Starting a Business

SO with the combination of a rainy week, a needy 2 year old, a hard working / late home hubby and a zero sales at the market time I have been feeling somewhat low this week. I struggle to find any time to play in my own playroom and can't get Jack to play in his no matter how hard I try!! I wrestle with guilt at wanting to do my own thing sometimes and then it is hard to justify when things start so slow. So I awoke this morning to pouring rain, but somehow the personal cloud had lifted!! You see 4.5 yrs ago my husband answered an ad in the paper that simply said "Gutter Cleaners wanted" and the phone number. Jay and I had been working a number of crappy jobs since arriving in Canada and he was then working a sales job that he couldn't abide. He said he was going to give this a go and if it was bearable then it was better than where he was. Spring forward 4.5 years and now see a man with a successful window and gutter cleaning company in the Cowichan Valley and today is the official take over of the Victoria area too!! It sounds so romantic and alluring for success doesn't it - but I can now look back and see where and how he has achieved this and how he has made opportunity where for many none would have existed. Jay never once questioned his goals - he knew what he wanted to do very early on and he would talk abt them in an almost mantra way - I guess it is what the secret is all about. He worked hard!! Day in and day out he has been up and down ladders - rain, shine more rain (this is BC) never once did I hear him moan, complain or bitch about the work he was doing - infact I always forgot the dirty type of work he did because he behaved completely professionally and usually had a positive spin on whatever job he was doing from great views, nice customers to not getting soaked through until after lunch this time. The romance of owning your own company and building it to a tangible business really is paved with determination, vision, self belief and head down nitty, gritty work. The days arean't usually full of these "aha" moments they are usually full of the same thing each and every day - but when these aha moments happen, these goal markers, it is good to put your head up for a second just to look back and go "man..look how far I've come!"....but then put your head back down, pull up your collar and get back on that ladder with the biggest smile on your face.

I guess I need to learn from my man how to make a successful business. Stop complaining, doubting and bitching...get my head down, my hands dirty and stop expecting aha moments everyday!

Little Tip for toddlers partys!!

OK - so you went all out for the first birthday and now number two has rolled around. Are you getting more sleep - sure - are you still knackered - ABSOLUTELY! SO why, why, why are you stressing abt a party for a 2 year old. Save the pennies, save the work, save the stress and tell everyone it is "Low Key" party time. Set the trend and the standard in your mothers gang and hear the sighs of relief. All we did was tell the little mans buddies to come down to the park where they had a petting zoo and playground. I brought the cake and it was a BYOTH (bring your own Tim Hortens) - yep ladies I did absolutely nothing for his party and everyone had a ball!! Were we knackered? - NO. Were we broke? - NO. Are we blacklisted from all other birthday parties? - not to my knowledge....DID we just enjoy the day? - absolutely!! So remember, in 2/3 years time there is no way your little one is going to let you get away with this lack of effort - enjoy it now while you can!

Market Days are here again!!

SO after a big break from both markets and blogging I am back! It had been 4 years since my last market at Moss St in Victoria and I am so very happy to be back there again. It really is one of the best environments - great atmosphere, great produce / products, kind vendors and wonderful customers - mix that up with some ambient music and a gorgeous day - what a recipe for a happy market day. 4 years ago I was at Moss St selling tea cosies out of pre-loved (as is the "PC" term I understand) fabric. It was such a great experience and made me decide that I did want to try to sell my products - but there is only so much scope for one item like a tea cosie!! So away I went for 4 years - thinking, thinking abt stuff - experimenting and learning to sew properly with a really kind lady who took me on to help her with her own work. 4 years later I think I am really starting to develop something that could work and that I have such fun thinking abt, making and last minute fiddling with. Sometimes we really don't know where we are going to end up and what it is that we are going to do. I never was that person who knew exactly what they wanted to do for their work - I only knew I wanted to LOVE whatever it was I did. SO I have spent 15 years doing work I haven't particularly loved - spending a lot of time brewing what I COULD do. It makes me smile when people look at handcrafted things and snort or tusk saying - "god anyone could make or do that". When I think of all the painstaking time this little stall has taken to start to bud - it really isn't the easy option that people think!! I still have no idea what will develop from this - but I do feel I am at the beginning of something finally good for me and right now I am loving the buzzing going on in my head!! SO I have come back to my little blog just to say hi - sorry I have been so absent - it has felt a little foggy in UnPc land - but I hope the clouds are now clearing in my head and in the sky!!!