Small Business Every Day

Yesterday was Small Business Saturday, a day dedicated to supporting small business owners, and an antidote and alternative to Black Friday. However, I encourage all of you who are shopping this year to do so at small retail businesses. Not only do independent brick-and-mortar shops add color and character to local communities and offer higher quality unique products for their customers, they also keep other small businesses - like Chelleline Cards - alive. I wouldn't be able to do what I'm doing without the support of small retail businesses. For these reasons, I encourage you to support small business - yesterday, today, and every day.

No rest for the weary, or, the dark side of being self-employed

It's Friday night and I'm hunched over my desk piecing my cards together. My back hurts and I feel a burgeoning headache above my temple. I'm finishing up a wholesale order and need to get another order of 50 cards finished by next Tuesday.

Yes, folks, this is the dark side of being self-employed. I also spent last Friday like this too, although it was in a hotel room in Asheville. And I spent almost all of my week in North Carolina, which was supposed to be my vacation, making cards. That is what it means to be self-employed. You are your own boss (kind of), but when things need to get done, you are the one who must do it.

However, in spite of all this, I still love what I do and would still do it - working on vacation and all - over any other job I could get with my education and training. And if you do too, then this is the life for you.

Dipping my feet in that pool again

I have some exciting news to share with you: Chelleline Cards will be at the Puces Pop Foire des Fêtes in December! I know, I'm eating my words a bit, given that I've said previously that I pulled out of the craft fair arena, but I do think it's fun to do one once a year, and I think it will help me get better integrated into the scene here in Montreal.

Since this is my first craft fair in over two years, and since I never completely developed a great craft fair display, I've been scouring the internet and walking through craft stores for inspiration. I stumbled upon the blog of Sycamore Street Press, whose displays are pretty awe-inspiring. As I read the blog, I found out that they've actually been blogging since they started designing stationery. It's been really interesting and inspiring to read about their journey!

I couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret as I was reading the blog, though. They started designing stationery around the same time as I did, but they are much further along in their business development than I am. It made me wonder where Chelleline Cards would be now if I'd gone with my instinct and just focused on growing the business instead of going to law school.

Then, today, I read my Free Will horoscope in the Mirror:

I was musing on how slow I am to learn the lessons I need to master - how hard it can be to see the obvious secrets that are right in front of me. But I felt better after I came across the logo for the Jung Institute in San Francisco, which is dedicated to the study of psychology and psychotherapy. The symbol that it has chosen to embody its ruling spirit consists of four snails creeping their way around a center point - a witty acknowledgment of the plodding nature of the human psyche. I bring this to your attention, Leo, because it's important for you to give yourself credit for how much you've grown since the old days - even if your progress seems intolerably gradual."

Well said.