Beauty Cake: How Founder Marcia Kilgore Built Five Businesses.

Early in her career, Kilgore realized that she needed to be “someone that people wanted to be around.”

Being polite, punctual and nice is important because these qualities will help you build credibility, she says.

“I proved to be a very sunny, very hard-working and very diligent person to do that service.”

“If you do a really good job, people will recommend you,” she says, and soon she opens a small beauty salon that she registered months ago.

She also explains that you need to be “willing to make big sacrifices” to make your business successful.

“You don’t have a lot of free time,” she says, adding that running a business requires you to be aware of changing customer behavior, new competitors and broader market trends.

This often means reading, researching and connecting ideas outside of work hours.

“That’s what drives you,” says Kilgore, adding that if you’re surrounded by curiosity, the workload can feel lighter.

She has some non-negotiables and while raising her children she tries not to miss important events such as school plays and family holidays.