I love money.
O0ps did I just say that out loud?
I think I did. Oh well. Enough of feeling guilty + a bit self-conscious about it. After all, I quit my day job to become a full time artist + I should be oh so proud that I get to do what I love AND bring peanut butter + jelly sandwiches to the table.
Gosh, why is that so hard for my heart to compute without feeling icky inside? Part of me blames all those years at an all-girls Catholic School. Another part of me accuses the starving artist syndrome trend. Neither are really at fault, but it takes some of the load off my shoulders.
But anyhoo, I didn’t come here to whine about my love/guilt relationship with money, pinky promise. As a matter of fact, I actually stopped by to chat about how I’ve managed to build a 5-figure business in spite of this internal struggle; a tension I couldn’t help to noticed many of my fellow creatives + handmade crusaders experience too.
So how do I cope? How do I transcend beyond the messy parts into forward momentum? How to a befriend money without contesting my most treasured forms of currency – friendship + love + trust?
Well, crafting what many would call “a lucrative business” has meant maneuvering through the entire emotional spectrum. Lots of happy dances. Tons of crying not so separately.
It’s meant opening up the Pandora Box of me + battling some evil monsters.
It’s meant discovering who I am + what I love to do versus who I’m not + what I really don’t enjoy one bit. Yes, web coding I’m thinking about you right now.
It has meant tapping into my mojo + squeezing out all the pixie dust.
It has meant giving away my best magic poisons, for free, 99% of the time to prove to myself that I have all the superpowers I need to fly.
It’s meant hammering my head on brick walls for underpricing the remaining 1% + giving myself an explosive self-cheer when I manage to get over my insecurities + price the darn thing right.
It’s meant not panicking when 5 days go by without a single transaction, not even a penny.
It’s meant not going on a shopping spree on the days that my PayPal account is literally on fire.
It has meant realizing that the greatest motivator for making money has nothing to do with me, but rather with helping others.
It’s meant that what my clients need isn’t necessarily what they want to buy. Big light bulb moment!
It’s meant learning what my clients really REALLY want from me even before they know it + surprising them with it. It feels like Christmas every time.
It’s meant understanding that my success is directly linked to my community’s success + vice versa. Karma’s at play every day, all day baby!
It’s meant knowing that my money-making party plans automatically give other’s permission to host their own money-making celebrations too. And this is my favorite reward.
There’s really just one-way to describe this entire process: experimentation.
I run experiments for a living. That’s how I create my products + my coaching packages + my digital guides + my new whimsical characters + my printables + my blog posts + my guest posts + my Friday Video Time episodes. I experiment. Much like an inventor + a crazy lab scientist or an Iron Chef.
And after I run each experiment, I assess with a magnifying glass, “How did that go Mayi?”
That’s how I learn + edit + recycle + improve + rock on.
It’s a never-ending process that helps me de-ickyfy my money gremlins + turn them into happy happy thoughts, with the occasional aid of The Sound of Music’s “My Favorite Things” song. I use it just for emergencies (wink).
YOUR TURN, PLEASE
Here’s the thing, my experimental money-making party works wonders for me. My mentor’s money-making machine works fab for them. Your colleague’s profit philosophy is your friend’s profit philosophy. Now, I ask you: “What are you doing to discover what works for you?”
Googling the answer doesn’t count. You really have to find your own blueprint + embark on your own personal money-making adventures, you ranger you!
That’s why I’ve designed a this special Money Making Party Planner, to help you plan out your earning cycles + money-making ideas. Did you really think I was going to leave you solo in the wild with all those lions + tigers + bears? Oh my! No way.
HOW TO USE IT?
1. Download + print your Money Making Party Planner (scroll down for link).
2. Jot down your yearly financial goal.
3. Brainstorm all revenue stream possibilities for growing your business + scribble them down along the year. This might include opening up your own e-commerce website + doing trade shows + making a digital guide + creating a Facebook business page + re-photographing your products by a pro + accepting commission work + guest posting on high traffic blogs.
Now remember, everything you do takes up physical time in your life. So, without putting things down on the calendar, it’s easy to plan way too much or fall short. Planning for massive sales means that you need to understand when + how to time your offers so that your business sky-rockets by default. It also means being gentle with yourself + understanding that if your have a vacation planned in August to go to Disney World, then you’re not that likely to sew 500 handmade aprons that month.
Now take a pigheaded look at your calendar + make some plans.
WANT MORE?
Do you dig this post? Then you’ll L-O-V-E my new program Life is Messy Bootcamp, designed to help you streamline your messy life + reclaim your physical and virtual space + get you closer to your world domination aspirations.
Life is Messy Bootcamp is an online + self-paced multimedia organizational extravaganza engineered to take you from “to-do mode” to “action gear”. No “fluff” content, only real “actionable” information inside.
Use your exclusive Oh My! Handmade coupon code to receive 10% OFF at the checkout counter.
I can’t wait to see you on the inside.
xo,
Mayi Carles
