We’re saying goodbye to one of our long-time partners, Kevin, from Postern, a full-service marketing agency in Frederick Maryland we work with, as he embarks on a major career change out of the marketing world into ownership of a new brewery on his family’s land in Smithsburg Maryland, called Hen & Hound Farm Brewery. We asked him to put together his thoughts on the entrepreneurial mindset and the personal changes he has experienced so far in his journey over the last few years.
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As an Enneagram 7, I thrive on possibilities. I love the thrill of new experiences, the excitement of brainstorming, and the vision of what could be. So, when I set out to start a local farm brewery, my mind immediately painted the perfect picture: wide-open landscapes, people relaxing on the lawn with delicious beer, and kids playing and laughing on a massive playground in the background.
But as any leader or entrepreneur will tell you, there is a massive gap between a beautiful vision and the grit it takes to build it.
Launching this brewery has been an amazing personal transformation. It forced me to shift my mindset from being a passionate creative, to a strategic owner. If you are currently trying to launch a new venture, here are three reality checks I encountered during the process.
1. The Reality of the Journey
Before I even broke ground, everyone gave me the same piece of advice: “It’s going to take longer than you think.”
I heard them, but as an optimist, I assumed I would be the exception.
Spoiler alert: They were right. The reality check hit hard, and I quickly realized that I had to focus my energy. Instead of scattering my time and creativity across a dozen different ideas, I had to funnel 100% of my attention into the grueling, slow-moving startup phase. The lesson I learned is that true growth requires us to outlast our initial excitement. When timelines stretch out longer than anticipated, leaders must find the internal discipline to sustain their energy for the long haul.
2. Navigating the Unknowns
When I began to put together my business plan, I quickly realized how much I didn’t know. How many people will actually show up? How much beer will I actually sell? How can I account for fluctuations in raw material costs?
As a leader, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by a lack of perfect information. I had to learn to do my research, gather the absolute best data available, analyze it thoroughly, and then do something scary: trust my gut and make the call.
In many cases it’s impossible to be 100% certain. Starting a business is a risk after all. Becoming an entrepreneur taught me that leadership isn’t about having all the answers; it’s about having the courage to make a decision with the information you have and managing the outcome.
3. You’re Not a Worker Anymore
The biggest mindset switch happened when I realized the incredible amount of things an owner needs to consider, including things that I had never had to consider before in previous roles. Instead of just “staying in my lane,” I needed to have a more comprehensive understanding of taxes, payroll, point of sales, local permitting, vendor relations, branding, and community presence, just to name a few. I had to learn things I had never even imagined before, from macro-level financial projections down to micro-level logistics like bathroom placement and ordering flow.
Moving into ownership means letting go of the comfort of having a single specialty. You have to trade your specialized lane for a holistic, 360-degree view of the entire business. It requires a massive cognitive shift to understand and care about how every single moving part impacts the whole.
Are You Ready to Take the Next Step?
Whether you’re opening a farm brewery or leading a corporate department, the lesson remains the same: you cannot scale a business if you don’t put in the effort to first expand your current way of thinking.
Moving from the “doing” to the “leading” requires hard work, self-awareness, and the willingness to learn new things that will serve you on your journey forward.
