We’re now half way through January, but I finally wrote down all my business goals for the year! Or at least these are the ones that I’ve thought of or dreamed about so far…I’ll share my personal goals another time, but I wanted to focus on these ones first! Some people don’t like setting goals because they feel like they’re setting themselves up to fail…I can definitely see the validity in that reasoning, but think that having goals and dreams is so important to making the necessary changes in life to grow and move forward! I love this quote because photography was never something that I ever thought I would do as one of my jobs in life…but I’m so thankful that I had a little dream just over a year ago and that I set a lot of goals to work towards making it a reality…

 

I looked back at my first few months of officially being in business in 2012 and I am blown away by the fact that my little business is growing…running a business is HARD and is one big giant learning process. There is so much that goes into the back end of a business that most people never see…I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into with this little venture. I’ve loved (almost) every minutes of it (excluding the accounting/bookkeeping parts), and I’m so excited to continue learning and growing in 2013!

So anyway, here are my business goals and dreams for the year! 2013, I am so excited about you.

1. Implement new business and client management software into my workflow…This goal will hopefully be met in just a few days and I’m so excited about the organization and automation that this is going to add to my business! (Not to mention the stress that it’s going to eliminate! YAY!)

2. Launch a new blog/website…This one is in the works too…I’m so excited about it and love the designer that I’m working with! This one also means that I’ll have to update my business cards, stationary, packaging, etc. to match my new brand…You could say that I’m slightly overwhelmed but MAJORLY excited about this.

3. Paint and organize my little office…right now it is not a pleasant place to be thanks to the clutter and the fact that you can’t really see the surface of my desk because it’s tiny and I have a million post-it notes stuck to it…

4. Shoot 22 weddings. I’m hoping this is not a stretch…Currently, I have 16 so I’m hoping I get there!!

5. Shoot a wedding in COLORADO..Ohhhkay, this one is more of a dream than a goal…but I just think it would be so COOL..2 of my best friends live an hour and a half apart near Denver, and I just think it would incredible to get to shoot a wedding out there and then visit them..plus I love the mountains and I’ve never been there! Wouldnt that be so fun?

6. Create a big picture workflow for my business, and then break it down into smaller detailed workflow checklists…I am a detailed person so having a workflow with only a few steps has NOT been effective…I’m the kind of person that needs to check off EVERY LITTLE STEP so that I feel accomplished and am motivated to keep going!

7. Clean off my desk every day…ok I’m not going to force myself to do this until my office is actually organized (happening this week I hope! I just got a new desk WITH A FILE CABINET!)…But seriously..my brain works so much better when my desk isn’t a cluttered mess.

8. Be a better blogger…Sometimes I feel funny about blogging the less-than-exciting parts of my life…but then I remember that I love reading other people’s blogs and hearing their thoughts and knowing what they’re up to just because I love getting to know people! (a little too much! I’ve had to limit the number of blogs I read every day to only THREE..do you know how hard that was?…or else I’ll spend way too long pouring over photography and home decorating blogs..this hasn’t been a super effective strategy so far because I just end up picking three different blogs each day, which means I spend a lot longer trying to catch up on everything I’ve missed!…It’s an addiction I’m pretty sure)

9. Create a welcome packet/gift…I always feel like I want to give a bride a giant bear hug when she books me to photograph one of the most important days in her life…So I feel like sending a little welcome packet and gift could be sort of like sending a hug through the mail…

10. Never stop learning..With photography it’s been so important for me to continue to grow and learn new skills while developing my style.

Aaaand I think that’s it for now! I’m sure I will think of more as the months of 2013 go by, so more goals will be included in my monthly goal post I’m sure…How are your goals coming along? I’m going to try and meet at least one of my goals each month…Here’s to a new year (a few weeks in) and lots of big dreams!!