“It’s been a journey”

“I’m living my best life”

“This is totally amaze-balls!”

I’m not one for in-fashion phrases. They make me cringe and it’s drives me nuts when it’s all you hear on the TV when the slightest thing happens. But to quote a particular phrase of the moment, I’ve been making time for some ‘self-care’. Business self-care that is. 

When you work alone it’s easy to be head-down, ploughing through work, grateful the work has come in, barely taking a breath, until you realise things have gone quiet and then you think “how did that happen?”. I’ve been incredibly lucky to have had a steady stream of work for the last couple of years, but recently I’ve been prompted by some of my fellow freelancing peers to take a step back and assess my situation. 

Am I happy with the work I’m doing? Yes

Would I like new projects to work on? Always

Do I dedicate enough time to my own business as I do to others? Umm no. 

After further probing questions, I realised I have rather neglected my own business this year. Despite helping other businesses improve their communications, it can be hard to view your own business with fresh eyes. You know it inside out and believe you have your messages nailed. But how can I encourage other business owners to carve out time for their comms when I barely make time for my own? It’s time to lead by example, or at least a better example. Simple things like remembering to post on my own social media, jotting down those moments of inspiration I have for a blog rather than forgetting them later and being annoyed with myself. And the biggie, refreshing my website. Many web designers have told me over the years that your website is always a work in progress. As your business evolves so should your site to reflect the changes. 

Looks like I have some very early New Year’s resolutions already. But hey “it’s all a journey!”