Business with Intention Workshop Recap

It's been a month since I attended the Business with Intention workshop.  And now that I'm no longer nannying during the day and school is winding down, my business has moved front and center.  (As part of that, I hope to start blogging more regularly, so that's good news for all of you!)

I've been really pleased with what I've accomplished over the past five months in the midst of a crazy busy schedule.  But I'm interested to find out how much I can do, now that I have time to invest in my writing.

What's making me anxious though?  Not having a regular paycheck coming in.  Even with nannying, I could expect some amount of money every two weeks.  And while I know it is the right decision to let that go, I'll admit, it's stay-awake-at-night scary.  I hope that at some point, once I see how things go, I'll become more comfortable.  If anything else, I suppose it's the ultimate motivation.

I need to rely on what I learned at the Business with Intention workshop, now more than ever.  I want my writing to not only be a source of income, but also a source of personal fulfillment, something that fits into my overall vision for my life.

Today, my second day of working from home, I reflected on my vision for my business. 

During the workshop, I had the chance to brainstorm and imagine where I see Melrose Street Custom Content going, how I want it to grow, what I need to be successful from a business perspective as well as from a personal standpoint.   

My vision boiled down to five main points:

1) Flexibility: with my personal time and with the way my business/writing evolves
2) Variety: spanning across different types of projects, clients, tasks... I need to stay challenged and keep learning
3) Balance: in my days (goes along with the above two points) and in my life (work/life balance)
4) Collaboration: in-person meetings, working together with others, building relationships
5) Confidence: comes from being who I am and reaching my goals

I also looked over my five Next Steps, which I wrote at the end of the workshop day:

1) Come up with a schedule for working from home, but be open to flexibility.  (Working on that now!)
2) Look for new projects that diversify my portfolio and expand my experience.
3) Build in time for personal life and inspiration.  Think of new ways to use my talents.
4) Set up time to meet with people in person (collaborate on work, teach/consult, or social meetings).
5) Keep my goals in mind and refer back regularly.

My home office... lamp from Target (shade not available online), print from Jess LC

My desk... a work in progress!

Here's the little blurb I supplied for the workshop's Alumni Page.  It's a nice summary of my experience:

I loved that the workshop allowed me to carve out time and space to really think about my business. I was able to solidify my purpose and vision, figure out how I want to structure my days, and brainstorm new ideas and ways to grow my business. It was a fun, supportive, and low-pressure environment with lots of discussion and some time set aside for individual journaling. Best of all, Jess encouraged each of us to collaborate with at least two other attendees after the day concluded… and I’m already on the way to doing just that!

Coming out of the Business with Intention workshop, I'm excited to start working with Alyssa of Prosper Public Relations on a freelance basis.  Alyssa contacted me when she found out I'd also be attending the workshop.  She was looking for a content manager, essentially a freelance writer she could tap into when her clients need custom content. 

After chatting at the workshop, emailing back and forth, and meeting to discuss details, we figured out about how we could best work together.  I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to act as Prosper Public Relations's Content Manager on a freelance basis and can't wait to see what else the future has in store.