I'm usually not one for pouring my soul out on my blog. I usually stick to the safe posts about my house, our latest DIY projects, or show recaps. I create this nice cushiony barrier between myself and personal thoughts and feelings about my business. But lately I have been giving a lot of thought about where I see my business going in 2017, where I want to be a year from now, and even where I wan to be 10 years from now.
Plum Pretty Decor and Design has alway been two very different businesses crammed and jammed into one. The first business being my interior design business- the design in Plum Pretty Decor and Design. The business where I design spaces for others. Then there is my antique and vintage "traveling store" business- the decor in Plum Pretty Decor and Design. The business where I travel all over the southeast selling my personal collection of antique and vintage finds. For now I don't foresee slitting my business or dividing the two but I have given some thought to that one day maybe a year from now, or maybe 10 years from now this may have to occur. A tree cannot grow and flourish without growing branches and spreading it leaves. Which brings me to my goals.
Goal #1 GROWTH
In order to grow I must let go and realize I can not possibly take on an entire 2 branch company on my own. So one goal I set for 2017 is to seek help. Whether that be from a summer intern, a marketing assistant, or an employee... OR JUST ASKING FOR HELP WHEN I DESPERATELY NEED IT ... Oh my goodness.. It seems so scary actually putting that out there. I never dreamed I would grow to the point of needing a second set of hands for Plum Pretty. There are only so many hours in one day and only so much I can physically and mentally do. Even if its just a little help here and there. The thought of passing the baton to someone else gives me major anxiety (even if its only for one lap around the track), and I need to learn to let this fear go. Let me be real honest here... Sometimes I can't even let my husband or mother-in-law help me style my booth at shows without a mild panic attack. I constantly feel as though I must have complete control of EVERYTHING in my business. But in order to have growth you must first grow. And to grow I must have trust.
Goal #2 PREPARATION
This one word means so much in my business. I want to better prepare for shows, I want to better prepare my finances, I want a complete game plan. This past year (2016) I attended 12 shows and most of the preparation for those shows was done down to the night before we left. One show I actually remember having to let a piece of furniture dry in my driveway before we could pack it up and leave for a 8+ hour road trip. This year I want to be completely prepared for the 15+ shows of 2017 days before we have to get on the road. This past fall I ran myself to the point of getting very sick. Luckily it was during a two week break I had from my show schedule. I truly believe I got sick because I over extended myself, ran on very little sleep, ate when I had time, and no breaks. I was go go go for weeks/months.
I also don't want to get to the end of the year with a huge box of receipts to file and enter. My goal it to set aside one day each month for finances to help lighten my load (and my accountants load) when tax season roles back around- because right now I'm drowning. So on that set day each month I will file all receipts, write out checks, log mileage, and do an overall finance report.
So this year my goal is preparation and to not procrastinate.
Goal #4 BLOG CONSISTENTLY
I love blogging and sharing with you guys! And it hurt me so much hearing from loyal readers how much they missed my voice this past fall. There was a couple months during my busy fall show season that I didn't blog, simply because I over booked my daily todo list and it kept getting shoved to the bottom. So in 2017 I am making it a goal to consistently get on here and share with you.
Goal #5 ONLINE STORE
I have been promising an online store for way to long! But this year I am going to make it happen!! Hopefully SOON. I know if i set a date I will more likely accomplish this goal. So an exact date will soon be set.
And I will be doing mine a little different than your typical online store. I have been brain storming and coming up with ways to offer shoppers a fun experience and I can't wait to share it with you all!
Goal #6 PROFESSIONAL PHOTOS
Not that y'all don't just love seeing my non-photographer grade photos. I really want to make it a point to have professional head shots and photos of my home taken this year. I feel like this is one thing that is long over due. This was something I wanted to do last year but kept putting it off. So I feel by actually making it a goal it just might happen.
Goal #7 ORGANIZATON
Finish my new office and get some sort of organization going on in here. Finally have a place to store all my tile samples, paint decks, shipping supplies, and other business stuff. Actually do inventory AND organize my entire warehouse-- eeekkkk that right there scares the bejesus out of me. So goal= find a inventory system that will work for my business and implement it before my first show in March. That right there might be my biggest goal for 2017. Y'all have no idea how unorganized my inventory system or lack of inventory system was for 2016. But new year and new goals! Moving forward.
Goal #8 GROW MY PORTFOLIO
I want to make it a point to take on more design jobs that fit my projected style, even if that means having to say no to jobs that do not fit into my niche. I truly want to specialize in "Farmhouse Style" design. This past year I booked so many design jobs that weren't my style. They all turned out gorgeous and the clients all loved them, but they were not what I wanted to grow my portfolio with. I believe in order to attract more of a certain style that is the style you need to project. And the one job I had that would have been the perfect addition to my portfolio the client requested for me not to share photos of her home. I completely respect her decision, but man guys how I wish y'all could have seen it!
Goal #9 TIME MANAGEMENT
Plan, plan, plan and more planning. I'm one of those people that still uses a paper planner and I have noticed on weeks I actually take the time to time block things go A LOT easier. So in 2017 on Friday afternoons around 4:30 pm (30 mins before the end of my work week) or on Sunday nights I will plan out the following week. I also want to get a wall planner for my office.
Goal #10 BUILD MORE
I really enjoyed my recent DIY blog post about the nesting boxes. I loved the process of building something and then sharing the "how to" with you guys. So in 2017 I want to provide more DIY post on how to build things. Maybe one per month or so...
BIGGEST 2017 GOAL: HAVE FUN
I started this business based on my love and passion for design. Designing, painting, antique shopping, and furniture have always been fun to me. I want to always make sure this passion remains fun! Because "the only way to do great work is love what you do" - Steve Jobs.
And a few personal goals for 2017...
- More date nights
- Travel for fun
- Eat healthier
- Live in the moment more
- Grow my relationship with GOD
So a year from now in 2018 I want to be able to look back on 2017 with a smile. A year from now I want to have a portfolio of farmhouse style designs, I want to have traveled further for my antique and vintage shows and have attended the top markets, I also want to have developed myself into more of a brand. So I'm making my word for 2017 GROWTH.
Writing down your goals makes them so real. They go from these thoughts in your mind and flow from your finger tips to an actual list you can see. They go from thoughts to actions. It almost makes them a todo list. A BIG 2017 todo list. Sharing these goals with you was hard. A lot of these goals point out the imperfections in my business. But I hope by sharing my goals and actually blogging about them I will strive harder to make these goals happen.
Thank you so much for stopping by today and reading my blog. I also hope by sharing my goals with you that you too are inspired to set some goals for 2017. They don't have to be big goals just something you want to accomplish or change this year. I wish you all the best in 2017! May it be your best year yet!
Be sure to follow me over on FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM for more behind the scenes and more of my year to come.
With love,
