End of the Day...Finally

Yes, it is 1am, and yes I am still working, but I made a to-do list for the day and you better believe that I'm going to finish it *yawn*

Really, I don't mind staying up late, I always have been a night owl, and I just have to finish printing one more calendar. It doesn't seem like it would take to long to print just one calendar, but even though I love my printer, my printer doesn't love cardstock, and seeing as that is what I always print on, well you get the picture, lets just say I've gotten really good at removing paper jams. Anyway, I give it about another half an hour before I can crawl into bed.

I really did get a lot accomplished in the last two days. I finished three custom orders and I prepared two calendars and two wedding books for binding, I should be able to list everything tomorrow, and all of my custom orders will be delivered friday.

I should feel good about all of my hardwork, but I still feel like i'm playing catch up. Every time that I finish one item I think of four more that I have to get started on. I'm just a little overwhelmed, and this is even more difficult because the items that I sell are dated. I don't want to have a ton of left over academic planners after school starts, but I do want to have enough to get through the back to school season, but I have no idea what enough is.

I could babble about this forever, but let's be honest, we would all get bored, and my printer is about to be shut down for the night so I am off to bed!

Go Ahead... Splurge a Little

I made myself a new calendar the other day, I make calendars and planners for a living, so this shouldn't have been a huge deal, but I cannot tell you how excited it made me! I was giddy like a little kid on Christmas, I had to show everyone my new planner. I even have a picture, so you can see it too

This got me thinking, why in the world was I so excited about a new calendar?! I am such a nerd! Part of me knows that I was excited about filling in all of the blank spaces and laying all of my to-do lists out in one spot. It didn't take me long to fill in the first few pages and stock up the pockets. I really do have a crazy passion for organization, something about listing every thing that I have to get done, and then checking them all off one-by-one gives me a feeling of control.

Another part of me realized that it has been an incredibly long time since I have made something for myself. One reason that I was so excited about this planner was that it was something that I made that I actually get to hold onto, I can share it with others, and I get to use it.

This reminded me just how important it is to treat myself every now and then. It has been at least a week since I finished my new planner and I am still excited about it. That little bit of excitement goes a long way. So my suggestion to is is to splurge! Do something for yourself. Little treats have a way of turning your day around, and they serve as a reminder that you are important too.

I am a giver. I would do anything to help others, and to make sure that others are happy, so often so that I sometimes forget about myself, and what makes me happy. One thing that I have been working on is remembering myself, and doing little things for me.

These little splurges don't have to be expensive, and they don't have to take a lot of time. A splurge can be as simple as carving out half an hour to read a book, or trying out a new recipe for dinner. I love making lists, so while I was thinking about treating myself I took a few minutes to make a list of ten things that I love, that are simple, silly things that let me feel like I have really indulged myself. Here's my list:

Take a minute to make your own list, 10 things that you really truly enjoy doing. Feel free to use my list for inspiration, and don't forget, taking time to make the list is great, but you can't just think about doing the things that you wrote down, you have to actually do them!

All About Me!

Who am I? That's a great question, and I could give you a generic answer that doesn't really tell you a lot about who I really am, but seeing as this blog is about my experiences as a new business owner, it helps for you to know a little about me. The more that you know about me, the more you will understand what I have to say. I'm Erin. I graduated from college in December, and I was ecstatic to be offered a full-time position as a preschool teacher right away. Unfortunately, at the end of the school year the school was forced to downsize, and I was suddenly out of a job, which is a pretty familiar story right now.

I understood that there was a possibility that I could be looking for a job for quite some time, so in the meantime I needed something that would keep me busy, and hopefully bring in a little money. I have always thought that it would be wonderful to work for myself, and I know that I may never have this opportunity again, so faced with a whole bunch of free time and some creative inspiration, along with that little voice in the back of my head that keeps saying "you can do this", I've started my own small business.

I run Obsessively Organized (a name that describes me pretty well), a paper goods organization which produces weekly planners, academic organizers, wedding plan books, journals, and teacher lesson plan books. At least, that's all that I make right now, who knows what my business will grow into (I hope it grows into something!). All of my layouts are completely original, I've designed them all myself, and I've used many of them in my own personal calendars and planners when I was in college.

As if my own business wasn't enough to keep me busy all summer, I have spent a huge amount of my time volunteering for my favorite youth development organization. Some people think that I have spent my summer being a lazy bum without a job, but you can tell that those people don't know me too well. The word "lazy" is not a part of my vocabulary. I've learned a lot in the month since I started Obsessively Organized, but I know that I have just barely grazed the surface of the knowledge that I will accumulate as my business grows. So follow along through all of my ups and downs. I can assure you that it will be entertaining, i'm generally good for the occasional laugh, especially at my own expense. And don't forget to check out my shop at http://obsessivelyorganized.etsy.com/ !