com/sally.p.vargas
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sallypv/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SallyPVargas
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sally-pasley-vargas-aa32a726/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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