Would you believe a new baby, a new business, plus the recession coupled with long hours and little sleep was one woman’s recipe for entrepreneurial success?  President of SolTec Electronics, Dawn Gluskin, made her first million working under these conditions. 

The straw that stirred the drink was her momentum. Dawn had clear goals in mind for her business and family when she started her company in 2008. She was highly motivated to work for herself and set her own hours because she had a new baby girl. Dawn also had a great idea for a niche business. SolTec Electronics offers strategic procurement solutions to electronic manufacturing clients around the globe. SolTec Electronics’ mission is working with clients to find solutions that could help them avoid costly board redesigns, production "line down" situations and other undesirable circumstances. In a recession everyone is looking to save money, stretch their dollars and extend the life of their existing equipment and technologies.

When Dawn found Make Mine a Million on the internet, she was still working out of her home office with a total of four employees including her husband, who handles all of her non-sales and marketing activities. Initially seeking start-up capital and heightened visibility for her business, she applied for the Make Mine a Million $ Business competition, www.makemineamillion.org. Dawn quickly realized the prize package that each winner receives is even more invaluable. She won the 2010 Houston competition and was excited about the rewards. “Some of the benefits have been PR in some major publications, which has helped build brand awareness and credibility; financial analysis and consulting which helped us secure bank financing; and personal coaching which has helped me develop personally and as a business leader,” she says. “Besides all of that, I also get to be part of an amazing community of women business owners whom I can bounce ideas off with and share advice!”

Her 2009 revenues were $647,000—eight months later Dawn’s YTD revenues have reached a whopping $2 million.  Developing strategic goals for her company’s revenue growth has also been extremely helpful, she says, “I believe that having quantitative values in place to measure the growth of a business is imperative to success.” Dawn's experience proves entrepreneurs have to think big from the beginning.

Remember to always galvanize your motivation, ideas and resources to create the momentum to grow beyond your wildest dreams.

Believe in you. 

Read more: 4 Overlooked Ways To Motivate Employees