Tracey Wheeler Noonan

I attribute my success to the fact that I was too ignorant to believe that I might fail...and trust me I did! Many times. But I saw that as a learning curve, not failure and because of that I was never afraid to try something new. I figured, what do I have to lose? I only wish more people would put their egos on a shelf, be vulnerable and just give something a try.

For me, I'll never stop working, learning or moving forward even if the decisions I make aren't exactly the right ones. I trust that the universe has my back and will guide me onto the path that I should be on. And with that thought firmly in my heart, I know that even small failures can lead to epic wins.

You can't do it all by yourself. News Flash...There are people who are way smarter than you. So, hire them!

And that's what I did. I surrounded myself by people who knew more than me and were willing to share that valuable knowledge.

In that same vein, I was fortunate enough to have Kat Cole as a mentor. Kat taught me to make sure that my business never had a product or idea that was "A bridge too far."

And she was right. The more you stray too far from your successful concept, the more you confuse and then lose your customers. You don't need 50 SKUs. Stick to what you do best and that will always sustain you.

We were in the food and gifting space. You can never ever skimp on quality customer service. There are so many options for people when it comes to sending a gift. People can forgive a mistake if the customer service is genuine and quick to respond. Never ever take even one customer for granted. Ever. It can take seven years to get an unhappy customer to return. Pay attention to those people who want to give you their hard earned money.

Remember...a happy customer is like having a salesperson you don't pay. Word of mouth is a powerful tool. Treat people right and not only will they keep returning but they'll be ravenously loyal.

Now I work in an entirely different industry but the same rules apply. Take calls, answer emails right away. If someone reaches out with a question, don't take three days to find the answer. get back to that person as soon as you can and by that I mean right away. It's human nature for people to not want to wait. Especially now. With all of the instant gratification we live with these days, if someone wants the answer to a question and they feel you're taking too long, they'll go somewhere else. Trust me.

You cannot afford to lose someone because you're being sloppy. Just like word of mouth can help build a business, a bad review can knock it down just as quickly. People are your currency. Use them wisely and watch your business grow with little to no effort other than treating folks right.

The biggest challenges in the entertainment Industry is the competition and not knowing if the content you're creating is what people in the industry are looking for. You could write to your heart's content and be a really great storyteller and never sell a thing.

That's the frustration. It's something you have to learn to live with and accept. It's hard not to take rejection personally but it's part of the game and if you want to play, you have to accept that, that is the way that it is.

Opportunities are always there for a talented writer. But again, one must be realistic and truly understand that it is a slow moving industry and it can take several years before you get that big break, if at all.

The thing that I value most is honesty. One must be honest with friends and family but most importantly with themselves.

Once you can accept who you are and who everyone else in your orbit is, you'll have a much happier and healthier life.

People who lie are like a cancer. You have to take them at face value and know that what you're being told, has a high potential for not being the truth. That can be really hard to navigate. And that's your choice. I find that people in my life have to be honest or we're not going to be together for very long.