First Year of Being fizzi~jayne Full Time....

Recently I celebrated being fizzi~jayne full time for a year! Emma from The Vintage Good Life saw my celebratory post on Instagram and asked if I wanted to write a guest post on being self-employed.  As I am a regular reader of her blog I was honoured and jumped at the chance, especially as I am her first guest writer!

Over on Emma's blog I've written about the benefits and challenges of being self employed as well as what I have learnt in the last year of running a creative business. I hope you will find this interesting but I think you should visit Emma's pretty blog anyway, if only to see her beautiful photography!

Click here to read my post, I'd love to hear what you think....

Enjoy 
fizzi~jayne x

Berkhamsted Artisans Art & Crafts Market....

I had my first stall at the Berkhamsted Artisans Art & Crafts Market last Sunday, there were other newbies there which was nice and there was a great camaraderie feel about it. 

There wasn't much footfall, it was thunder, lightning and generally a miserable wet day (thankfully it was an indoor market, I felt for the farmer's market that was outside!).  It was the sort of day if I didn't have to leave my house I wouldn't have so I can imagine a lot of people stayed in the dry and who can blame them!  The good news is everyone was in the same boat so although sales were low, it wasn't just me.


All set up and ready to go



Me and my stall

I produced a flyer with an exclusive 10% off promo code to use in my Etsy shop so I can track how many customers have visited my shop and bought my cards since seeing my stall.  It is a shame Folksy don't do promotional codes yet, there are lots of requests on the forums so hopefully they will get this sorted soon as is a great way to track success of any kind of marketing and in this instance the craft market.

Free sweets!

I need to improve my sales technique, which is odd seeing as my career has been in marketing and most recently I spent my day writing features and benefits for toilets, yep toilets! The trouble is it is now personal and I find it hard to big myself up but the more I do it the more I will improve. One of my strengths has always been my people skills, so I need to get a grip and just talk to potential customers like I would anybody else and let my bubbly self shine!

Sales = 2 :-(

Business cards/ promo leaflet taken = lots, I lost count but I certainly am reassured that they were interested in my cards and with the promo code I can track how true this is.

New ideas for my display = 7

My next one is 17th November, with it being closer to Christmas I hope it will be more successful, plus I am working on some exciting new products and displays, watch this space....

 

Who else has recently had a stall at a craft fair?  Was it a success? I would love to hear about it....

A week of food and goodbyes....

Last week was an emotional one, it was my last week at the 9-5.  I didn't enjoy the goodbyes but I am so excited to be able to focus on my passion and get on with all the exciting ideas I have.  I have made some good friends at work so a lot of the goodbyes will be "see ya later". Being my last week it was a week of eating lunch out a lot and since starting this blog I am now one of those people that now takes pictures of everything, EVERYTHING including my food.



One of many indulgencies this week, yummy!



and of course there were leaving drinks, everyone kept buying me drinks! which explains the fuzzy pic (The Guinness is not mine!)

 

I got lovely leaving gifts from work....

 

A tea pot, we have tea ladies (not the cliché tea lady you might have in mind but staff from the local sandwich shop) that come round with a tea trolley twice a day, who were the highlight of my day, I have often said I am going to miss them as I now have to make my own, I know, disgraceful! (I wonder if they would do house visits?!).  I also got a book, Handmade Marketplace, which looks really interesting and useful.  I can't wait to read it and then tell you all about it.  Plus Cath Kidston Scrapbook and stationery plus a friend bought me a scarf which is sooooo me....

Oo and chocolates, so I was very spoilt. 

Now for the next chapter of my life and being my own boss, yay!

 

So I've quit the 9-5...

Eeeek!! I wasn't planning this so soon!  My full time job is too intense to be able to focus as much time on fizzi~jayne as I need to if I want to make a proper go of it as a credible business.  I only really have the weekend, I don't want to sound "o poor me",  I just reached a point where I can't do any more and grow fizzi~jayne into a proper business unless I don't sleep and I am the kind of girl that needs her 8 hours. I also want to be able to spend time with friends and family instead of feeling selfish and feeling that I have neglected them.

The final straw was when we had a restructure 4 months ago and everything I liked about my job changed and other events started pointing me towards making this decision.  I have so many ideas that I never have the time to do, so I have made the difficult life decision to quit my stressful job to be able to focus on my passion.  I will be poor but I hope to be balanced and happy. 

Great news, hey?!?

Let me introduce you to my view from my new office....



A view from my craft den.  The farmer has ploughed the field, so not as pretty as it can be but I will share pics over the seasons

What I am looking forward to:

• I get to do what I love everyday, woo~hoo!
• Being my own boss
• I can dance in my office if I want to!
• I'll have a 60 second commute
• Having the time to network with like~minded, creative people
• Starting all the projects I have wanted to do and test different markets
• Going to work in my tracksuit bottoms and an old Bon Jovi T-Shirt
• I will have an amazing view from my desk which will constantly change with the seasons and depending on what the farmer plants next.
• Working the hours I choose
• I won't miss the office politics
• Now my hobby is officially a form of income (hopefully) I can read all the books I have been meaning to for ages and only get to read on holiday.
• Most importantly feeling happier, healthier and more balanced.

I want to thank everyone who has supported me and convinced me to follow my dream, without great friends and family this would have been an impossible decision to make.


Who else is burning out?  What have you done to get balance in your life? Or are you just working every hour you physically can?  I would love to hear from you.

If I can offer any reassurance, all the hard work and stress will be worth it when the day comes that you can earn money from what you love. There comes a point when you need to decide when to get serious. There are only so many hours in the day/week/year and you will know when that is and it is a difficult decision to make. 

fizzi~jayne x