You may have noticed that I recently drove down to Somerset for some training run by two of my cake heroes, Michelle Green and Sharon Wee. Together these awesome women have put together a fantastic couple of days of training in person to enable cake business owners to really grow. I just signed up for the second day having covered most of the first day's material in the online modules I've been working on this year.
It was a great opportunity to take some time out and have a little headspace to step back and review my own business. Why I'm doing it, how far I've come, and where I want to take it. One thing I really like about Michelle & Sharon is that they get you to think about the big picture. Not just how to tally up this week's sales or write a blog post, but the real, big 'why' you are doing what you're doing, and what you want it to look like: now, in 2 years' time, in 5 years' time, and beyond. It crystallised for me that I want to be a business that brings people joy, has integrity and is ethical: for my clients, and eventually for my employees. I want to be an employer that pays people a fair wage, that gives them a sense of value and excitement of working for my business, and that treats them well. I want, eventually, to own a shopfront that is part of a community, where people can meet and spend time together.
Doing what I do can also be quite lonely so it was amazing so meet with fellow cake artists and women business owners, many of whom also had children, and bounce ideas off each other as well as share our joys, frustrations and sorrows. Michelle & Sharon put a lot of emphasis on working through your emotions before you tackle the nitty gritty of the business side of things - so within an hour on that day we were all crying in front of each other, but this was actually really necessary to then be able to move on having acknowledged and let go of whatever feelings that were holding us back from building our businesses (or living life!).
I'm really excited about a new product that I came up with during this day and I'm working towards rolling it out around February/March time. It's something I think will be really fun, really creative and a totally new thing for me to develop. Watch this space!
I just want to encourage any of you who feel like you're a little overwhelmed by work or life at the moment. Create a space for you to step back and take stock. Think about why you're doing it. If you have good reasons, maybe take the time to think of a new direction you could explore or a new mindset you can embrace. If there aren't, maybe it's time to try something else... if not now, in the future.
I am so grateful for being able to have the chance to be part of the Business of Baking live classes. Thank you so much, Michelle and Sharon, and all the brilliant women I met there!
www.threelittlebirdsbakery.co.uk