“You need to remember three rules in order to see dolphins from the beach,” D.J. said as we pulled into the parking lot in Pacific Beach this Sunday morning.

“First, in order to see dolphins from the beach, you have to go to the beach. You can’t sit at home.” He was kidding me about my inclination to spend hours sitting at this little desk in my little San Diego apartment about 12 minutes from the best beaches in the country.

“Second, you have to have patience in order to find the dolphins. You won’t see them every time, or even every other time. But if you have patience, you will probably see dolphins.

“Third, you have to have a little knowledge about what you’re looking for to be able to see dolphins. You need to know when to look and where to look.”

By this time, we were almost on the sand. D.J. used his hand as a visor and pointed. “And there they are,” he said.

Holy smokes. There they were. A pod of perhaps 20 dolphins, playing just behind the breaking waves in the Pacific Ocean. We followed the dolphins up the beach for what seemed at once like an hour, a minute and a timeless moment. We watched them play inside the wall of waves, and they’d crest at the top, perhaps one at a time, sometimes as many as three together. One very young dolphin leapt headfirst out of the water, parallel to the horizon. I would say that I could barely contain myself, but the truth is I didn’t even try to contain myself. I stopped paying attention to the pathway or the people or to my guide. I delighted in the dolphins as we followed them along the shore.

When the dolphins had swept through their low-tide feeding ground, they disappeared into the deeper waters.  I finally turned my attention back to D.J., accusing him of setting this up. I glanced around to see if we were on a movie set, thinking that D.J. simply knew when the director of a film crew would say, “Ok, cue the dolphins.”

Looking back, I not only think D.J. set up the surreal walk with the dolphins, I also think he set up a lesson for my blog. In giving me his three rules for being able to find dolphins, he also gave me three of the lessons I’ve learned about starting a new business.

Slightly Modified Rule 1: In order to start your own business, you have to actually start your own business. I’ve been thinking about writing for a living since perhaps second grade. But I always found it easier to slip into another job instead of taking the plunge. Oh, I’ll write on the side, I thought. And I have written on the side: little articles here and there over the years, plus the ubiquitous employee newsletter. But I wasn’t a success as a freelance copywriter until I got off my rear and got out of my safe box.

Slightly Modified Rule 2:  You have to have patience when you’re getting started. I had to learn the hard way that I wasn’t going to be successful on day one, or day two, or month 3, or the second quarter. I’ve actually been very, very fortunate that I’m making a living after only five months, but I’ve had to change my idea of what a living is somewhat. I have to be patient to be able to see the business really flourish.

Slightly Modified Rule 3: You have to know something about what you’re looking for and where you’re looking when you get started. Again, I was fairly lucky to have a pretty solid target audience when I got started: I specialize in the association/nonprofit industry, and I have a lot of contacts there. But many of my clients are new business owners or people with ideas who don’t understand what they’re looking for and where they should look. They simply had a great idea and want to make money with it. I spend more time than I thought I would helping clients discover their potential audiences and how to reach them.

If you’re headed out to Southern California sometime in the near future, I’ll help you spot your own dolphins now that I’m an expert.