HEALTH

Handmade jewellery shop opened · HEALTH after 4 yr 9 mo

Ethan Taylor, 35 · 4 yr 9 mo

“Next time I hire before I break”

Health is not on the books, but it was the most expensive cost.

The follow-up notice from your checkup came back at a size you could not ignore. Medical bills and time left your account before the company's expenses did. You stopped working and, for the first time, counted your body as an asset.

How it went

1. 2026 · preparing to openEthan Taylor, 31. You have decided to try starting a company in Chicago. No idea, no product yet. Savings $77,742, employed ($6,271 a month).
2. 3/2026: what now?Start a business: «Handmade jewellery shop» — You are going with «Handmade jewellery shop». Next: who works with you.
3. Who starts it with you?Part-timers for the busy days only — Two students took turns. Both told you their exam weeks in advance. You were grateful.
4. 2026 · year 1 beginsUS Rates Rose Again
5. 3/23 · Supplier price increaseThe supplier said prices go up 9% from the next order. You need to find another supplier.
6. 4/7 · A family emergencyAn urgent call from a sibling. You were away for half a day.
7. 4/22 · FamilyYour family packed you lunch. The note said, “Eat properly.”
8. 5/13 · Down sickYou came down with something. You took medicine and pushed through, but could not concentrate.
9. 5/23 · Your mentorLunch with an old mentor. “Forget the numbers. Are you sleeping?”
10. The “$20,000 a month or your money back” courseBlock the ad — You block it and another account posts the same ad. The money is still in your account.
11. 6/20 · Oil reached the cost baseBrent rose to $131 a barrel. Quotes for packaging and freight are not what they were last month. You redid the cost sheet.
12. 7/3 · Repeat buyersMore customers placed a second and a third order. One wrote in the note: “Counting on you again.”
13. 7/14 · Equipment stoppedThe technician said a repair would cost nearly as much as a new one. You bought new.
14. Priorities for the next three monthsGrow revenue — You spent on ads and sales. Inquiries went up. The close rate was lower than you expected.
15. 9/11 · HeatwaveA heat warning. The air conditioning ran all day. The electricity bill is on your mind.
16. 11/5 · An employee quitAn employee said this month would be their last. The warehouse nearby pays more an hour.
17. 11/19 · Supplier price increaseA new price list came from the supplier: your most-used items are up 3%. You redid your prices.
18. A gap opened in the rotaMake an urgent replacement hire — The recruiting fee was spent, but no suitable candidate was found.
19. 12/4 · Reviews piled upThree one-star reviews with the same wording appeared in one day. You could not tell whether they were customers or a competitor.
20. 12/21 · Minimum wage announcementA minimum wage increase was announced. Payroll and prices have to be recalculated.
21. 1/23 · Your mentorAn old mentor called. “What scares you most right now?” they asked.
22. 2/19 · Repeat buyersMore customers placed a second and a third order. One wrote in the note: “Counting on you again.”
23. 2/21 · Down sickDay three of a cold that will not lift. No time to see a doctor.
24. How to handle the bad reviewsReport them to Google Maps / Yelp — Google Maps / Yelp removed some reviews. Not all of them. You saved screenshots and waited for the next one.
25. US Rates Rose AgainSignals of Fed tightening strengthened the dollar, and this country's funding rates followed. When the USD rate jumped, costing got complicated again for anyone buying imported ingredients or parts.
26. Year 1 closeRevenue $507,097, operating profit $182,724. Cash $201,712.
27. 2027 · year 2 beginsReview Bombing
28. 3/8 · Oil reached the cost baseBrent rose to $142 a barrel. Quotes for packaging and freight are not what they were last month. You redid the cost sheet.
29. 3/26 · FamilyYour family packed you lunch. The note said, “Eat properly.”
30. 4/22 · Overseas orders came backGlobal growth rose to 4.2%. An overseas partner was the first to ask about next quarter’s volume.
31. 5/18 · Records requested by the tax officeIRS requested records for credit card sales and cash sales. You opened the books again.
32. Demand is outrunning the teamHire one employee — There were a few mistakes in the first week. From the second week you had time to rest.
33. 6/23 · Supplier price increaseThe delivery driver said a freight charge starts next week. In effect, a 7% rise.
34. 7/28 · A price warA seller with the same product cut the price by 10%. Your listing slipped a place in search.
35. 8/13 · Repeat buyersMore customers placed a second and a third order. One wrote in the note: “Counting on you again.”
36. 8/19 · Your mentorAn old mentor called. “What scares you most right now?” they asked.
37. Raise the service standardDefer for free — You spent nothing and will reconsider at another opportunity.
38. 9/26 · Equipment stoppedThe technician said a repair would cost nearly as much as a new one. You bought new.
39. 10/22 · Oil reached the cost baseBrent rose to $142 a barrel. Quotes for packaging and freight are not what they were last month. You redid the cost sheet.
40. 11/5 · The rush before the long holidayOrders rose ahead of the long holiday. Delivery and stock both became tight at once.
41. 11/26 · A family emergencyThe school called about your child. You left the work in other hands and rushed over.
42. Staffing up before peak seasonDefer for free — You spent nothing and will reconsider at another opportunity.
43. 12/4 · Reviews piled upThree one-star reviews with the same wording appeared in one day. You could not tell whether they were customers or a competitor.
44. 1/8 · FamilyYour family packed you lunch. The note said, “Eat properly.”
45. 2/4 · Records requested by the tax officeIRS requested records for credit card sales and cash sales. You opened the books again.
46. 2/21 · Overseas orders came backGlobal growth rose to 4.2%. An overseas partner was the first to ask about next quarter’s volume.
47. AI redrew the marketIgnore it — You did not buy the tools. Six months later, a competitor offered the same service at half the price.
48. Review BombingTen one-star reviews appeared in a single day. Same wording, same photos, same time window. At first you cannot tell whether it is a competitor posing as a customer or just a bad day.
49. Year 2 closeRevenue $494,820, operating profit $113,647. Cash $256,208.
50. 2028 · year 3 beginsYou Found a Mentor
51. 3/16 · Your mentorAn old mentor called. “What scares you most right now?” they asked.
52. AI redrew the marketAI tools changed the industry’s cost and speed. Companies that adopted them move cheap and fast; the rest pay twice for the same customer.
53. 4/13 · Down sickDay three of a cold that will not lift. No time to see a doctor.
54. 5/3 · Equipment stoppedThe technician said a repair would cost nearly as much as a new one. You bought new.
55. 5/11 · Supplier price increaseThe delivery driver said a freight charge starts next week. In effect, a 3% rise.
56. Maya Johnson asks to borrow moneySay no — “Sorry, I’m stretched too.” No reply came.
57. Demand is outrunning the teamHire one employee — You hired the person who laughed most in the interview. Customers learned their name before you did.
58. 6/12 · Oil reached the cost baseBrent rose to $126 a barrel. Quotes for packaging and freight are not what they were last month. You redid the cost sheet.
59. 7/30 · Reviews piled upThree one-star reviews with the same wording appeared in one day. You could not tell whether they were customers or a competitor.
60. 8/21 · An employee quitAn employee said this month would be their last. The warehouse nearby pays more an hour.
61. 8/24 · FamilyAt dinner nobody brought up work. You understood that was a kindness.
62. Someone else has quitMake an urgent replacement hire — A new colleague joined. Work is shared, but payroll and onboarding are now recurring responsibilities.
63. 9/17 · Repeat buyersMore customers placed a second and a third order. One wrote in the note: “Counting on you again.”
64. 9/28 · Your mentorYour mentor sent a link to an article. “This sounded like you.”
65. 11/25 · The rush before the long holidayOrders rose ahead of the long holiday. Delivery and stock both became tight at once.
66. 11/29 · Records requested by the tax officeIRS requested records for credit card sales and cash sales. You opened the books again.
67. Do you raise prices?Raise prices 10% — The day you changed the price tags, one regular said, "That is a big jump." He came back the next week. Another did not.
68. 12/3 · Supplier price increaseThe delivery driver said a freight charge starts next week. In effect, a 9% rise.
69. 12/9 · Equipment stoppedA key machine broke. Three days for the part to arrive; you did it by hand until then.
70. 1/4 · A price warA seller with the same product cut the price by 10%. Your listing slipped a place in search.
71. 1/29 · Reviews piled upThree one-star reviews with the same wording appeared in one day. You could not tell whether they were customers or a competitor.
72. 2/5 · Oil reached the cost baseBrent rose to $126 a barrel. Quotes for packaging and freight are not what they were last month. You redid the cost sheet.
73. The competitor cut pricesCut prices with them — The first week after the cut, customers came back. The second week, the competitor cut deeper. Nobody knows where this ends.
74. You Found a MentorAn industry senior offered to buy coffee. He told you, "I went under back then because I did not know this." Advice is free, but listening takes humility.
75. Year 3 closeRevenue $720,516, operating profit $222,333. Cash $415,115.
76. 2029 · year 4 beginsMarketplace fees rise · Global Energy Prices Surged
77. 3/22 · Repeat buyersMore customers placed a second and a third order. One wrote in the note: “Counting on you again.”
78. 3/30 · An employee quitAn employee said this month would be their last. The warehouse nearby pays more an hour.
79. One pair of hands short at the rushMake an urgent replacement hire — There were a few mistakes in the first week. From the second week you had time to rest.
80. 4/27 · Down sickYou came down with something. You took medicine and pushed through, but could not concentrate.
81. The first cushionKeep it as a reserve — You opened a separate account. Every time you checked the balance, your shoulders dropped a little.
82. 6/9 · FamilyYour family packed you lunch. The note said, “Eat properly.”
83. 7/26 · A price warA seller with the same product cut the price by 10%. Your listing slipped a place in search.
84. 8/7 · Records requested by the tax officeIRS requested records for credit card sales and cash sales. You opened the books again.
85. 8/17 · Oil reached the cost baseBrent rose to $143 a barrel. Quotes for packaging and freight are not what they were last month. You redid the cost sheet.
86. Demand is outrunning the teamHire one employee — A new colleague joined. Work is shared, but payroll and onboarding are now recurring responsibilities.
87. 9/23 · Supplier price increaseThe supplier said prices go up 7% from the next order. You need to find another supplier.
88. 10/28 · Equipment stoppedThe technician said a repair would cost nearly as much as a new one. You bought new.
89. 11/25 · Your mentorAn old mentor called. “What scares you most right now?” they asked.
90. You need someone to run the floorDefer for free — You spent nothing and will reconsider at another opportunity.
91. 12/25 · A family emergencyThe school called about your child. You left the work in other hands and rushed over.
92. 12/26 · Repeat buyersMore customers placed a second and a third order. One wrote in the note: “Counting on you again.”
93. 1/11 · Reviews piled upThree one-star reviews with the same wording appeared in one day. You could not tell whether they were customers or a competitor.
94. 1/17 · An employee quitAn employee said this month would be their last. The warehouse nearby pays more an hour.
95. Someone else has quitMake an urgent replacement hire — You hired the person who laughed most in the interview. Customers learned their name before you did.
96. 2/4 · Overseas orders came backGlobal growth rose to 4.2%. An overseas partner was the first to ask about next quarter’s volume.
97. 2/27 · FamilyAt dinner nobody brought up work. You understood that was a kindness.
98. Priorities for the next three monthsGrow revenue — You got back in touch with past customers one by one. A few more customers came, though not as many as the money spent.
99. Marketplace fees riseAmazon raised its seller fee by two points. Orders held steady, but less is left on each one. Without the platform there are no customers; inside it there is no margin.
100. Global Energy Prices SurgedTension in the Middle East pushed international crude prices up. Ships loaded with oil could not pass, and freight and packaging costs rose with them. A war in the news became a number on next month's cost sheet.
101. Year 4 closeRevenue $853,456, operating profit $174,660. Cash $516,786.
102. 2030 · year 5 beginsThe Minimum Wage Rose · Rates Rose
103. 4/11 · A price warA seller with the same product cut the price by 10%. Your listing slipped a place in search.
104. 4/20 · Equipment stoppedThe technician said a repair would cost nearly as much as a new one. You bought new.
105. 5/13 · Records requested by the tax officeIRS requested records for credit card sales and cash sales. You opened the books again.
106. 6/5 · Repeat buyersMore customers placed a second and a third order. One wrote in the note: “Counting on you again.”
107. 7/24 · A family emergencyThe school called about your child. You left the work in other hands and rushed over.
108. 8/15 · HeatwaveA heat warning. The air conditioning ran all day. The electricity bill is on your mind.
109. 8/30 · FamilyYou talked with your family for a long time. Someone said, “You come before the money.”
110. Demand is outrunning the teamDefer for free — You spent nothing and will reconsider at another opportunity.
111. 9/13 · Overseas orders came backGlobal growth rose to 3.6%. An overseas partner was the first to ask about next quarter’s volume.
112. 10/19 · Your mentorLunch with an old mentor. “Forget the numbers. Are you sleeping?”
113. 10/30 · Equipment stoppedA key machine broke. Three days for the part to arrive; you did it by hand until then.
114. 11/28 · A price warA seller with the same product cut the price by 10%. Your listing slipped a place in search.
115. The test resultsClose and get treated — You taped a note to the shutter: “Closed for health reasons.” A few regulars sent messages.

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