Hi Friends! It's been a while, hasn't it?!
I wanted to put together a not-so-little blogpost of what's been going on, as its been a quite chaotic these last few months, and I haven't been doing the best job at keeping you all up-to-date. So let's start with some personal updates, shall we?
This time last year, I decided to transition Wilde Folk from a full-time gig to a part-time one. I had reached a point of complete burnout after 2 years of pivoting business strategies (thanks to the pandemic) and living in a constant state of "feast-or-famine". A lifestyle that so many creatives unfortunately suffer from.
Thankfully, I quickly found a part time job at Free People, which gave me the creative outlet I was looking for, along with community, and a source of additional income to help make life a little more comfortable financially. Not to mention, it got me out of the house, which was (and still is) important for my mental health!
After a year of working with some wonderful Free People souls, my time with the company is coming to a bittersweet end, as I was given the opportunity of a life-time to work with an interior designer that I have not-so-subtly admired over the last year - Heidi Houdek of Modern Hippie Design Studio.
If you have been following me on my social media accounts over the last few years, you will know that I have been slowly renovating my childhood home, @thetumbleweedhouse, since 2018. This opportunity to work with Heidi and Modern Hippie, is an absolute dream come true as I will finally be professionally trained to work with clients of all types and create their dream interior spaces.
The best part about it all... this interior design opportunity is part-time. So I will still have the bandwidth to work on Wilde Folk and connect with all of you beautiful customers and supporters on here!
I wanted to share these updates with you for a few reasons...
+ You're not a failure for wanting/needing something different.
I remember whenever I decided to take Wilde Folk from full-time to part-time, I felt like a failure of sorts, as I didn't want people to think I was moving "backwards" as a business instead of "forwards". However, after working with a business coach in 2022, and attempting to grow Wilde Folk as a company, I eventually realized that I wanted to keep my small business exactly that...small.
I didn't want to begin outsourcing my perfume oil production, as that is the part that brings me joy. I didn't want to continue to solely rely on Wilde Folk financially, as my nervous system was utterly exhausted from not knowing which months were going to be "good" months, and which ones were going to be "bad". I wanted, and absolutely needed, to eliminate some stress in my life, and that just so happened to look like going from full-time to part-time. Which brings me to my next point...
+ There isn't one way, and one way ONLY, to run your business.
I want to show you all sides of owning your own business. There are up's and down's, and there is no "right" way on how to do it. Of course there are better ways to navigate certain obstacles, but we are so often shown the highlight reels of people's businesses, that I felt so different last year whenever I was making the decision to become part-time, and I wish I had read a blog post like this to show me that there are SO MANY WAYS to run a small business.
You don't need to be a part of the "hustle-culture" that so many influencers show off on social media. SLOW DOWN if you need to slow down. You don't need to quit your 9-5 to run a small business, like so many people and business coaches preach. You can do whatever the hell you feel like it! Moral of story...Do what feels right to you. If you need/want to get a part-time or corporate job for financial reasons... do it. There is no shame in that!
+ Be vulnerable & share your truth.
I enjoy keeping things as transparent as possible in hopes that it inspires you to live your truth and perhaps feel connected with like-minded community. Some of you kind souls have been following me and my business since the Little Pieces of Hope days, and I am beyond grateful for your support no matter what direction my wilde heart decides to go. Thank you for following along, and allowing me to share my updates and inner most thoughts with you!!
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