This year has been a major one for personal and business growth for me, and I’m super grateful to those who supported me along the way. Each day, along with my biz tasks, I write down three things I’m grateful for and any ‘wins‘ for that day. They encourage me to maintain a positive mindset and helps keep me motivated. ^_^
To anyone wanting to build a positive habit in the New Year, I highly recommend it! It’s cheap, takes moments and can be done anywhere. Mine are logged in a massive spreadsheet alongside my cashflow forecast etc. (trying to be more minimalist and have fewer material things), but having a dedicated book or gratitude jar are fab ways to incorporate it into your life.
My Personal Highlights:
Closer Relationships
The top thing that’s really enriched my life lately is opening up to people. I’m closer to my parents and have started making friends in Cardiff (at last!). For years, I’ve been spending so much time on the business, I’d not made much effort to venture outside of it…besides networking…which is still biz-related. 😐 Although I still need more balance, tiny steps are better than none!
NatWest Accelerator
From May – October, I took part in the NatWest Accelerator program, based in Cardiff. We had lectures on how to run our businesses, access to people and schemes that could help, and a co-working space to get the work done. The one-to-one mentorship was invaluable, as was the amazing community. From the program, I was able to get outside of my isolating work bubble and meet like-minded people. We now have a little biz family and it’s fab~ 😊
Online Booking System
Feeling annoyed with how much time communication was taking away from core activities (designing and tattooing), Zan suggested I automated a few things and I finally got round to implementing them. 😜 Making it easier for clients to book me in while I’m busy (or out of hours) has been a game-changer and I’m glad you’re all loving it too!
Levelling Up
When I started out, inking for 2-3 hours would konk me out…now I can do 6-8hrs before my brain turns into mush. 😁 I need to do more physio exercises and rest my eyes to recover, but it’s all part of the job. My ability to do fine line work has increased too, which I’m pleased about. It’s a trend that’s still going strong and I like how elegant it looks.
Going Minimal
Downsizing my belongings and simplifying my life has had a calming affect on me. The studio has always been light, clean and airy, so now I’m trying to make my personal life match that!
iPad Pro
For my 3rd business birthday, my partner (Zan) treated me to an iPad Pro. I’d been oggling it for aaaaages but couldn’t afford one and felt bad asking for anything that big. It’s helped my workflow so. much. It’s a joy to draw with and I enjoy sharing that process with you via Instagram Live, which I’ll talk more about below…
Conquering Fears
Doing events and generally putting myself out there has been a huge mental blocker for me. However, being held accountable during my stay at NatWest Accerlator really pushed me to do Comic Con, which turned out great! It was fun nerding out with you guys and getting to know some of you more whilst tattooing. I also pushed myself to do more videos via Instagram Stories, Lives and am finally taking steps towards building my YouTube Channel.
These are all things I’ve wanted to do for years but didn’t feel I had the courage until after I did it…which goes to show, there’s some truth to the saying, “Fake it ’til you make it”!
