January in the life of this micropreneur has gone by quickly and swiftly. There's been much on the go and a lot of things have been learned and accomplished. I'll gift wrap my January in 5 parcels for you.
1. Living with Ease - course by Sandra Pawula
Sandra's e-course was something I wanted to devote my January - the beginning of a new year - to. I woke up each morning a little earlier than the rest of the family to read the daily lesson and to do my homework. In three weeks I got to know so much more about stress and how it manifests itself in my life, how to deal with it and how to prevent it from invading my life sneakily without my permission. The course gave me straightforward tools to work with, and made me feel much more prepared for what this year has in stock for me. Sandra is doing another round of the course later in the spring, so if this is something that speaks to you, be sure to subscribe to the announcements Sandra has on the course page for when the next round will be up.
2. Creating C A L M
I didn't make any new year's resolutions. I did, however, choose one word to guide me through the year. My aim for the year is to create a little bit of calm each day of the year. It's a broad enough subject to cover most anything, so it feels easy to accomplish daily, but it's focused enough to give a sense of calm as a result of whatever it is I've chosen to do on a particular day. Creating calm has meant I've finished quite a few of unfinished businesses, done a fair bit of laundry and cleaning, taken a good few naps, recycled and renewed things that are no longer serving me as they are without causing stress. Taken a firm hold of things that are left winding by and finding out enough about them to let them have a life of their own again. This word seems really helpful, to me.
3. Financial plan
For the first time since beginning the running of the little dance wear shop I made a financial plan in the early days of January. It was a plan to see approximately how much money the shop would need to make, so I could raise my own salary to meet at least some of the needs I have at the moment, and so it wouldn't mean less money to pay the bills for the shop. I counted the over all gross total I needed to make in a whole year, divided that into months, and divided the months into working days. It isn't a goal to sell your mother for, and there's breathing space there to meet the end-of-the-year goal - so it's a loose plan, which I think is good for being the first ever plan. But for the whole of January I kept a chart going to know where I was with the plan, and come to the end of January I had actually exceeded the goal, which was a complete surprise for me.
4. Work of elves
Every year around Christmastime I feel quite sad that I didn't think of Christmas before the end of November. I would have wanted to make the gifts for my lovelies by hand, and at the end of November I realize it's far too late to make something for most. So this year I thought I'd begin early. I'm in no hurry, and I don't want to create anything in a rush or because I have to. But I'm making a pair of woolly socks at the moment, on my spare time, when the rest of the family's watching TV and I can't be asked. They'll most definitely be ready by December :)
If you happen to still be stressed about The Christmas Past and the gift giving (or are already dreading Valentine's Day), there's a book fresh off the shelves of Amazon that's just been released about the gift giving frenzy and how to escape and avoid it. It's by Robert Wall, who is a fellow micropreneur-blogger, and the book can be found (and purchased for a ridiculously cheap price for the comfort it presents) HERE. I loved the book and Robert's humour. Well worth the investment :)
5. Blog friends
January has also been the beginning month for a wee group of bloggers to get together and support each other's work. It's been a great month of getting to know new blogs and personalities behind the writings. I notice my own writing has had less time to manifest itself in the past month, but I've had so much fun reading other people's blogs and getting inspired by them!
How has your January evolved?
What does your wrap-up look like with big bows and sparkly papers (I know things aren't always sparkly and fun, but if you were to present your most gifted, most glittery, bona-fide awesomeness in a parcel or a few, that would they be like)?
2 comments:
Hi, Anne! I Love your beautifully-wrapped thoughts for January... ;-) I totally relate on so many levels, too! In December each year, I remember that I had meant to make small gifts throughout the year so they'd be ready, and I seem to always miss that boat.
Your chosen word (C A L M) feels so powerful and energetic for me. Love it! Mostly, though, I love what it will bring for you. (My word is s-l-o-w-i-n-g, & I'm actually writing a post on it that I hope to share soon).
Your wrap-up is gorgeous, Anne! ;-)
Hi Dar, and thanks for the lovely message. I can't wait to read about your word - I've found that reading about other people's "power words" brings so much energy and intention to my life too, and the word could have easily been a hundred other words, for they all have deep meaning and inspiration in them! Let's hope there' s a hundred years more to live so we can try them all :)
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