In a perfect world, the best advice for starting any business is “Do What You Love” or “Follow Your Bliss”. You can’t sell it and work it if you don’t have a certain passion for it, whatever ”it” is. In MY perfect world I needed to lighten my load. I had hundreds of books in my own library and realized, reluctantly, that I had to let some of them find a new home with someone who would love them as I had.
My daughter, Kate, is also an avid reader, and when she left the nest and moved to Boston to pursue her life, she left behind a large selection of novels, classics and textbooks. “Sell them on Amazon, Mom. I don’t want to move them”.
At some point, as I got down to the minutiae of listing inventory, reviewing condition and pricing books, I realized I was hooked. Books? Give me the Book Section of the Sunday NY Times and my favorite perch on the sofa. Let me loose in Barnes and Noble. My passion for books transcended the connection to business and commerce but actually served the business! I was having fun! I stumbled upon the secret (for me) and it was mostly due to my daughter’s advice, “Sell them on amazon”.
“If one advances confidently in the direction of one's dreams, and endeavors to live the life which one has imagined, one will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” Thoreau’s quote always had special meaning for me. To me it meant that there was something out there for me that was uniquely mine. But years of “searching” for it hadn’t worked. It just may be that the direction of your dreams is NOT what you thought. Maybe you need to let it find YOU. Books are my passion. Every step that I take is wrapped in that passion, and I don't know that it would've happened that way otherwise.
Rocky’s has not nearly begun to do all it wants to do. Sometimes I feel it’s an entity in control of me, leading me from one step to the next. Of all my endeavors, Rocky’s has the most life, the most of me. I’ve found a voice. It’s just a start, but the universe has been good to me in pursuing this dream. I’ll take that as a “yes”.
I've gotten to know Terry (Rocky's Mountain Books) through Facebook. Her posts and comments were always witty and intelligent and I was impressed with the condition of the books I was buying from Rocky's Mountain Books. Her blog showcases her passion for the written word and her talents as a writer. My favorite part of her blog is "The Coffee Stained Books". There are some books that I re-read often and over the years the pages have become coffee stained, which makes the books even more endearing. Terry's other passion is also reflected in her blog and her posts, she does foster care for dogs waiting for homes.
Her blog is a "good read." http://www.rockysmountainbooks.blogspot.com/
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