Day 5 – RBS/ NatWest Entrepreneur Accelerator

So why the sudden flurry of blog posts?  (I realise the irony here as I’ve already missed a day or two but let’s move swiftly on from that point…).  Well, I suppose it’s all down to successfully securing a place on the RBS/ NatWest Entrepreneur Accelerator course which has injected some much-welcomed direction and support into Rosa Lifestyle which then in turn has revived my energy, drive and passion for my small business.

It can be a bit of a lonely road, this entrepreneurial one, so first and foremost it’s been great just to chat to other like-minded people and the amount I have learned from informal connections and chats at the Edinburgh Accelerator hub has been immense!  With fortnightly support sessions, inspiring development workshops and monthly coaching sessions, I can see the benefits already, both to me as an entrepreneur/ business owner and directly to my business.  Hopefully, the legacy will be one of lasting connections and friendships and a strong platform from which to leap even higher (always aim high!)

But it’s not all plain sailing, I would be doing myself a disservice if I were to say it’s been easy, it’s not – it can be a lot of hard work a lot of the time.  There’s been times when I’ve wondered, like many small business owners, if I really can beat the statistics and make my business a success but there’s been enough support and validation along the way to keep the belief alive!  I started off winning the twitter ‘Queen of’ accolade and then Theo Paphitis’ ‘Small Business Sunday’ twitter competition both of which injected some much-needed initial confidence.  It was actually at the SBS annual conference that someone in the audience shouted out that ‘you need to get yourself on an accelerator course’….but by this point there was 48hrs until the closing date – but what do you know, I applied the night before the Monday morning close and here I am – half way through the RBS Entrepreneur Accelerator course!!! 😊

So I suppose I’d like to end this blog by saying that if anyone reading this is considering starting a small business I’d say – go for it, just do it and give it a try.  Have confidence, gather or seek out as much support as you can, work hard and reap your rewards!

Sarah x