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Welcome. Give us some background about yourself and your business.
Thank you so much for inviting me! I’m an artist who does a variety of things, really. I am a surface patter designer, an illustrator, a painter, and I do some graphic design work as well. I have a hard time putting a label on what I do– but my days are never boring, I’ll tell you that! I’ve been self-employed since I was 23 years old (with a part-time stint here and there)– but my business has morphed a lot since then. I really started selling online and becoming part of the blogging community about 2 years ago– before that I mainly sold my work at outdoor festivals and shows and in my studio. The change came when I moved from Boulder, CO (my hometown) to Atlanta, GA 2 summers ago- I began working at home, I didn’t know anyone in the area or know about any local shows, so I dove into the online community, and I’m so thankful that I did!

The decision to take the self-employment route is not always an easy one. What gave you the confidence to take that leap?
Quite honestly, I was sick of having meaningless jobs. When I graduated from college I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do, and I ended up moving back to Boulder (I went to college in Ithaca, NY) and working in restaurants. It was unfulfilling, to say the least. I just got fed up one day and quit my job. I’d recently gotten accepted into a big art festival, so I devoted several months to painting, I’ve always been good with money, so I had enough to keep me going for a while after I quit my job at the restaurant. I basically told myself that I’d see how the show went and go from there. And the show was a smashing success! I saw artists all around me making a living doing what they loved, and I thought “hey, I can totally do this!” Basically I think it was that first amazing show, a young “I can do anything” mindset, and a distinct feeling of not wanting to work for someone else that gave me the confidence.

Self employment can mean long hours, irregular income and other unpredictable stresses. How you do you handle it?
Well, I have a hard time separating my life and my work– they’re sort-of one and the same, so I WANT to work all the time! Sometimes it’s hard for me to realize that taking breaks is actually good for me, and that the work will still be there when I’m done resting. As for the income, I think I’m getting to a place where I just trust that I’ll have enough. I’ve had enough up to this point, and there’s no reason to think that’ll change. I think I’ve just accepted that it’s going to be unpredictable, and that’s ok. Mostly I just try not to resist the uncertainty of it all. Uncertainty isn’t bad– it doesn’t have to be uncomfortable If I can see it as exhilarating, if I can see how exciting that it is that I get to create my career and my future, that helps a lot. I much prefer the uncertainty of my path to having to go to a job I don’t love everyday, even if I was making a ton of money.

What’s a typical day like for you? How did you keep yourself organized to avoid procrastination and other distractions?
I have such a hard time avoiding distractions! The main ones I face every day are my 2 adorable cats who want constant attention, my email and stat checking addictions, and the refrigerator. If I could keep these at bay, I’d be much more productive! As for procrastination, I’m just not a procrastinator. I’m a major list maker, and I REALLY like getting those things crossed off the to-do list every day. I make tons of lists, and I revise them all day long. They keep me organized and on task.

So a typical day…. I wake up around 6:30am and eat breakfast first thing. I love breakfast! I have a fruit & veggie smoothie every morning. And coffee. Yum. I check my email and read some blogs while I’m having breakfast, and I think about what I want to post on my own blog that day. I try to be done with blogging and stuff by 8:00-ish, and then I get to work as soon as i can. Sometimes more of my morning is eaten away by distractions (constant email checking, etc.), but I’m working on not letting that happen as much. So throughout the day I basically work on a variety of projects: paintings, design work for clients (logos, website designs, illustrations, etc), creating surface patterns for an upcoming tradeshow (Surtex), updating my etsy shop, running to the post office and other general errands, sending and replying to emails, chatting with people on twitter… I bounce from one thing to the next, always working from my to do list. I usually take a break in the late afternoon to go to the gym, and then my husband and I always have dinner together. Most nights I work for a few hours in the evening as well (I’m telling you, I’m a workaholic!)– my husband is in medical school, which means he studies all the time, so we’re just a couple of worker bees. :) Then I usually go to bed around 10:30 or 11:00, and sometimes we’ll drag the laptop into bed with us to watch a favorite show online. That’s pretty much it!

Do your work from home? Or offsite?
I work from home.

It can get lonely working for yourself. Do you find yourself missing the companionship of a bustling office? How do you make sure you get social interaction throughout the day/week?
Gosh, no, I do not miss working with other people! I love working by myself. My husband often says he could never do what I do, staying home all day not talking to anyone, but I really love it. Plus, I chat with people on twitter a lot during the day, so that’s helpful. I have friends that I get together with sometimes, so that’s nice, too, but I really like being by myself. My husband and I chat all the time when we’re both home, so I definitely don’t feel lonely. Plus, I have 2 sweet kitties to keep me company all day!

Finding a work/life balance can be difficult with any job, perhaps more so with self-employment. Do you think you’ve found that balance?
Ummmmm, NO. I work all the time. I could definitely give myself more down time. That’s something I’m working on. I’d love to give myself one whole day off a week, but it’s really hard when my work is right in my house with me all the time! Sigh. I’ll get there one day!

What valuable lessons did you learn within your first year. Let’s start with the worst.
I’m going to go with the first year that my business was really online, since that feels more pertinent here.

I learned that sometimes people have to part ways, and that’s ok. I learned that I don’t have to listen to other people’s opinions of me and turn them into my truth. I learned that stress and worry affect my energy level, my mental health, the quality of my work, even my skin. I got horrendous eczema that has mysteriously disappeared as I’ve learned to let go, trust, and relax a bit. There was also a period of time where I didn’t produce much work that I thought was any good, which stemmed directly from my negative state of mind. I learned that negativity can quickly spiral into more and deeper negativity.

And now the best.
I learned how positivity and gratitude can change everything. An open and trusting heart full of possibility will bring unimaginable goodness into your life. I learned (and am learning) to trust myself and my uniqueness and that comparing myself to others is useless. I learned how generous, friendly, and open the blogging community is, and that by giving kindness to it I get that kindness back tenfold. Giving is receiving! But the biggest and most valuable lesson I learned, I think, is to trust myself and my ability to make my business sustainable. I learned to always be looking at ways I can improve and grow, and that attitude has taken me far from where I began.

Lastly, what advice would you give to others that are thinking about quitting their 9-5 job to pursue self-employment?
I would tell them that it’s absolutely 100% possible! If you want to do something you are passionate about, then there is always a way, even if it looks hard. If you want to do it badly enough, then you will make it happen. I don’t have any advice about whether people should keep their day jobs while building their business or to quit their job immediately and jump right in, because I think that’s a highly personal and individual decision, and there’s no one right answer for everybody. I just want to encourage people to see self-employment as a possibility. It’s truly wonderful, and there’s nothing like being in charge of your time and the work that you choose to do. Learn as much as you can, believe in yourself and your capabilities, get involved in the community around what you desire to do, and just get started! I think too much planning can cause stagnation, so I prefer to learn as I go in a lot of cases. I encourage people to just get started, even if it’s just with a teeny-weeny step. Because that will build momentum, and before you know it you’ll be on your way.

JESSICA GONACHA SWIFT ELSEWHERE
Website | Etsy | Blog | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook

Welcome. Give us some background about yourself and your business.
We are Marichelle and Ez…two friends with a shared love for creative packaging.
Ez began Nice Package on her own Spring 2009. After moving to Maplewood this past Summer, Marichelle came on board and the partnership was finalized in October 2009. We specialize in gift packaging solutions and provide creative inspiration with a focus on simple design and projects with real world application.

The decision to take the self-employment route is not always an easy one. What gave you the confidence to take that leap?
Having both experienced running our own etsy shops as well as reviewing and looking at millions of products online for our personal blogs, we learned over time what we love, what works and what doesn’t. We are constantly reflecting and revisiting our line to be sure that it reflects what we and our customers love. In business flexibility is very important, and so we work at that every day. When we first launched the line, our focus was split into two product segments – creative “supplies” and handmade home decor items. We quickly learned that our customer base is more interested in our creative supplies, and because of this have been working on slowly phasing out our home decor category. While changes like this can be unsettling at first (especially when you are really jazzed about a product you’ve worked so hard on), we are learning to take it all in stride and that every step is part of the ultimate growth and success of a healthy business.

Self employment can mean long hours, irregular income and other unpredictable stresses. How you do you handle it?
We started out working insanely long hours but just recently had a meeting to reevaluated our schedule and have figured out hours and specific goals that are helping us to be much more efficient (most of the time – we are human after all). Having a well-balanced partnership is crucial. A lot of this has to do with open communication and honesty about where we are with things on personal and business levels. We try to focus on our strengths individually so as to to make the business as a whole function as smooth as possible. We are also both very lucky to have a supportive family network…this gives us the license to create and grow our business in ways that would not be possible without their help. We are so thankful.

What’s a typical day like for you? How did you keep yourself organized to avoid procrastination and other distractions?
A typical day starts at 8am. Ideally we have worked out our day’s agenda before-hand and know what tasks lay ahead of us each day. A common day might find us doing any number of tasks (or all of them) from product development, supply orders, inventory, accounting, photography/editing, site development, blog/web communications, etc.

Do your work from home? Or offsite?
We work from Marichelle’s home and have converted her office/crafting room into our stock/packaging area. Product development and online operations generally take place in her dining room area (now our main work room).

It can get lonely working for yourself, but luckily, you both have each other. How is that working?
We both really enjoy our quiet creative time but it is also so much fun to have a business partner to work with and bounce ideas off of. Thank goodness we also share a similar quirky sense of humor. Many times laughter really has saved the day and keeps us going.

Finding a work/life balance can be difficult with any job, perhaps more so with self-employment. Do you think you’ve found that balance?
Not yet, but we are working on it. For both of us there is always that temptation to keep going, working late hours and in our off times when we should be relaxing. It isn’t easy to balance work and day to day life but it is something continue to get better at over time. Having open dialog with one another is a great benefit.

What valuable lessons did you learn within your first year.
As an indie business it is easy to forget the importance of your own value, especially when you enjoy what you’re doing. The most valuable lesson we’ve learned so far (3 months in) is to make sure you run the numbers (definitely not our favorite thing to do, but very necessary)! We might have an awesome product idea but if the price that our customer is willing to pay does not add up to our production cost (including supplies/labor/overhead AND product packaging costs) then it’s simply a no go. We’ve made the mistake of producing items without first running the numbers, only to realize that there was no way that we could sell the product and make a fair profit from it. It makes us sad to see other indie businesses undercutting themselves…in the long run this only undermines the value of indie business as a whole.

Lastly, what advice would you give to others that are thinking about quitting their 9-5 job to pursue self-employment?

• Make sure you have a strong support system, we’ve found that working for ourselves is even more stressful (but infinitely more rewarding) than working for the man. After all, we are our biggest critics right?
• Make sure that it’s something that you absolutely love and are passionate about, self-employment is definitely not a 40 hour/5 days a week gig.
• Pay yourself (a fair wage)! Paying yourself should be part of the plan from the very beginning. If this is impossible, then at least have a set goal//deadline when you’ll start reaping the rewards of your hard work.
• If you’re not a numbers person, make sure you can hire someone who can help you with spreadsheets.
• If you’re thinking about going into business by yourself, make sure that you know where your time and efforts will be going. Do the legwork first. If you know that product photography is not your strong-suite for example, source out talent before you make the leap into self-employment. The last thing you want is to jump both feet in and realize that you’ve forgotten some major detail or two, or that you won’t be able to fill every shoe that needs to be filled in your business.
• Planning & Organization: Plan your year, months, weeks and days. Set a consistent working schedule and organize your work space (physically having a place for everything goes a very long way)!

NICE PACKAGE ELSEWHERE
Website | Shop + Shop | Blog | Twitter | Flickr

I don’t remember when or how I came across Jenna & Mark, the married duo behind Whimsy & Spice, but I was instantly hooked. With gorgeous goods, beautiful photography and a business story I admire, it’s hard to not become a virtual fly on the wall into their journey. And to boot, they have two of the most adorable girls I have ever seen.

Welcome. Give us some background about yourself and your business.
I’m a graphic designer and art director. My husband, Mark is a pastry chef. Together we have over 12 years of experience in our respective industries and 2 years ago we decided to open our own company, Whimsy & Spice, after having talked about it abstractly for many years. We make and sell handmade cookies, marshmallows and other confections.

The decision to take the self-employment route is not always an easy one. What gave you the confidence to take that leap?
I’ve been freelancing as a designer for the past 7 years, so It’s been many many years since I’ve worked in an office, but luckily, this profession is one where working from home is entirely possible.  Part of deciding to go freelance is knowing a little about yourself to begin with and I always knew early on that the corporate office life wasn’t really for me. I’ve been fortunate enough to have a strong network and as a result, have worked on some very interesting, large-scale projects over the years.

Mark took the leap to self employment not by choice, initially. He was laid off from a new job right when the decline in the US economy was happening, so it was a scary time to be unemployed. They say, however, that a surge in start ups and new businesses occur in a down economy, partly because there are no jobs to be had, so we figured we had nothing to lose when the idea to start our own company began to percolate. It’s been almost 2 years and we see that pivotal day as a blessing in disguise. Had he not been laid off, we would have never started Whimsy & Spice.

Self employment can mean long hours, irregular income and other unpredictable stresses. How you do you handle it?
Sometimes not well, lol. There are times when I look at all the factors that are lined up against us and I wonder why we do it: no benefits, no company subsidized heath insurance, no steady paycheck, no stability, crazy work schedules, no clear boundaries between work and home life. It gets really stressful during dry and slow periods, particularly since we have 2 small children and a mortgage to support – there’s really no slacking off. But when I catch myself being anxious about not finding another client or project again, I need to remind myself that in the 7 years that I’ve been freelancing, we’ve always pulled through and I’ve always found work. Basically you need to hustle and work hard, but you also need to trust. It isn’t easy and I am still learning how to do that.

What’s a typical day like for you? How did you keep yourself organized to avoid procrastination and other distractions?
There really are no typical days because each day is dictated by how many orders are received and how many client deadlines I have, but there are always 2 constants: dropping off and picking up our older kid from school. Most of the other tasks revolve around this. Mark will often go into the kitchen to bake during the day, as well as make a trip to the post office to drop off packages that need to ship to customers. If I’m on multiple projects, it’s not uncommon that I’ll work 15 hours a day – I’m a night owl.

As far as keeping organized, we’re pretty low tech on that front! Mark still scribbles his to-do list on paper. Mine is usually all in my head. I’ve never been one to use paper or technology to organize my day.

Do your work from home? Or offsite?
I work from home. We operate our business from home, but Mark bakes in a restaurant kitchen in our neighborhood.

It can get lonely working for yourself. Do you find yourself missing the companionship of a bustling office? How do you make sure you get social interaction throughout the day/week?
I do miss the socialization of an office environment sometimes or the natural collaboration that happens when you’re working in an office with colleagues. Twitter has been a good substitute for that in some respects, but to prevent yourself from feeling too isolated, you have to make an effort, reach out to people and go out. That is my main resolution for the New Year.

Finding a work/life balance can be difficult with any job, perhaps more so with self-employment. Do you think you’ve found that balance?
Depends on the month. When it is our busy season for the business – the holidays – no, the balance is totally imbalanced; we’re working around the clock. It’s easier other times of the year, but like most freelance it can be feast of famine, so when there are times that 3 projects will hit at once, I am constantly working and can be holed up in the apartment with my computer. But the one thing we always do is eat dinner together as a family every single night. I think that helps bring some normalcy to our life. We also try and take at least a few hours on 1 weekend day to do something fun as a family.

What valuable lessons did you learn within your first year. Let’s start with the worst.
In a way, this is counter-intuitive to how I normally make decisions in life, but in our first year we made a business decision with our hearts rather than our heads and it turned out to be the wrong decision that cost us business and money. Sometimes you have to put on your business hat AND keep it on. It certainly made us think more carefully about business decisions after that. We don’t want every decision to be solely based around money, but we are running a business after all – one that needs to sustain and support our family – so we’ve learned to make big decisions with our business hats on.

And now the best.
I’ve learned not to over think and belabor over certain details. I’ve learned to let go to a certain extent and push things out in the world instead of keeping them in production and refinement mode forever. This may seem obvious, but this was a big thing for me. Sometimes you just have to spring into action and not think too much.

Lastly, what advice would you give to others that are thinking about quitting their 9-5 job to pursue self-employment?
Be courageous in your pursuit of self employment, but do have fun. It’s good to  weigh the pros and cons of self employment, but sometimes we have to go with our gut and not over-analyze things too much. I know for myself, I would never get anything done if I just went strictly with facts and numbers.  It definitely is a leap of faith, but if you have a reasonable plan, ambition and a good attitude, it can be done. It’s also important not to get discouraged and give it some time (I still need to follow this advice!). You can always look for a job if things do not pan out, but at least there will be no regrets for not trying.

WHIMSY & SPICE ELSEWHERE
Shop | Etsy | Blog | Twitter | Flickr