The Monthly Recap: January 2020

February 12, 2020

January started off full steam ahead, which as an Enneagram type 3 probably comes as no surprise. I’m all New Year! Goals! Powersheets! Ambitionnnn!

And then I find myself wishing I left time to nap.

Jokes aside, it was an incredibly productive month and perhaps one with the most momentum I’ve seen so far.

We received a record-high number of leads, which stirred conversations about how to better process and manage both incoming leads and our client load (despite already having a few automated systems in place).

Don’t get me wrong, I am crazy grateful for these good “problems” to have. It’s also never become clearer that what it took to get you where you are, isn’t what’s going to get you where you’re going.

So, I’m channeling my growth mindset – hard – and making the necessary adjustments to ensure we’re not just poised for big growth but also able to scale.

If I’m being completely transparent, which is the point of these monthly recaps after all, January was one of my most uncomfortable months as a business owner. I was faced with some hard decisions, admin & ops I would’ve preferred not dealing with, a fuller than planned for schedule, and plenty of unknowns.

And yet, it’s all so very worth it. Sitting on the other side now writing this in February, it truly feels like a year ago. ?

Here’s the break-down of what went on as well as more reflections and learning moments.

CU Content

CUat5

I published two #CUat5 videos about How to Make Your Copy Fun to Read & Write and Everything You Need to Know About Crafting a Lead Magnet.

Weekend Wine & Words

We sent out four Weekend Wine & Words emails plus one other, slightly more personal email all about TIME. If you’re not already part of the Copy Cru (our email list!), join in here.

Blog Posts

Three new posts hit the CU blog –

Brand Photography

The CU Project Manager, Kelsey, was in town before her big move to California so we did a dual-brand shoot with Melissa Gilmore, a friend, past coworker, and local photographer, in the freeeeezing cold and it was still so much fun.

These beautiful new images made their way onto the website and across our Instagram feed to give it a bit of a fresh-for-the-season look.

Books Read

One of my goals for 2020 is to read two books per month, and in January I managed to read four!

Everything is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo
Own Your Everday by Jordan Dooley
The Pumpkin Plan by Michael Michalowicz
Travel Home by Caitlin Flemming & Julie Goebel, et al.

CU Clients

There was lotssss of activity on our Portfolio with FOUR client launches and a few other projects in between. We also reformatted things a bit to add each client’s Industry, Location & ‘Tasting Notes’.

You can check out Vintages 12 through 15, featuring Raised Good, Coaching With Casey, ElanaLoo, and Stay Balanced Coaching here.

Travel & Personal

I headed to Vegas this month with my husband who was attending an incentive trip for his financial planning company. (Which I also announced on my personal IG account! I’ll be sharing more about this when his ahhmazing new website goes live in February.)

Getting out of the house and having some new scenery also does wonderful things for my heart and creativity. Thankfully, I’ve got lots more travel lined up for early 2020!

Learning Moments

Okay, okay, back to the learning moments.

I suffered from self-induced overly full calendar syndrome…again. Which had me seriously rethinking our packages, rates, and the number of clients I’m willing to take on each month. Saying no is TOUGH for me and I hate having to turn people away. But setting realistic expectations and turning people away who aren’t a “hell yes” fit is a GOOD thing for everyone involved. (Which is why I’m really hoping the CU course launching at some point in the future – no dates being announced still – will help with that feeling.)

This also led to moving away from as many a la carte services and reaching out to additional design partners and industry peers to grow our referral base. Further, I had conversations with and onboarded 2 additional CU contractors for assistance with client work.

I also dealt with being directly copied and trying to sort through the intense and frustrating emotions that come with it. I saw Soul Twin Studio share a post and a series of Stories about inspiration vs. imitation today that was on point. It’s such an important conversation and something where the integrity of our work as creatives really needs to be taken more seriously.

Lastly, I relied heavily on my bookkeeper, conversations with a CPA, my attorney, a photographer, Kelsey, my family, and other writers & designers this month. It really does take a village and isn’t all possible without this team. I used to try to go at things alone, and now I’m all for help, delegation, and collaboration.

Around the CU Office: Things I’m Loving Lately

I felt like there was a lot on my wish list this month (what’s new) but here are some of my favorite purchases:

These faux leather leggings by Commando (legit perfect for a put together, comfortable travel look)
This tote – great for any sized laptop, a day of traveling, and looking profesh on the go
These light wood frames I got to place on a dresser in my office (photos coming soon to an Instagram near you…)

What a month. Let’s do this February. ??