Looking Back at 2013 - Goal Setting

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As January rolls on and 2014 starts to settle in, I want to take a look back at last year's goals as I start to finalize my goals for this year. I always like seeing how I did last year and reassess what worked and what didn't. It helps me to have a clear path of where I want to be this year.

Last year I broke my goals into Short-Term, Mid-Term and Long-Term Goals. In this post I just want to take a look back. And later this week, I'll post my goals for the rest of 2014.

Short-Term Goals

Heart Earrings

Stay up-to-date on my cost log and tax info: I will say that I did fairly well in this area. Since I started doing quarterly self-employment taxes this year, I pretty much had to stay up-to-date in order to have a close idea of what to pay for taxes. I didn't keep up monthly, but did keep up quarterly. (big exception in the 4th quarter!)

Learn about self-employment taxes:As I mentioned above, I did do these quarterly. They were actually pretty simple. I just pulled the numbers from my cost log and sales log and made the proper calculations. My tax preparer had printed off the vouchers for the entire year, so I had all the dates and addresses I need.

List the jewelry items that I have made: I'll give myself a B- here. I got a lot of the jewelry listed that I had on hand at the time. But I've amassed even more items that still need photographed and listed!

Mid-Term Goals

Ampersand Invitation

Make and list new wood invitation and wood greeting card designs: My goal here was to list 5 new invitations and 5 new cards. I completed the invitations very early in the year (woohoo!) and did a great job on the cards. I had some Mother's Day and Father's Day designs ready to make, but with family issues, never got them listed. So this year I have them all ready and will have them in the shop.

 Add wedding sets: Another goal only half accomplished. I actually made RSVP cards for several of my designs...even photographed some of them. But never got them listed in the shop...ugh. I did get some new table number designs listed. I really hope to get these up and running this year.

Organize my storage space and work area: Hmmm...if by organize, I meant take over the whole house...mission accomplished! As my business has grown, it's been so hard to find a place for everything and stay organized! Once my new studio is complete, I will have more space than I can ever fill (well, almost) plus some of the old space. It will be so much easier to stay organized with the proper space and shelving!

Long-Term Goals

Custom Ornament

1,200 Sales on Etsy in 2013: I'm so excited to give myself an A+ in this category! I totally underestimated my business (which is a good thing). I had 2,244 sales in 2013!!! And 376 in the month of December alone...holy cow! This totally blows my mind and makes me so happy all at the same time!

Learn about graphic design: While I did learn more about my graphic design software, I didn't take any formal classes like I had hoped. I seem to learn something new every day though, so I'm working toward my goal. I would still love to take at least an entry level class to learn more about the actual design process.

Overall, the year was an amazing success. There are still areas I need to work on, but I couldn't be happier with how my business did in 2013. Now it's time to look ahead and think of all the great things to come in 2014!

One Goal Down...Many To Go

At the beginning of the year, I set several goals for myself and my business. Things are going really well and I'm on track with almost all my goals. In fact, I've already completed one of those goals! I had set a mid-term goal (meaning I would complete it here and there through the year) to list 5 new wedding invitation designs. We're only half way through March and I've already listed 5 new designs!

One of my new favorite designs is this Flower Invitation. I love the big graphic flower and mix of fonts on this one. And I am in talks with a bride to make these and some matching reply cards...woohoo!

This Grapevine Design came about from a custom request. The couple decided to go with another design, but I loved how this one turned out, so I decided to list it for others to see. How cool would it be to have a wedding in a vineyard...so pretty!

My wedding invitations continue to do well and I can't tell you how happy this makes me! I have two orders in the works as I write this and I've sent out several samples already this year! My next goal to conquer will be RSVP cards. I want to start with my most popular designs and add from there. I have a bridal show at the end of April, so I plan to have several ready by then.

 How are your 2013 goals coming along?

Making 2013 Rock!

Last year I set monthly goals for myself, my shop and my blog. While I liked keeping tabs on a regular basis, this year I'm thinking bigger and more long-term. I've put together a list of goals I have for the entire year. Some I can get done in the short-term and others may take the entire year to accomplish.

I'm pretty happy with how things went last year here on my blog, so I don't plan to make any changes or post any goals about that. Most of these goals are business related. Because let's face it, when you're self-employed...business is pretty much your entire life :)

And as most of you know, I'm a big believer in not just having goals, but writing them down. And even more, sharing them with others. The graphics in this post all relate to the importance of writing down our goals.

(Thank you to Allison Morris and onlineeducation.net for allowing me to use these graphics. See the entire post here.)

Short-Term Goals

Stay up-to-date on my cost log and tax info: This used to be something I did at the end of each month. I was able to do this on my breaks at my full-time job and was always up-to-date. Now that I work from home full-time, I haven't been setting aside the time to do this! I'm certainly paying for it now since I'm 6 months behind. Not this year!

Learn about self-employment taxes: I know I should have been doing this since last June when I started working from home full-time. But I knew I had 6 months of other taxes that would help offset my end-of-year taxes. Now that I'm going to be self-employed the whole year, I need to make this a priority RIGHT NOW!

List the jewelry items that I have made: I actually have tons of jewelry items made that aren't in my shop yet. I got so busy with Christmas orders at the end of last year that listing new items had to be pushed aside. Well, those items aren't doing me any good just sitting in a bin. I need to get them listed soon.

Mid-Term Goals

Make and list new wood invitation and wood greeting card designs: My Wood Invitations have done awesome! To reach more buyers, I know I need to expand my designs and styles offered for these. I also have several new ideas for my Wood Greeting Cards. My goal is to add 5 new designs for each item over the course of the year.

Add wedding sets: I get asked for RSVP cards and other matching wedding items to go along with my invitations. During 2013 I want to add some wedding sets including: RSVP Cards, Save the Date Cards, Matching Table Numbers and a Guest Book. So the whole theme is tied into the wedding.

Organize my storage space and work area: This seems to be an on-going, never-ending goal of mine. I guess the goal should be to STAY organized once I get there! Our attic is one big storage area for my inventory and shipping supplies. I know where everything is, but I'm sure no one else would...what a mess! I want to take a little time each month to start organizing that space as well as my studio and make my most used items more readily available.

Long-Term Goals

1,200 Sales on Etsy in 2013: Last year I set monthly sales goals, but this year I'm looking at the big picture. I know certain months will be slower than others and certain months will be a lot busier than others. So I'm setting a more long-term goal that can be assessed throughout the year. It's a pretty ambitious goal, but I'm hoping I can get there :)

Learn about graphic design: One area where I am lacking in my invitation and card designs is the graphic design side. I'm able to use the clip art and graphics I already have to create my designs, but I get asked a lot for special designs. I'm not able to create new designs from scratch yet, but I have all the software and tools needed, now I just need the know how. I want to look into taking an online class or local class to learn how to use my Corel Draw better and advance my skills.

It's a long list of goals, but I'm confident that I'll be able to reach them all this year. I like having them broke down into sections knowing what needs worked on now and what I have to think about for the coming year.
I plan on making 2013 ROCK!