Monday Momentum

Had a great Open House tonight - and have a bit of artwork to show for it! I love the fact that we get Idea books 3 times a year. There is almost always a reason for a party.

This one was rather low-key. Had a LOT of activity getting ready and holding the retreat a couple of weeks ago and I just had trouble gearing up to make new things. I had the ideas, but my follow-through was a little on the rough side. It was also on a Monday because I just don't have anymore weekend times available. Well, I think I've learned that Monday night is probably not the best time. I had more visitors this weekend, who couldn't come tonight, than I did during the actual event, but I'm not complaining!

Sometimes low-key events provide important opportunities. This night was that type of night. I had some folks come that I'm just beginning to get to know. It was great talking with them and learning again why I love having my own business - the relationships I get to make with people I wouldn't have the opportunity to meet otherwise!

So I'm ready to start this season. Even though most of my customers don't know it, yet, I have 3 workshops planned along with my regular Scrappin' Happy workshops. I also added a second date onto all of the workshops so my customers can have choices. I've got a frame workshop, a talking-ornament workshop, and of course the yearly Christmas card workshop. I'm also thinking of doing a decorative clock workshop, but I haven't wrapped my brain around that one yet.

Monday Momentum

In the fall, moms are superwomen! School starts, sports kick in, and demands from scouts, ballet, church and other areas stretch every minute we have. If you are also in business, the fall is a primary sales time where people are already thinking about the holidays and need your services! Yikes!

I feel your pain! Right now, my business is demanding quite a bit of my time. My personal assistant job also has daily and weekly requirements, but my kids are my priority and school is my own responsibility. Add to that church commitments, volleyball season, football games, and senior activities. Oh, and mix in daily devotions and Bible study, house-cleaning, room painting, garage organizing, and yard work! Then, if there is a spare moment, I can actually find peace and quiet in my bathroom!

Balance is something we all struggle with. This summer, it was so easy to just throw myself into my business and work up project after project for this website, too. It can be fun, but it is unhealthy to be so single-sided. Especially as women, we thrive the best when we have variety.

Women have been multitasking since the dawn of time; we created the action! Have you ever seen a picture of a Native American man in the field or cooking with a papoose on his back??? No, it's the gal! I love how the movies of the 40s and 50s portrayed women and men. Some people think they are degrading to women, but I don't think so. They clearly show that the women is thoroughly capable of taking care of every aspect of life from the broad to the detail. Just because the man sits on the sofa smoking a cigar while she does it doesn't cheapen her image at all! But multitasking isn't a word that women made up! That term was what some man made up in proud success when he learned he could talk on the phone and type on the computer at the same time! For pity's sake, we do that while we're cooking dinner, as we clean out the fridge, and all with a toddler at our ankles and a baby on our hip! - - another good reason to have good balance! :)

It's also important that we take out some time for ourselves. Carve out a little even if it is just a 20-minute bath or arriving extra early for a school pick up and reading a new novel. (Find some shade and kick on the AC!) For me, it's Perry Mason. I know I've seen every one of them 1000 times, but they're simple, light, and don't require my attention. I set aside 1 hour every day for me to eat lunch while I watch Perry Mason. I don't always get to, and sometimes I miss who the murderer is, but with the time set aside - appointed - I can usually get SOME time to just veg.

So my encouragement for this week is to work on your balance. And with that note, I can tell you that I may not be posting quite as often for the next couple of weeks while I work on my own balance. I would be delighted to post some of your artwork or techniques if you are willing to share! Oh I would LOVE THAT! I hope to post at least a couple each week, but priorities being what they are, we'll just have to see!

Blessings on you! :-)

Monday Momentum

I'm so pumped this week because of my retreat at the end of the week. If you are a consultant and haven't done any retreats, oh PLEASE change that fact and consider doing one as soon as possible.

Going back to last week - as women, we aren't near as much into selling as we are into relationships! This is something I learned about a month ago and have been keeping it at the forefront of my mind! Retreats are a PERFECT place to create and build relationships, and they don't have to be epensive.

First thing to work on is a PLACE. There are all sorts of "Mom&Pop" cabins and retreats that would LOVE to cater to scrap-bookers. Most of these will offer all meals instead of just breakfasts, but there are some which have full kitchens that can save you a lot if you prepare your own food. One of my favorites is the Jadco Retreat about 7 miles north of Whitesboro, TX near Lake Texoma. You can rent it at a flat rate for the weekend (bring your own food) and offers 4 double beds and 1 queen - sleeping 6. We actually figured out that we could use the couch, and a couple of air mattresses and house 12 there instead. Jadco also offers scrap-booking weekends with full meals (delicious!) for a VERY reasonable price.

This weekend, we're going to the Hilton Garden Inn which caters to business travelers. It is a "morgue" on the weekends and they were delighted to bring in our group and gave us a GREAT deal! It includes free hot breakfasts, and plenty of scrapbooking room.

Another thing to think about (depending on your costs) is gifts and giveaways. These little details can really make your guests feel special. I try to do some sort of gift or giveaway after each meal. I also plan (this retreat is the first time I've done it) to do a couple of short classes - having all the supplies ready ahead so I can teach a new technique without taking away from the precious scrapbooking time.

I bring along a few other items: my computer and printer for journaling, my Wishblade for diecutting (and a Cricut from a friend), DVD's of dialogue-driven movies (no silent action because that requires looking up!), and downloaded music and CDs to play on my computer or a CD player. (I get distracted by music, but many gals love it, so I make sure I sit far away from it.)

I found that some gals like diversions. At my last retreat, some of them went into to town to shop for a while (one of them even wore her pajamas! LOL) and this time, we have a pool and hot tub and I'm hoping to arrange for a massage therapist to come in for Saturday afternoon. I also plan to have a couple of little games available for my guests in case they need a break.

So think seriously about retreating - ahhhhhhhhh. (I'll have pics next week and will tell you how it goes!)

Monday Momentum

This morning I was thinking about the wonderful women in my customer group. You know I learned a couple of weeks ago (at the EWomen Conference - find their website here) that the biggest thing we women bring to business is the fact that we build relationships. That is certainly the case with my customer base! Each one of them are such blessings to me and I've learned so much from them!

For instance: Christy, who was a referral from CTMH and a total stranger brings such laughter! (And she brought along her friend Kym, who is the queen of embellishment and inspiration!) Kevin, who was new to scrap-booking last summer, has a gift of giving (as do MANY of the others!). Robin keeps me focused on the important things and keeps me grounded. Brandy has been a great encourager. Jodi, Julie, Nan, and Barbara are so enthusiastic. Every time I get to see or talk to them, they get me geared up and excited about what I'm doing. They don't even know how motivating they are!

The thing is, while all of these ladies have become my friends and are also part of my core team of customers, I would never have met most of them had it not been for my business. And even the three that I knew, I would only barely know if not for CTMH.

So whatever your business might be, treasure the relationships you are building. This network of mostly women that I work with has become a support group, a prayer team, and a sisterhood that has enriched my life tremendously! I wouldn't have it any other way!

Have a blessed - and profitable - week!

Monday Momentum

This weekend I was at an exceptional conference with the E-Women Network. I went in hoping to meet new potential customers or recruits. I didn't bargain on learning all that I did. It reminded me of a lesson I learned back when I was in college and was working as a counselor at a camp in East Texas. (Yes, my accent began to develop at that point!)

We all had to go through Lifesaving lessons and I'll never forget what my boss taught us. (Doubtless many of you have heard this before.) He said there are 4 levels of education:

1. Being unconsciously incompetent - not knowing anything and not even realizing that you don't know it.
2. Being consciously incompetent - still not knowing anything, but at least realizing how incompetent you are.
3. Being consciously competent - starting to understand, but really having to think about each step along the way.
4. Being unconsciously competent - knowing what you need to know and not having to think about it anymore.

Now for lifesaving this is an easy thing to define, but in life (and BUSINESS) it isn't always so obvious. That was why this weekend was such an outstanding time. I got an "aha" moment at a breakout session when I found just how much I have to learn about business. At least, now, I realize what I don't know and THAT I don't know it, so I can start learning it!

So here is the challenge for you. Spend some time talking to someone who does work in your field. It would be best if she is successful at what she does, a director perhaps. If that isn't possible, find someone highly successful in her own field and spend some chat time. Let her talk and make sure you listen!

Two things will happen. The first is that you are bound to find a little gem of information when you listen intently to everything she has to say. But this isn't all one-sided! The second benefit is hers when she verbalizes her plans or explains her processes. Each time she does it, she will either become more confident or will see ways in which she can tweak her own success. Any teacher will tell you that the best learning occurs when the student is able to explain what she has learned, and that's true no matter how old you are.

Here is a great quote I took home from this weekend.

"I would rather be looked over than over-looked!"
-Mae West

Midweek Makeover

This week I did something different. I'm spending the end of the week at a women's network conference and I wanted to take advantage of the opportunities afforded there. So I started with an organizer. I'm going to need a book for my notes and pockets to slip in notecards and pamphlets. I also wanted someplace to slip in the business cards that I received.

I got it all in a thin clip board folder and a pack of business card page protectors. The first thing I did was attach the business card protectors together using jump rings through the 3-hole punches. I slipped them under the clip on the board. I decorated my folder using paper from the Life Delights package and made a matching book to go in the slot of the folder.

Finally, to make sure the book stays in the slot, I spread adhesive across the back side of a page and pressed it securely to the inside pocket of the folder slot.

I used Dimensional Element letters on the front and inked most of them with Hollyhock, Chocolate, and Lilac Mist ink. I also used a little paper to cover the "O" in Notes. I love the way that looks, but I had a little trouble with it this time. I've had an experience where I tried to put adhesive on one and instead pulled up the layers of the letter. This time, I stuck the paper down, but as I cut out the letter, the top layer came off as before. It wasn't such a big deal though as it helped me cut out the paper correctly. Then I attached it back on using Liquid Glass.

I was pleased with the results and it has caught the eyes of several convention goers! Yea!

Monday Momentum

My customers frequently tell me that they really don't have time to do the creative work that they have planned out. They have the vision for what they want to do and can imagine the outcome, but not enough hours in the day, nor days in the week to do it.

Impossible situation, I know. But some of them have been helped by a couple of things I've done, some proactive planning, and a good ink pen with their calendar. What I've implemented is a "mini-retreat." Every month, usually on the last weekend of the month, I have 3 different activities. On Friday night I do a card-swap (free for any who wants to participate) and a project workshop. The workshops are often based on the CTMH workshops on the go (if they don't follow the WOTG completely!) and the cost is as minimal as possible. My customers love doing things besides scrapbooking and get the chance to have a girls' night out with new faces each month.

On Saturday, I have my "Scrappin' Happy" workshop where I use 1/2 of a paper package and make 8-10 layouts (4 or 5 doubles) using Cherish or Imagine designs, or some of my own. There is no charge for this workshop as long as they all bring their own paper pack (I do insist on CTMH supplies since I'm doing it for free.) and 8 to 10 cardstocks for their bases. Once I've made my own layouts, it is easy to direct the cutting and placement for my customers' layouts. My customers LOVE this because they get to use the paper packs they've already purchased, and they leave with layouts ready for pictures and journaling! And it's fast! In fact, at my last "SH" we finished 2 full sets of 10 layouts in just under 3 hours!

Finally, at 6PM I have a club crop night for all of my club members. Any that come to the "SH" workshop can just stay over and get a jumpstart. This crop is a benefit of membership in my hostess clubs. They not only meet each month, but they also get the free use of my stamps and inks on club crop nights. (VERY VALUABLE as I have MANY!) We usually order out for dinner and I or my dh make a run for it and we crop until 10 or 11PM. We all get a kick out of this time, sharing our ideas or latest "find" (I'm a CTMH snob, but I don't insist that anyone else be one!) or a technique that we've just learned.

The best part about this set up is that it is the same time every month. Once in a while, I'll have another commitment and have to adjust, but usually, my customers can count on spending the last weekend of the month with me. So while I can't actually add minutes to the clock, at least I can help them set some aside!

Blessings!
:-)

My plans for this blog

Okay, I've figured out how I want to organize this blog. I want to make the stories and tips that are pertinent to you easy to find and use. So this is my tentative schedule:

Monday Momentum - This is a business blog, especially for consultants or for my customers who are curious about what might be coming around the bend!

Technique Tuesdays - I'll offer a technique that I've tried and will also share a project that I've made with the technique. I challenge you to try the techniques, too. When you do, make sure you send me a link to your picture!

Mid-week Makeover - There are examples of cards all over the internet. Some of them are really cute, but as you might have heard me say before, I'm a CTMH snob. However, I plan to take a really cute card that I've found and remake it using only CTMH products. I would love to see your ideas here as well!

Try-It Thursdays - This is the day to use a new product from CTMH. I can't wait to give some of the newest products a try and I challenge you to use them! Send me a picture or a link and I'll make sure it gets posted!

Friday Flair - I usually consider myself embellishment challenged so this day will really be important to me. CTMH makes decorating so easy with tons of unique embellishments. My challenge is choosing which to use and where to use it, but I'm determined to overcome my disability! Join my journey and don't forget to share your creations with me!

That's it, that's the plan. I hope you enjoy the entries and hope you will be encouraged to join in the fun here!