brassblogs

So, you may have noticed a new layout here on the site, with a big, fat announcement that I’ve gone on sabbatical. Yes, it’s true (obviously). The reason I finally decided to do this was because my business was going down one path, while my dreams for my business were leading down another. It’s been nearly 8 years since I took on my very first client, and I’ve come to understand why my reality isn’t matching up with what’s in my head. I decided the best course of action was to come to a full stop and see if I can’t take a look at the map and get where I want to be.

My entire life, I’ve been lucky. If you believe in astrological stuff, apparently the day I was born, I was born under luck. (I share the same birthday as Audrey Hepburn, and she often said the same thing about herself – she was born lucky.) My mother always said there was something about me, that when things would get really bad, that somehow, exactly what I needed to pull myself out would just fall into my lap.

The funny thing is, I’ve gone through life knowing this, but not counting on it. I always have this fear that the very moment I start to depend on my luck, it will go away. It causes conflict with me, actually, because I’m the kind of person who is always certain that things will always work out in the end, so sometimes I think I tend to take a different outlook than most people do. Whether that’s good or bad depends on who you ask.

The reason I tell you this is because, I believe, this is why I am where I am today. I started my business – and it’s terrible to say this – on a whim. I figured if it worked, it would, and if it didn’t…well I’d have a lot of cool computer stuff to play games on I never took a business class (but I did have a lot of “business sense” due to the fact that my mother runs her own business, and I had a long relationship with a man who also ran his own business – I pick up a lot) – but I did have a sincere passion for art and computers. I figured “what’s the worst that could happen?” and dove right in.

No plan. No direction. No clue. Just jumped in and hoped for the best.

This, I know, is why I am where I am. Eight years later, I’m not where I hoped I would be. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE my business, and I love my clients, and I love what I do. But something is off. So now I’m taking the time to stop and reassess, and try to get it together like a real business should. I’ve “rolled with the punches” for far too long – it’s time I pound out a few hits.

I’ve been asked by several colleagues to document my journey over the course of this next year. Apparently, I’m doing what several people would like to do, but aren’t in the (lucky) position I am in to be able to do it. So I’m a willing guinea pig.

My plan is vague (as they usually are with me), but what I want to do is clarify and make myself a clear path. I want to vault myself into success (in my eyes – not someone else’s idea of it), and change my business for the better. I want to learn the things I’ve been wanting to learn but never had the time, and at the same time I want to have time for myself – something I never seem to have. I will be doing WordPress tutorials as I always have been (and finally, finally making good on the promises I’ve made to upgrade my stuff), but I will also be delving into new territories for me, such as SEO, HTML5, getting better at PHP and MySQL, and doing more alternate CMS work, like MoX and Magento, CMS Made Simple (and a couple new ones that have been brought to my attention). Hopefully my trials and tribulations in these new (to me) fields will help those of you who are also new at it.

And hopefully, like my colleagues, you can improve your business by taking a vicarious sabbatical along with me. Enjoy the ride. I plan to!