"Nothing Ventured, Nothing gained"

About 3 months ago I was making cookies for a hostess gift for a friend and Bob commented:  “You make a good cookie, why don’t you have some fun with it and try selling them at our East End Farmers Market”. He said this in front of a close friend and she enthusiastically agreed.  I started working on a Marketing Plan to include the “4P’s of marketing (price, promotion, position and placement).   Part of my plan included a section on who I am? and why I am doing this.  Below is what I wrote in my plan:

In 2006, I suffered a massive stroke. This required me to retire at the age of 48 from a 20⁺ year career in computer product and Internet marketing.   I have been in rehabilitation and rediscovery mode ever since. I live through the ups and downs of being a stroke survivor.   This catastrophic event forced me to rethink my goals.  I do not want to be “defined” by the stroke. This venture is a path to reinvention and getting back to a busy and meaningful life.

This venture provides for:

-         practicing right-hand- only skills

-        testing my stamina by standing up for 4 hours at a time

-        social interaction

-        putting marketing skills to test

-        Working towards a financial return and contributing to our household income, which is a longshot. As of this blog entry, I participated in one Sunday Farmer’s Market and I sold out of cookies in the first 1.5 hours. I have a long way to go to consider this a successful venture but I’ll quote Ben Franklin:  “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

Come by Sundays between 10:00AM and 2:00 PM and purchase a cookie or two.  at East End Farmer’s Market at the Esplanade on  Navigation, 200 Navigation.