When did your company gain traction?

Starting out your company what are some things you needed to change/ optimize in your (that saw positive results)
operation,
management,
business plan,
philosophy

When and how was the transition from being unknown to gaining recognition. I understand it is difficult to pinpoint exactly why things worked out..

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If you would boil it down to 3 sentences what you say to yourself when you started your business, to guide yourself to the entrepreneur you are now.