When you get to the end of a year it’s natural to want to reflect on how the past 12 months have played out. I wanted to write down my thoughts and highlight 7 things that have really helped shape my life, my business, and the way I work. Here goes!
1. Boundaries are amazing if you stick to them.
Around about March time I made a conscious decision to focus on my business three days a week. So Tuesday-Thursday I do client copywriting work, Torchlight Marketing business strategy, content creating, and client acquisition. Mondays and Fridays are for life admin, kids school and club admin, volunteering for Renew HG1, self-care, cleaning, and picking up the girls from school. By giving myself such clear perimeters I’ve been able to concentrate on specific tasks and be a lot more productive in all areas of my life.
2. Processes really do work.
I spent the first half of 2021 reviewing my processes and developing workflows in Asana that I follow for both my client work and for my own business. I’ve created templates for various things and I’m particularly pleased with my ‘Torchlight Search’ that I complete for all my customers. As a copywriter, it’s so important to understand your client’s target audience before you start to write anything. Working through the steps I’ve developed gives me clear direction and guides how I approach the specific copywriting service I’ve been booked for.
3. Setting intentions can make a big difference in your life.
This was huge for me and can be great for shifting negativity. I found this particularly helpful when going into meetings and speaking to potential new clients. If you clearly list out what you want out of the meeting before it takes place (for example you want to find out more about the person’s business and what makes them tick) and have that crystal clear in your mind it really does help. Similarly, if you believe you’re going to have a good day you start off on the right foot and this positivity follows you around for the whole day. I’ve also learned to work through my fears and separate fact from fiction. If I find myself thinking pessimistic thoughts I use a 5 step process to avoid the spiral of negativity. These are STOP, THINK, SPEAK, BELIEVE & ACT.
4. Confidence notes train your brain to affirm who you are and what you can do.
Every day before I actually start work I say a powerful mantra out loud to myself and also work through a list of positive affirmations that I read out loud. It may sound a little odd and sometimes talking to yourself can feel strange but it just gives me the belief that I am good at what I do and sets a positive tone for the day.
5. Journal every day.
As a copywriter it’s no surprise that I love writing things down. Whether that’s documenting my fears, writing down what and who I’m grateful for or what I’ve loved about each day I’ve found this discipline really helps. Plus it’s an excuse to use my Inspire Now journal and use different coloured pens!
6. Stop being the victim of time.
I loved reading The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks. There is a whole chapter focusing on Einstein time. It explains how you’re where time comes from and that you need to stop being a victim of time. I now try not to use time-based excuses and tell myself each day “ I'm the producer of time, I can make as much of it as I need.” It’s been revolutionary and has helped me get more done in less time.
7.Use a seasonal calendar to plan out your tasks.
This year I've really embraced working using a seasonal calendar and it's been revolutionary. The theory behind it is that your month is divided up into Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter weeks. Certain tasks fit better in specific seasons depending on your monthly cycle. Once you start to delve deeper into how that might look for you you become much more aware of and also understand why things may be affecting you in different ways. So for me my writing is usually at its best during spring and summer and I try not to book any new client meetings during a winter week as I know I won’t be on top form. I’ve also learned to listen to my body. Winter weeks often require more time to rest and less time being social. So I make sure I factor in these types of things when managing my diary.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading through some of the valuable lessons I’ve learned in 2021. There are so many more but I felt these were the most life-changing. I must attribute these to the amazing Kathryn Moorhouse who was my business coach and mentor this year. Investing in her coaching has been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
If you’d like to chat more around any of the above, or just want to hear a bit more about my journey I’d love you to get in touch. I enjoy nothing more than meeting new connections and sharing stories.
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