Graduation season is before us and today marks exactly one year since we’ve graduated from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business! Our jaws are still on the floor as we realize that a whole year has flown by in the blink of an eye. But what a year it has been! In this post, we will be highlighting the changes we’ve experienced since graduation and the growth our business has encompassed.

We had just walked the stage and shook the dean’s hand as we said a final farewell to Berkeley. “So what now?,” “Which company are you working for?”, “What fancy job did that Haas degree get you?”. These were the questions our relatives asked as we smiled nervously and attempted to explain to them that we wouldn’t actually be getting a “real” job. They didn’t really understand it then, but that didn’t matter. What mattered was that we left the Greek Theater that day with a diploma, a business, and each other.

At the time we had only a vision for Cobalt & Sapphire, $125 in an envelope we used as our bank, and no business foundation. One of our client leads asked if we could build a website for her business and we responded with “absolutely,” even though we hadn’t the slightest idea of how to even purchase a domain name. We were inexperienced and overwhelmed, but our tenacity and ability to learn overpowered that. We said yes to anything and everything and figured the logistics out later. We were eager to get started.

One year later, and we’ve now serviced over 20 clients, and counting! We have done everything from building intricate websites to implementing online advertisements, growing social media accounts, and the list goes on. Along the way, we have had to refine our skills and learn which roles we work the most efficiently in. For example, Carolline takes the lead on website projects as Sofia manages all the client social media accounts. Granted, our roles extend beyond our daily duties. We have to be the chief financial officer, the legal department, the client relations specialist, etc. and this is the nature of being a small business owner, you wear many hats.

The scariest part about this experience has been that Cobalt & Sapphire did not come with a manual. Each day is a learning lesson where we encounter situations, whether good or bad, that no one is telling us what to do or how to do it. Each situation has forced us to step up and lead with our best intentions and with our instincts. We are happy to say, however, that when we follow our gut instinct, it almost always goes our way.

So here we are, a year later. A year of learning, a year of growth, and a year of challenges. There is no doubt that we have plenty more experiences and lessons left to learn throughout the continued growth of our company. But one thing is for certain, our support, our team, and our clients help us keep going. Looking forward – we welcome all difficult decisions, lessons, and challenges. Cheers to the start of our second year out of college!