It's not easy to put an exact date on the "beginning" of all this. Is it when I first had the idea? Well, I've pretty much wanted my own business since I knew it was possible to be my own boss! Is it the first time someone paid for something I created? I was selling art (I still cringe a little thinking about it!) when I was 15. So I can't really claim that as the beginning. How about when I "got serious"? I'll be honest, I didn't write down the date. So, for the sake of ease, I'm just running with the moment I hit publish on this website. Sure, it obviously started well before that because I had to build the damn thing, but it's good enough.
And now, suddenly, it's been six months! I wish I could tell you it's been a rollercoaster of orders and work and shenanigans, but honestly, that would be a lie. I'm sure I'm not alone in saying the beginning of this year, lockdown 3.0 et al, well, it threw me into a bit of a spin. Throw unemployment into the mix, along with a heavy dose of personal drama to deal with, and needless to say, "this" did not get off to the flying start I was hoping for.
But it's important to focus on moving the good stuff forwards right? Somewhere mixed in among the the heaviness there are plenty of small victories to celebrate. The website did go live. And stayed live. I sent out my first newsletter (thank you to everyone who took a minute to read!). I worked with some great small businesses. I've developed some product lines that I'm really proud of and can't wait to see what you all think. I've learnt so much. About running a business, about accounting, about printing, about pens and stationery and my favourite love/hate, illustrator! These are the things I will be keeping in mind as I complete my second quarter review (eek! we really are halfway through the year!) and set out my goals for the next one.
This is really just me sticking my head up again and saying Hey, I'm still here, and we're going for the second run up - the shop is looking set to go live in September and there will be plenty of fanfare in the build up to that, the blog is officially being reborn with some great content planned including a not-exhaustive-but-pretty-comprehensive guide to brush pens, ways to get creative and obviously a fair amount of general musings. And, touch wood, some exciting projects pencilled in for the beginning of next year! But the reality of being a one woman show is that there are hiccups and false starts, roadblocks and hurdles, and I'm not one to pretend otherwise.
How are you all feeling about hitting the halfway mark? It is of course entirely arbitrary, but it's always good to take the opportunity to pause and consider right? What are you looking forward to these coming months?
Love reading your musings! Well sometime in the next six months I will be hitting the 'go' button on my own business. Terribly excited about all the creative activities to come... but first, that passport photo!! Looking forward so much to seeing lots of loveliness popping up in your online shop and doing my Christmas shopping with you when the time arrives.