Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Deepak Shukla, Founder of Pearl Lemon, located in Fulham, London, UK.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

I aim to mentor and teach everyone involved in the business industry, whether you are a client, a customer, doing sales, or an entrepreneur. Everybody can learn a thing or two from anybody else. My business is compiling all that knowledge to have a specific course in order to maximize your potential for learning.

Tell us about yourself

I am just a British-Indian guy from West London, the lead investor at the Pearl Lemon Group. And aside from being a founder and CEO, I am also a life coach, business mentor, and a successful businessman who owns multiple businesses.

The story goes a long way back in the year of 2012 when my first experiences in marketing came to be. With a lot of trials working in different areas, from being a musician, tutor, copywriter, and content creator, to being a literal business owner, it was only in 2016 that I settled on my own brand- Pearl Lemon. The idea of having a digital marketing agency was always in the back of my mind. After all the failures I encountered, one area unbeknownst to me always stood out, SEO, where it all started. As I struggled to get my name out there, utilizing different methods like advertising, phrasing, listing, and keyword usage, I was already stumbling upon the world of SEO.

Similarly to others, my journey to success was not smooth-flowing- instead, it was much more difficult- a rocky road. I am known to be a tinkerer that likes to try and explore stuff- and mostly fail at it. I like to experiment with the business, so I tried a bunch of different strategies and ended up failing miserably- but that I did not like, of course. I launched a SaaS application and 2 Mac apps per month, and both failed it. To add more to it, I bought businesses as well and failed that one too. I do not want to limit myself to just one mistake because all mistakes can be humorous when you learn your lesson. Give a good laugh about it, learn, and move on.

My driving force is my family. I want to change the life of the people I love, and to do that, I develop myself first. A huge amount of gratitude towards my father serves as the fuel that pumps me up to always do the best I can in a wide range of different aspects. This is what mainly keeps me motivated to do better and continually do better.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest achievement as of now is hitting thousand-plus training videos. I have created more than a hundred training courses, paid or free. I have taught about most of the things I know, and one prideful achievement is being a master in everything that I teach.

What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?

One major thing that a business owner like me finds puzzling is growth because growth doesn't just happen naturally. It is something you must pursue. And trying to grow your business into a successful one would require absolutely everything to do. And even after that, catering to your growth and actually being able to support it for your business is a challenge in itself.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Before starting out, you have to make sure you are ready. Starting a business is not an experience that's for those who are going half-assed. You have to make sure that you have the right qualifications and are up for an absolute challenge. Because it will be so hard, and the industry won't have mercy.
  2. One thing to do before starting out to make it somewhat easier is to research. Study everything that you can. Knowledge is everything, and you can use every bit of information to your advantage. Be sure to capitalize on every source you can find, whether it's online, etc.
  3. And when you are starting out, or even before that, be open. Do not close your mind to everything, even if it is wrong or right, because even incorrect data can serve as a guide to finding the correct one. So it is important to be open to everything in order to avoid opportunities lost.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.deepakshukla.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deepakpshukla
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deepakpshukla/
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/deepakpshukla1
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepakseoexpert/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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