Yesterday, 12 years ago, I started Sisarina. It was not the Sisarina you see today, but she was a web publishing company and she was all mine. Over the years, I've remembered this anniversary and quietly reflected on its significance. It was the day I became an entrepreneur. The day I stuck a flag in the ground and made a name for myself. Although I became a full-time entrepreneur again 4 years ago in April, I count April 1 as her anniversary and January 17 as her birthday. 4 years ago was only her rebirth and now she is blossoming into a beautiful, unruly young woman.
Although Sisarina originally was my childhood imaginary friend, Sisarina is really just a company. But to those who work with and for Sisarina know its more than just a company. Sisarina has become a culture - a feeling of warmth, comfort, invitation, and excitement. Our core values consist of authenticity, transparency, idealism, education, quirkiness, integrity, and excellence. We focus on working with people who understand us and want to be a part of our family. Once you're part of our family, you know we're there for you no matter what. But I didn't start it that way.
I started a web company in a time when few people knew the value of having a website, email, or why they should use the Web to find things.
The last 12 years have seen a lot of change in the web industry. When I first started, I created HTML websites built in Macromedia Fireworks and Dreamweaver 3. I did all the design and development, all of the business development, all of the meetings and presentations. I was a one-woman shop. Every page of every website had to be created separately and CSS was just making a rise. It was before Flash, around the time Javascript was super cool, and when people like me who knew how to build a website were few and far between. I worked until 3am most nights and woke for class at 6am.
Here are some flashbacks to 2001:
- Sisarina was called E-Spring Works. Everyone said "E-Springs".
- I did my accounting by hand in a ledger with manila envelopes.
- I did my own business taxes.
- My homemade computer had a CRT monitor and dial-up internet.
- I printed websites to show to clients.
- No one emailed me, they called me.
- I worked at my college as the Webmaster for 2 years part-time making $8.50/hr.
- I carried a briefcase, not a laptop case.
- I made $30,000 my first year in business.
- My first goal in business was to buy myself a car by my 21st birthday. I did it!
Life was simpler in 2001, but I now have a team of superheros working with me at an office in downtown Bethesda creating incredible experiences for our clients. I'm not the jack-of-all-trades anymore, I'm the CEO.
Sisarina is now a tween, maturing quickly, sometimes being a bit hard to handle, but overall, I wouldn't give her back for anything. My baby is growing up and I have a team of people to help me raise her right. Every mistake I've made has caused me to learn something about growing a business and growing myself but now I don't have to do it alone.
To all the clients, supporters, cheerleaders, team members, and friends who have encouraged Sisarina to grow, thank you. You are all blessings and I couldn't have done it without you.
Source: http://sisarina.com/blog/sisarina-is-a-tween
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