This summer has been crap for blogging.
I haven’t had anything to say at all (don’t look so shocked! it happens!) and I know a bunch of you have neglected your keyboards as well (it’s okay, I forgive you, just don’t do it again).
Let’s chalk it up to all of us living wonderful, sun-drenched, bikini-clad lives for the summer. And ignore the fact that I spent every day slumped over a desk, gripping a cup of coffee like it was my last hope for survival.
Fall! Bring us things to discuss!
To get things rolling already, I’m gonna steal a page from Anna Dorfman, she of Door Sixteen. Anna occasionally has readers Go Ask Anna- opening the floor for any and every question, and then answering them in the comments. I want to do that! But the thing is, I’m not wildly interesting like Anna. So, you know. I’m hoping there actually are things you’d like to Ask Liz.
Otherwise this’ll just be Yawn at Liz and Walk Away from the Computer with a Shrug. A little less fun.
In which case I’ll Delete This Post in Embarrassment and Hope No One Notices.
Wow, that joke got un-funny fast.
you may also like::
Your Comments | Add a Comment
Sep 13, 2012 8:55 am
What has been the most rewarding thing, to you, about owning your own business? And what has been the most frustrating? My wife and I own two businesses together (an Etsy shop and a photography business) and there have been so many challenges and joys about the process that I’m always interested in what other people think about their own small-business-ownership.
Sep 13, 2012 9:59 am
Helen, links! Where is this shop of yours?
I think the most frustrating for us has been the “you gotta spend money to make money” thing. The whole reason we slipped into working for ourselves is because we were broke! But, it’s true. We can’t get business without business cards or a website. And it’s hard to scrape by on the minimum when design is what you’re selling (flimsy Vistaprint cards from a stationer? a free Wordpress template site for a web designer??). Right now, we’re in the process of actually becoming a business- LLC and tax ID and all of those fun things and AGAIN. Money! So, yes. Just the way the world works and all, but man. Frustrating.
The BEST part has been helping people. Which sounds so trite! But, for example, a few months ago, I was working on wedding invitations and hit every possible snag. The paper supplier ran out of paper (not kidding), the printer was unexpectedly closed for the entire month for a family emergency, the invitations were held up in customs, and on and on. And I was so relieved that the poor bride didn’t need to deal with all of that hassle- that all she knew was she ordered invitations from me, and received invitations when they were due. Whew.
Same but different, we get to work with a lot of fellow small businesses pretty regularly. It’s so nice to be able to take the burden of a logo or website or whatever off of their shoulders and know that we’re contributing to helping them be successful. I really get excited just thinking about it.
I’m interested to hear your thoughts, Helen! What’s been frustrating? Rewarding? Have you blogged about it?
Sep 13, 2012 10:32 am
Our etsy shop is operationpetticoat.etsy.com, though it is currently languishing a bit after a hard summer with illness, family emergencies and a busy photo schedule. (Eep! We normally have about 30-40 items in the shop and right now there are all of 8. Womp womp. We have a bunch of inventory, we just need to photograph it and get it on there!) Our photography site is bettencourtchase.com.
I completely understand about the spending money to make money issue. It is tough! Both of our businesses started as hobbies (jewelry making, photo taking) and I don’t think we were fully prepared for all the mess that comes with actually being a business. The materials/equipment costs we expected, so that wasn’t so bad, but then there was tax registration, sales taxes (which we have to charge on services in Arkansas, which just seems weird to me), business licenses, blah blah blah. I always advise people just starting out to research this stuff before they get too deep into it, because we didn’t have all our ducks in a row our first year of business and ended up getting audited by the state. It was a huge awful mess, and although we got it straightened out quickly, it would have been awesome if we could have avoided it.
As for the most rewarding part? With our etsy, it’s been fun that something we do for fun generates some income. We craft and make jewelry and such while watching movies, so it’s exciting to be able to sell and share some of what we make. With photography, which is the more focused, time-consuming venture for us of our two businesses, we get to be there for people’s special moments and that is just absolutely, stunningly amazing. We’re there for weddings and births and first birthdays and family reunions, and it is such a joy to know that we are capturing those memories for people and preserving those moments.
I haven’t blogged about any of this, although that is an excellent idea!
Sep 13, 2012 10:45 am
I would definitely enjoy reading about it, if you did.
Sorry you had such a rough summer! Hopefully fall is kinder to you.
Sep 13, 2012 10:56 am
Thank you! :)
Sep 13, 2012 11:20 am
I always like hearing real stories about how other artists are making a living. It is really hard working getting your stuff out there. I always find it inspiring to read other people’s stories. Helen I would love to read your thoughts if you decide to blog about it. And Liz I would like to hear more about your work and process as well. For me making art is such a personal business it is nice to hear what other artists are doing as well.
Sep 13, 2012 9:10 am
What are some of your favorite card-making supplies? Could you do a post on your cards? I am a card-making hobbyist and love your simple designs.
Sep 13, 2012 9:34 am
Thanks, Melanie! I’ll definitely do a how-to one of these days. I wasn’t sure if that would interest anyone. :) Do you post cards on your blog?
It’s probably bad business practice to share the actual supplies I use, right? Haha. Whoops! I use Strathmore water color cards because I love the thick, textured paper and how it creates pretty inconsistencies in the paint. The paint is a bit harder! I have a lot of different kinds of gouache and watercolor, but my favorite is a really, really old set of Sakura watercolor. They’re pricier, but totally worth it for the consistency of the paint and vibrancy of the color.
Sep 13, 2012 9:37 am
I wondered about that when I asked, since it is a business for you. :)
Now and then I’ll post cards on my blog, but maybe I’ll do that more. I usually stick to birthday, wedding, and thank you cards and sending out holiday cards. Baby showers get books.
I started playing with watercolors this summer, as well as Copic markers. I think I have a set of Crayola watercolors (ha!) and some nicer watercolor pencils.
Sep 13, 2012 10:02 am
I haven’t played around with watercolor pencils as much as I’d like to. They were my favorite in high school.
Would you be up for doing a guest post sometime? Showing us your cards and how you make them would be really cool.
Sep 14, 2012 7:41 am
I would definitely be up for a guest post sometime! Let me find some of my favorites to talk about and you just let me know when you want something.
Sep 13, 2012 10:18 am
Of course we want a how-to post on your cards! Not so we can replicate it, but so we can learn about your process. Like I’ve told you before, I’m extremely interested in process.
Sep 13, 2012 11:05 am
I am, too! I wasn’t sure if I’m just a nerd. ;)
Sep 13, 2012 9:11 am
How are you able to be productive with work and have a little guy at home to take care of? I’d love to start a family and think J & I could handle working from home and having a baby, but people tell me I’m crazy, that we will need a nanny at least a few days a week or we will get no work done for our biz. Thoughts?
Sep 13, 2012 9:50 am
Just be ready for a messy house, Christy, hahaha. Little J is content to play on his own while I’m distracted, but holy crap does it get messy as a result!
One thing that happened sort of accidentally but really helps (and I wish I’d been smart enough to plan, haha) is that we take turns. We’ll both be working, but usually one of us needs to be more focused than the other. So, whoever isn’t so busy, sort of takes it on himself to keep an eye on the kid. If Josh has a client meeting, I move Little J into the nursery and do something that doesn’t require a ton of focus. It took a little time for me to figure out which aspects of what I do need my undivided attention (writing an Ask Team Practical, developing an intricate wedding invitation design), and which allow for breaks and interruptions (painting a card that I’ve painted hundreds of times before, responding to email).
The other major, major, major thing for me (being super anal retentive and type A) has been to learn flexibility. I used to set markers and goals for my day- by 10am, this much done, by noon, this much. I also attempted to schedule a “normal” 8 hour workday for a bit there. But sometimes Little J is climbing the walls and needs to go outside and play RIGHT NOW. Other times, he’s unexpectedly not feeling well and needs cuddles, or naptime doesn’t go according to plan and I don’t have a solid 3 hours of uninterrupted work. What I planned to accomplish still eventually gets done. Just not according to the rigid time-frame that I’d like to expect from myself.
I’ve loved reading about your transition to working for yourself! I hope that if you guys decide to do the baby thing, you write about it, too.
Sep 13, 2012 9:28 am
1) Forrest said the Philadelphia Zoo is the oldest zoo in the US. That’s cool…but should it really be on our list of things to do in Philadelphia? (Aside from visit with you guys of course…)
2) Can you remember the first book you read on your own? You know the one where little Liz was like, “Holy cow. I can read!”
Sep 13, 2012 10:13 am
Easy answer, we should go to the Zoo TOGETHER. I haven’t been in years and of course haven’t taken Little J yet. We’ll go up in the Zoo Balloon! Have you guys heard of the City Pass? It might be a good idea if you’re trying to do the whole sightseeing thing.
It was a book about Bert and Ernie and to this day, I don’t know if I actually *read* read it, or just managed to memorize the story because it was read to me so many times. What was yours, Beth?
Sep 13, 2012 9:51 am
What do you think are the differences between being an independent woman versus being self-sufficient? Which do you think guys prefer and why ?
Sep 13, 2012 10:15 am
Pam and the smartypants question. I want to mull this a bit!
Sep 13, 2012 10:40 am
Miss Pamela, there’s a Twitter debate going on about the difference between “independent” and “self-sufficient.” Some folks are seeing them as synonyms. I read your question as independent = a woman who knows herself, is her own person vs self sufficient = a woman who doesn’t need anyone else. But I don’t want to move forward without knowing your intention. How do you define the two terms?
Sep 13, 2012 10:41 am
That’s the most teachery question I’ve written in awhile, haha. Sorry bout that.
Sep 14, 2012 11:25 am
I view a totally independent woman as someone who doesn’t need or want anyone to help them with anything. Self sufficient as see as able to take care of oneself, except they are able to ask for help when they could use it.
Sep 14, 2012 11:27 am
Or that’s how the fb post I read defined it….lol
Sep 16, 2012 10:08 pm
Oh, FACEBOOK.
Welp, given those definitions, I think you know my answer. ;) It’s a really smart girl who knows how to lean on the people around her when she needs them, and the best relationships are made up of two people who are individuals that can lean on one another for support when necessary. One of the best parts of my relationship is when Josh, a completely capable adult male, let’s me take care of him. That stuff makes room for us to love on each other and enjoy it.
What did you think? I’m guessing you were mulling that Facebook post a bit for it to pop up here!
Sep 13, 2012 10:08 am
Question One: OMG where did the dino feet slippers come from? They are adorable and I want them even though I have no tiny feet to put them on.
Question Two: On a slightly more serious note, do you have any mechanisms for coping with fear of failure when it comes to being self-employed? As someone who is already managing anxiety, I want to take the leap into self-employment but I think a lot of fear and doubt gets in the way of actually just doing it. (That and not knowing what I want to do with myself. Whoops.)
Sep 13, 2012 10:37 am
Hahaha DINO FEEET. Possibly the best purchase of Little J’s childhood.
I wish I could tell you. I have no stinking clue. It really was just a matter of being forced to out of desperation. I think I less fear failure (as in not making enough money to eat- because, ha! been there, done that) and more fear that I’m not as good as everyone else out there. There are LOTS of amazing stationers, illustrators and designers right now, and all of them are readily visible everywhere online. I need to actively work to tell myself that it’s not a matter of “better” and “worse,” sometimes it’s a matter of “different.” Anna Bond makes some amazing cards, but because her cards are awesome doesn’t mean mine aren’t. We can both be awesome. Know what I mean? Not sure if that completely answers your question, but it’s been my struggle.
Sep 13, 2012 11:15 am
There is no limit to awesome. :)
Sep 13, 2012 11:52 am
What were some of the best ways people helped you while pregnant? Two close friends have recently conceived. I’m super pumped to be an aunty and have always loved loved kiddos. I’m really looking forward to being a trusted, non-parent adult in this wee one’s life. However, this is the first of my friends to have a kid. I trust myself to be a good friend but do you have any particular insights for better support?
The monster slippers are obviously high on my list…
Sep 13, 2012 12:11 pm
FUNNN!
Do fun things and go out. I mean. Do the things you usually do, but with more concerted effort.
I was weirdly terrified that “fun times” would be over when the baby came along, and I felt like pregnancy was the preamble. We didn’t really go anywhere because I was fat and hated getting dressed cute, we were saving money for baby furniture, I couldn’t drink. So I only went out when people asked me to. And they didn’t very much. And the fact that we didn’t go anywhere made me sad because THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF THE END, I KNEW IT.
When friends would come along and ask me to go out (to Target or Panera, even!), I felt like myself and not just this identity-less baby-maker that I feared becoming. Also, if you don’t see the pregnancy as an obstacle for being a friend and having a good time, you reassure them that you won’t see the kiddo as an obstacle. The same friends who took me out when I was preg are the ones who still assume I’m game for fun, despite being a mom.
Sep 13, 2012 1:57 pm
Did you always know that you wanted to be a teacher?
Sep 13, 2012 2:26 pm
I didn’t! I played teacher when I was little and bossed around my brother and sister, but what always appealed to me was the idea of decorating a classroom, making bulletin boards and planning fun art projects. You don’t really get to do any of that stuff as a high school teacher, haha. And I think those things are more telling of what I ACTUALLY wanted to do. Art.
Of course, being an “artist”- that’s not lucrative. So, second up is to explain art to other people. “Those who can’t do, teach,” right? In my mind, art and literature are close cousins, and I figured it’d be easier to find an English job than an Art teaching job. Luckily! This isn’t one of those “teaching as a default” stories that ends badly. I love teenagers, I’m passionate about literature being reflective of and important to our worldview, and I love dissecting the deepest emotions with a room full of people who are just beginning to figure out how to be individuals.
Sep 15, 2012 4:25 am
Ah neat. Funny how as we go along some things become clearer in retrospect.
Sep 13, 2012 3:01 pm
1. What was your favorite book to teach in the classroom?
2. What is a classic book that you think more people need to read?
Sep 13, 2012 5:35 pm
1. UNFAIR QUESTION, Chablis. Not cool.
I love teaching them all. But I think maybe Hamlet. Which is so lame-o of me.
2. I think 1984 is drastically underrated. SO GOOD. And super relevant always. Also, many of Hemingway’s short stories (which can be interestingly pro-woman for such a gross man). And of course, The Awakening. Oh, The Awakening.
You’re a book nerd, too, miss. What’s one book you think everyone should read?
Sep 14, 2012 8:55 am
1984 is a great pick! I think Brave New World is also one everyone should read.
Sep 14, 2012 8:57 am
Yeah! All of that distopian lit is so important.
Sep 13, 2012 4:35 pm
How do you feel about not going in a “straight path” career-wise even with some investment in other paths? Speaking personally, I’ve done the Masters degree in something and just can’t find a job doing what I want to do, and my instincts are pulling me in one direction while my training is pulling me in another. I know Meg at APW covered having a checkered career path, but I feel like you might know a little bit more about what I’m talking about. Does having a graduate degree make this any easier or harder for you?
Sep 13, 2012 5:48 pm
I think sometimes we’re afraid all of this money we invested in our education will go to waste if we don’t use it in a career right now. But, if we let our education force us into a career path we loathe or that doesn’t fit into whatever else we’re doing, isn’t that just as much of a waste? The money’s already spent. Do whatever you want to do. It may sound… irresponsible? But I dumped a bunch of cash into extra education for the advantage of extra opportunity, not so that I’d feel my options were more limited.
And then, of course, we can get into education for education’s sake. ;) But I won’t bore you.
Up for sharing? What’s your degree? What’s the instinct-geared plan? In this economy, I root for the instincts!!
Sep 13, 2012 6:03 pm
Great point about why we enroll in education to begin with! It’s not to limit ourselves, but to expand our opportunities.
Also, I have a Master’s in educational policy and administration, bachelor’s in Spanish. :) I’m actually becoming more and more interested in health science, though, and maybe becoming a health coach somewhere down the line? Doing another degree right now makes me want to cry (I just got my Masters a little over a year ago), but it’s something I’m pretty heavily considering.
Sep 13, 2012 7:06 pm
Hm. Would you need a ton of ed to do that?
Sep 13, 2012 7:45 pm
Apparently! I’d need at least another associate’s degree, then like a few more months of training if I want to actually feel legit. There are all kinds of sham programs for it out there.
Sep 13, 2012 7:52 pm
Oh, bummer! I can understand your reluctance to jump back into paper-writing, etc. Fingers crossed for you, miss. I bet you could find a way to exercise those health-coaching muscles while you wait to reboot for another bit of schooling! I wonder if there are any nonprofits that could use health-minded volunteers.
Sep 13, 2012 8:05 pm
What’s the one question you’ve been hoping someone would ask you?
Sep 13, 2012 8:41 pm
Hahahaha, nice try, but I don’t know! I tried to imagine and guess at what people might ask, but couldn’t think of a single question. Which is probably why I assumed no one would ask anything.
Sep 13, 2012 8:43 pm
I couldn’t think of a decent question. That was my cop out. Maybe next time I’ll have a good one for you :)
Sep 13, 2012 8:52 pm
See, we BOTH couldn’t think of one.
Sep 13, 2012 8:55 pm
BUT I’m really enjoying the questions everyone else is asking and your answers!
Sep 13, 2012 8:21 pm
You post a lot of thought-provoking essays here. How do you a.) set up your editorial schedule, and b.) decide when those thought-provoking essays are ready for public consumption? Also c.) How do you decide what you want to talk about in the first place?
Sep 13, 2012 8:41 pm
Thank you! And HA! I sort of try to divide the week into 5 categories- so there aren’t 5 posts about motherhood one after the other and (just for practicality’s sake) not 5 comment heavy posts in a row (geez, I’d never get anything done).
So, that means I just write stuff when something comes to me and I feel like writing, and then save it in draft form. Then, at the beginning of each month, I slip each post into a slot for the month until it’s full.
I will edit something until it’s a little shred of what it once was, and just keep hacking away at it. So having an “editorial calendar” is nice in that sense. If the post is scheduled for tomorrow, I have to stop obsessing over it (or don’t get a chance to start). Usually, oddly, I obsess about making my posts sound more “conversational.” Because at first run, they usually come out sounding like boring academic essays or diatribes or (worst) self-help motivational speeches.
But, sometimes it doesn’t work as planned. I haven’t had anything to say for a little while, so I still have a blank calendar for the month of September, which is terrible business.
As far as what to talk about, I just write about what I’m thinking about when I think about it! Which is probably why i haven’t written in awhile. I’ve been really absorbed with business things, and I don’t think that makes for interesting writing.
Sep 14, 2012 2:18 am
Just to pick up on that, it may not be the most interesting writing and you might not want to write about it, but I think writing about running a small business, particularly your own small business, and with your husband, would be extremely interesting to read.
And that would probably be my question, if not too personal and I’m not too late to the comment party – how did you find working with Josh impacted your relationship? Did it add another facet to your marriage, or was is it more that you have quite distinct work personas (personae?) and that these interacted directly and in a different sphere to the marital one?
Sep 14, 2012 8:10 am
Turns out the same differences that get under one another’s skin in marriage, bug us in business, too haha. We have VERY different ways of working, which causes some friction. I’ll wake up at 7, feed the baby, and pull out my paints. He’s more likely to wake up at 10, have some coffee, read the news, fiddle with some email, etc… and eventually get rolling on work. But, I’ll be burnt out and irritable and need a nap, and he’ll be more likely to keep working at an efficient pace for the whole day. So, just a matter of different personalities. We are just, um, given more opportunity? To work on not being bugged by one another. ;)
It did add another facet in one sense, though! We always have been creative individually, and would cheer one another on from the sidelines. Now that we’re creating together, I think we feel more proud of one another’s artistic growth and achievements.
Sep 14, 2012 7:30 am
I’m glad to hear my first drafts aren’t the only ones that come out sounding like they’ve been molding in a community college library for decades ;)
Your Comments | Add a Comment