Startup life is not for the faint of heart. When Nur-E Farhana Rahman tells you about startup life, she is authentic, transparent and genuine. There are worries about cash flow. There are struggles with hiring the right people and picking the right suppliers. She tells a painful story of falling short on a Kickstarter campaign. In her stories, there is nothing glamorous about startup life.

That is not to say that her jewelry startup, Knotty Gal, has not been successful. On the contrary, they have been able to grow the company while bootstrapping. Customers stop them on the street to comment on their products. They have been featured in Forbes Huffington Post, Daily Candy, Conscious Magazine, MSNBC and other news outlets. As their revenues rise, so does their impact.

Through Knotty Gal, Nur-E is able to support girls attending Bhandari Girls’ School, one of the first all girls’ school in Bogra, Bangladesh. The school has special meaning to Nur-E. Her great grandfather started the school. Her mother graduated from there. It’s a cause big enough to help her meet every challenge startup life sends her way.

Startup Life Quotes from Nur-E Farhana Rahman

“We had the cause first. We had no product.”

“People started sending me stories. ‘On the subway today, someone asked me about my necklace.’”

“Scalability is key.”

“I read an article that one in three founders suffers from depression.”

“You’re constantly thinking about running out of money.”

“We’re constantly comparing our behind the scenes to everyone’s highlight reel.”

“We’ve been bootstrapping the entire time.”

“You will fail. It’s guaranteed. It’s just a matter of how you bounce back.”

“Perseverance is the one key trait that all successful entrepreneurs have.”

“Do one thing that scares you”

Social Entrepreneurship Resources:

• Knotty Gal: http://www.knottygal.com
• Tim Ferris article: Hacking Kickstarter: How to Raise $100,000 in 10 Days http://fourhourworkweek.com/2012/12/18/hacking-kickstarter-how-to-raise-100000-in-10-days-includes-successful-templates-e-mails-etc
• Culture Shift Learning Academy waiting list: http://tonyloyd.com/assessment

Culture Shift Learning Academy

We’re moving closer to the launch of Culture Shift Learning Academy, a comprehensive system to help you flesh out your social impact idea and start achieving it.

Enrollment isn’t open yet, but you can join the waiting list with other changemakers. Just go to http://tonyloyd.com/assessment and enter your email address. As a thank you, I’ll send you the Social Entrepreneur Startup Readiness Assessment. This useful tool is designed to help you to determine where you are on your startup journey and to successfully focus your development efforts.