I own a small cafe in southern Ohio where it's hard to make a living. We are two and 1/2 hours away from a major city. That's good and of course bad. Good because I don't have a lot of competition. Bad because our little town lacks the draw to make my business explode. Nevertheless, I make a great living and I only work about three hours a day. The fact that I have been in business for over five years is a miracle in itself. The restaurant business is a very hard business to keep alive. The overhead will eat you alive. So, how did I do it? Due to circumstances beyond my control, I found myself alone with two boys back in my home town where I grew up. I took a year off to regroup and seek healing. After much rest and healing, I prayed for a business that would allow me to make enough money to support myself and be with my two boys when they returned home from school. My answer came fast. I knew food and food always sells. The logic behind that was when I attended a local fair and craft show. Most of the crafts were not selling but people stood in huge lines for the ridiculously overpriced chips and cheese. I decided that the businesses in the surrounding area needed better food choices for lunch. Gourmet food was my specialty. Fast food shouldn't be their only choice. That was my thinking. With $200 I purchased the necessary supplies to offer food to go. For about a month I gave away an ample amount of food to get my name out there. Soon, I was receiving orders. There was a lady who owned a furniture gallery that heard about the kind of business I was generating. She asked me if I would be interested in having a cafe in her gallery. I thought it was a great idea since I could still do my deliveries plus own a cafe and serve there. She would benefit from the traffic that I drew. More importantly, she gave me a generous break on rent since we were sharing space. Besides the fact that the food is delectable, divine intervention surely played a part in this whole set up. Often times I amazed that I make more than most professionals working eight hours a day. My recipes are my own originals and I try to impress each patron when their plate is placed before them. My food is quaintly presented on antique dishes that my mom enjoys collecting for me. Everything is home-made and freshly prepared daily. I offer food that none of the area fast food and chain restaurants make available. I love what I do. And I love to tell my story. I hope I have encouraged someone or provoked an idea. I love to hear about success stories. I hope you enjoyed mine.