march meet the maker : day 12 : learning curve

day 12 : learning curve

there are so many learning curves in any creative process and i feel like i've stumbled my way through more than i can count. 

from trying to navigate a hobby into a side hustle into a maybe one-day-if-i'm-lucky-full-time-hustle - there's a lot to figure out along the way. luckily i have some people to help [hello best friend who's also an accountant] but there's also lots of unknowns. 

the internet is great for helping too - but can also make you feel like you're doing everything in the wrong order or at the wrong time and there is always some sort of critic. 

years ago i saw this quote on pinterest and it was like a lightbulb and fireworks all went off at the same time. 

this. 

i'm pretty sure that these are the exact emotions i feel every time i start a card [or any project really] with the exception of number 6. 

take for example starting my own online store. years and years ago i started on etsy but didn't really know what i was doing, how to do it, or really have the time to figure it out or make it work. i wasn't surprised when i wasn't making sales but i also wasn't concerned. then after starting my second blog, i thought i could create a shopable space on the internet, only to learn that writing code is pretty much impossible when you don't know how to write code.

once again i switched everything over to a new format [it's here - you're here!] and found it to be amazing. [step one.] then there were a few hiccups - did you know it takes a really long time to photograph all the cards you want to list? and that it's not as quick or as easy as snapping your fingers? do you launch with just a few things or try and get everything up, even if it isn't perfect? [step two.] then you start looking at examples of amazingness and realize what you're trying to do isn't what you want at all and you debate giving up. [step three.] and then you doubt that you could even pull it off, who do you think you are? you don't know what you're doing! [step four.]

and then you start to make small changes and maybe it looks like things are turning around and you have some people look at your site and they think it looks awesome and you start to feel like maybe it'll work. [step five.]

i'm still at a level where i haven't yet reached [step six] the point of feeling like it's all the way it should be and running at an optimal level and is totally awesome. but, that also gives me a goal to work towards, right?

and so it goes for nearly every decision in having and running a small business. card design? yep. packaging? yep. online store? yep. show set up? yep. but all along the way you learn a little bit more and gain a little confidence and it gets easier. and sometimes even a little bit better. 

one of my mantras that i like to follow is that nothing changes if nothing changes. so among the learning curves i'm finding what works, but also what doesn't. and i can only get better with the more that i learn - and i never want to stop learning. 

what is something you struggle with or how do you adapt to a learning curve?