Your Business Journal
How to Chronicle Your Crafts Business Journey
It’s important to keep a written record of what you’re doing when you start a new business or move into a new area of learning and business growth. Susan, a successful crafter in my network, explains just how beneficial this can be:
“I have kept handwritten notebooks, sketchbooks with designs, and logs of activities and correspondence for the past eight years.“Recently I retrieved one of my earliest notebooks and, though I had other things vying for my time, I became lost in reliving what I was doing/designing/marketing seven years earlier. When I put the book back on the shelf, I was smiling because that notebook was proof I was becoming successful even then–when I didn’t think I was getting anywhere. It showed me how I’ve grown in spite of some day-to-day disappointments, and how I’m still growing. And isn’t that what it’s all about.”
One business owner told me about the daily calendar she had kept for five years. It included both personal and business notes. “Some days it holds a wealth of discoveries and other times it is boring,” she says. “It is especially good for noting what worked or didn’t regarding shows , traveling and product development. Sometimes when I reread my notes, my eyes are opened to repetitious things that should be changed.”
GETTING STARTED. I suggest you buy a three-ring notebook that will accommodate both handwritten entries and printed notes or plans written on computer. Design a fabulous cover for it that will inspire you every time yo open it. For your handwritten entries, get one of those spiral-bound notebooks that have holes punched in them. Use this to jot down spur-of-the-moment ideas or observations, little journal notes, motivational and inspirational thoughts, etc. Then set up tabbed divider pages to hold notes printed from your computer. Here are some suggested categories:
- Family Issues
- Goals
- Time Management
- Workspace
- Production Plans
- Legal/Financial
- Product Line & New Ideas
- Marketing Plans & Outlets to Explore
- Suppliers
- Special Resources
When I decided to become a professional writer, I started a handwritten diary to document my journey, writing about my hopes and dreams, outlining what I needed to do to accomplish particular goals. Once I got a computer, I began to put all my notes and ideas in file folders on the computer, but I still needed hard copy because my brain reacts differently to words on a computer screen versus words on paper. With a three-ring notebook, you can easily mix handwritten notes with pages printed from your journal notes on the computer.
As I work with my notes, I modify them on paper, then go back to the computer to update the files. Often, in rereading my notes, I see things that weren’t obvious to me at the time I originally wrote them. That’s why I always encourage business owners to keep a journal of their daily business activities, ideas, plans, and accomplishments. Rereading them from time to time is not only personally satisfying but often revealing.
Related Items:
If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment and subscribing to the feed to get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
I, too, kept a handwritten journal for my first business–and yes, found it very instrumental. Now, I keep everything in my computer, backing up frequently! I have been amazed at what I have learned and, at times, forget! So, if everything is in one place, you always know you can go back and find it. I even kept a notebook at my bedside, because I’d wake up with ideas and had to write them down, right away, before I went back to sleep and forgot them!
I believe that God reveals things to us when we are ready for them (both personally and professionally), so it helps to be prepared to record those moments!
Blessings on your journey,
Sandy