Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Kim Murray, Founder of Widow 411, located in Howell, MI, USA.

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

Widow 411 helps guide widows through life after loss. The popular website offers a no-BS version of what widowhood is really like, along with practical tips and resources for learning how to cope and rebuild life after a devastating loss. Widows on a quest to make widowhood suck a little less will find the resources they need to survive and even thrive through widowhood.

Tell us about yourself

I became a widow at age 44 after my husband died from Glioblastoma, a terminal brain cancer. At the time, I didn’t know any widows my age or those with small children (my kids were eight and ten), so I felt very isolated and alone in my grief. However, instead of ignoring my pain, I created Widow 411 to share my personal experiences and offer other widows a place to find the resources they need to make widowhood more manageable. I wanted to create a lifeline for widows like me struggling to get back to the land of the living.

I’m motivated every day by the sheer will and fortitude of the widow community. It’s an honor for me to help these women find a way to move forward amid the confusion and complexity of death. Every widow eventually learns that grief never goes away - we just learn to make room for it - so we all go on living while we’re still alive with grief in tow. Every time I receive an email that says, “you make me feel hopeful” or “it helps to know I’m not alone,” I feel like I’m in the exact right place doing the exact right thing.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

It took me a long time to learn the technical aspects of creating a website and online store and the intricacies of digital product development, marketing, and publishing. So, I’m definitely most proud of the products I’ve created, like my online course that guides widows through the crushing list of to-dos after a spouse dies with templates, worksheets, and checklists for organizing tasks, managing finances, closing accounts, and so much more. I also created other practical products like journals and workbooks that support widows learning how to navigate a “new normal.”

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

Learning how to do EVERYTHING by yourself before you know what resources are available to help you. After that, it’s tough to decide what to keep doing in-house or hire out and how to delegate the tasks that you’re used to doing on your own.

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

  1. Find your tribe. There are others like you out there doing what you want to do, and you’ll get ahead much faster when you learn from those who have come before you.
  2. Expect to make mistakes because that’s how you learn. There’s no place for perfectionist tendencies when you’re trying to grow a business, so hush your inner critic and keep doing/making/creating, even when it’s messy. The mess eventually turns into your method.
  3. Keep going even when you feel like giving up. Whenever I need an extra push to keep plugging away, I remember the Thomas Edison quote, “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

It helps to keep things in perspective and not compare yourself to other business owners because the comparison is rarely realistic. Your beginning might be someone else’s middle.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://widow411.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/widow411
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/widow411/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/widow411

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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