What we can learn from Joy

I saw the new movie Joy yesterday and really found it very interesting and full of lessons for budding entrepreneurs. This was a story about a girl who was very imaginative and creative. However, owing to family responsibilities and circumstances, she could not use the same in her career. The story is about how she lets her creativity come out and becomes the founder and matriarch of a powerful business dynasty.

Joy's journey can teach us a lot about entrepreneurship and life.

Know & Do What You Want To Do
Joy had, even as a child, been extremely creative and used to love creating new things. She had a knack of finding out loopholes in different stuff and always had an urge to improve upon the same. She had to let go of this because of family pressure and circumstances. Eventually, she did use her creativity and skill set to create a product which took her towards success.

Think From A Customer's Perspective
Joy was able to identify the problems she faced from her existing mop and her mop was able to improve upon them. She was solving genuine pain points (like easy cleaning of the mop head, more cotton to absorb the dirt, lighter weight of the mop etc.) and hence the product was based on a solid foundation rather than a 'gut feeling'.

You Are Your Best Salesman
Joy, being a customer herself, was able to sell her product best. No matter how skillful or good at communication the other salesperson is, he/she cannot have the same passion and knowledge about the product as you.

Have Supportive People Around You
Joy's grandmother was the one who motivated her to follow her dreams. Also her ex-husband and best friend were there for her in times of distress. In fact, it was her ex-husband's friend who put Joy onto the sales head at Kmart, giving her a big break to launch her product.

Take Risks
Be it making 50,000 mops based on an estimate or be it fighting for justice when she was wronged by her vendor, Joy took risks which eventually paid off. As an entreprenuer, we need to take risks along the way, some of which may not pay off for us.

Never Mix Business & Family
Joy took a strong stance of not letting her sister represent her/take calls for her. This was a bold and very important step as their working styles were completely different. Business should be all about business and nothing else.

Joy is a must watch for all budding entrepreneurs. It is a very realistic movie which tends to engage and inspire!