I knew absolutely nothing about publishing a book when I decided I wanted to publish one. I just knew exactly what I wanted mine to look and feel like, and somehow assumed I would figure out the rest along the way.

And figure it out I did.

A year, countless publishers, endless samples, negotiations, mistakes and a lot of money later, I have my first coffee table book, Baroque Heart published.

But, somewhere between having the idea and holding the finished book in my hands, I also accidentally gave myself a crash course in business.

Some lessons were obvious. Some I learned the hard way. And some I’m still learning now as I figure out how to actually sell the thing.

Here are 10 things publishing my first book taught me about business:

1. Don’t give up

Starting with this one because, as cliché as it sounds, it might be the biggest lesson I learned.

They say there’s no such thing as failure—failure only means you didn’t try again. There were so many instances when, somewhere around my 10,000th publisher and endless samples later, I genuinely thought this book might not happen. At certain points, it started to feel impossible.

Even then, I kept telling myself to keep going. I would rather go through all of this and find out what happens than spend years wondering what could have happened if I hadn’t given up.

And eventually, I found the right publisher.

2. Price your product according to its value

This was probably one of the harder business lessons for me.

When you create something yourself, pricing it can feel strangely personal. You know how much time, money and effort went into making it, but then you have to put a number on it and confidently tell other people what it is worth.

When I priced my book, there were certain people who were shocked by the price and had some pretty negative things to say about it. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t demotivate me, especially because I knew I had set a fair price for the quality of the book I had created.

But eventually, I realized I had to trust my own judgement instead of allowing other people’s reactions to determine the value of my product.

Think about Chanel. Just because someone can’t afford a Chanel bag doesn’t mean it stops being a Chanel bag. You also don’t see Chanel lowering its prices or standards to appeal to every single person.

Obviously, I’m not Chanel lol, but the business lesson stands: not everyone has to be your customer.

3. Know your audience

Which brings me to this one.

Before I created the book, I did thorough research into the audience I was creating it for, and it’s something I would recommend to anyone creating a product.

Running with the Chanel analogy again, Chanel knows exactly who its customer is. They aren’t trying to convince every person walking down the street to buy a Chanel bag.

The same applies to your own business. You need to know who you’re creating for, what they value and what they are willing to spend money on. If someone sees the value in what you’ve created and is willing to pay the price you’ve set—that’s your audience.

You don’t need everyone. You need the right people.

4. Shop around

Never, ever settle for the first publisher, manufacturer or supplier you find.

Explore your options. Ask for different quotations. Get samples. Compare quality. Study the prices. Ask questions. And then do it all over again if you need to.

The number of publishers I visited or contacted over the past year is honestly astounding. At the time, it was exhausting. Looking back, I’m incredibly glad I did it because every sample taught me something about what I wanted—and, sometimes more importantly, what I absolutely did not want.

When you’re putting your own money into a product, you cannot settle until you find the right working match for you.

5. Negotiate

Speaking of not settling: negotiate the price.

Negotiating can feel uncomfortable, cringey and, especially when you’re doing it for the first time, like you’re being cheap. But I quickly learned that negotiation is simply part of doing business.

The first quotation you receive does not necessarily have to be the final quotation. Ask what can be done. Understand where there is flexibility. Compare your other options and don’t be afraid to have the conversation.

You might hear no. That’s fine. But you might also save yourself a significant amount of money simply because you asked.

If there were a Chapter 1 of business class, I’m convinced this would be in it.

6. Be passionate about your business

None of the above really matters if you don’t genuinely care about what you are building.

You have to be willing to try, fail, retry, change your approach and keep experimenting. And I don’t think you can sustain that for very long unless you actually believe in what you’re doing.

By the end of this process, I was honestly bored to death of looking at the same images. I had spent a year staring at them, rearranging them, editing them, discussing paper, looking at samples and thinking about this book.

But underneath all of that exhaustion, there was still this burning desire to see the book published.

And then, once it was finally published, that passion had to evolve again.

Because making the product is one thing.

Now you have to sell it.

PART 2 — Selling the Book

The reality that hits you after the book is published is completely different.

For the longest time, I thought actually making the book was going to be the most difficult part. Then my order was ready, the books were sitting in front of me, and suddenly my mind was working nonstop trying to figure out how to correctly market this thing so it could reach the right people.

Because creating a product and selling a product, I quickly realized, are two completely different skills.

I am currently still in this part of the journey, so these aren’t lessons I’m writing from the other side. I’m documenting what I have learned so far, and I want to continue documenting these experiences—for myself and for anyone else who might need them.

7. Never chase a sale

This is a lesson I try to live by in both my personal and professional life: never chase.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t put yourself out there. Promote your product. Approach people. Knock on doors. Follow up. Tell people what you’ve made and why you believe in it.

But there is a difference between selling and begging someone to buy.

As a business owner, there is no greater feeling than someone genuinely wanting to buy something you’ve created. Even someone showing real interest in the book excites me and leaves me feeling satisfied for days.

I would much rather put my energy into finding the people who see the value in what I’ve created than exhaust myself trying to convince someone who doesn’t.

8. Don’t confuse rejection with unworthiness

You need to understand that rejection is simply the nature of life.

We experience rejection everywhere—a job opportunity, dating, friendships, business. It’s unavoidable, and at some point, we have to learn how to live with it without allowing every “no” to become an identity crisis.

When I go around selling my books door-to-door, I experience rejection. A LOT.

And I’ve had to learn not to take it personally.

Someone not wanting to buy my book doesn’t automatically mean the book isn’t good. It doesn’t mean I shouldn’t have made it. And it definitely doesn’t mean there is something wrong with me.

Sometimes it’s simply not the right person, the right place or the right time.

Business has actually forced me to become much more comfortable with hearing no. Things aren’t always going to work out the way you want them to, and that’s okay!!!

Take the rejection, learn whatever you can from it and keep moving.

9. Don’t confuse interest with sales

This one deserves its own lesson because I learned very quickly that people saying, “omg I NEED this!” and someone actually taking out their wallet and buying it are two VERY different things.

Interest feels amazing, but interest isn’t revenue.

Compliments aren’t sales. Likes aren’t sales. Someone telling you they’re definitely going to buy one isn’t a sale.

A sale is a sale.

Learn the difference and you’ll be golden.

10. Be prepared to sell yourself

Always remember that people aren’t only buying your product. They’re also buying from you.

This is where the personal brand comes in.

People like buying from people they like, trust or feel connected to. Especially when you’re running a small business or selling something you’ve personally created, you can’t always separate the person from the product.

I’ve realized that every time I talk about my book, post about it, walk into a store with it or explain the idea behind it, I’m not only marketing the book. I’m introducing people to the person who made it.

So while you’re promoting your business, remember that you’re also selling yourself in the process.

Your product needs to speak for itself. But you need to be able to speak for it too.

If you’d like to see the book for yourself, you can find Baroque Heart here.

xo

Yachna