Diary Installment 18: An optimistic person, a small business, and a mom. This is my diary of sharing, in hopes that we create a sense of community and stick together through this unimaginable time.
Summer is over and while I'm a little sad, I am so MOTIVATED right now I just want to jump into a new season. As I wrote about in my last diary email, I have been working on feeling like I have control of my life (during this crazy time) and I’m seeing such cool progress that I am proud of. I had a very relaxing Labor Day weekend in that I unplugged from work and let myself read my book and swim in the lake…but honestly I want to be pushing myself more – I want to be working just as hard as I played this summer. I am READY to be working harder…which is exactly the opportunity that September brings.Since this September is like no other, and every DAY feels like we are getting new info (school in session or from home, politics dominating all) – somehow all of the information is becoming a BLOB. I am pushing myself to focus on work because I want to control at least a part of my future.In the last couple months Jane Win has changed NAMES, surpassed 17k followers on Instagram, started making TikTocs (ps: so fun and a new addition), been featured in the press (see below) – even had a surprise appearance at the DNC as Ashley Biden presented her Dad…and we have finally finally finally gotten in new product for Fall (at the photographer now and launching in 6 days!).It’s incredible how one can CONSISTENTLY look only at what you are not doing verses how far you have come, focused on the one loss not the many wins. Of all the cool things we have navigated this summer, the NEWNESS we are planning to launch next week is my favorite. Why? I can’t even begin to tell you how COVID has changed the rate at which our product development moves. It used to be that I could come up with a new design and launch it 4 weeks later. It used to be that I could order inventory of plenty of coins for a month and we would have it in stock for you. It used to be that we would ship USPS and it would arrive to you reliably in 2-3 days. This summer – everything slowed to a snail’s pace. The fall items we have been working on have taken since APRIL – so not 4 weeks but 5 MONTHS. The product that used to be flowing into the office weekly now takes triple the time to leave the caster. Things that I think are coming don’t come; it’s messy and I hate it. On top of it all, in the past few weeks we had total disruption at the USPS, this awesome delivery system for Jane Win just stopped working. Packages that we tracked said they were delivered, would show-up 4 days later. Packages that should take 3 days took 12 days. Very very sadly we had to switch to UPS – happy to support the UPS business but USPS had been with us since the beginning, and the people that work in our local office were a part of our company. I miss them and hate that we had to move on.So let’s recap. I’m MOTIVATED and September is the time to make it happen. We (all of us right?) are focusing on the negative not the GOOD – and there is good. Everything is taking forever to move forward, but we have made some major steps.Coming up we (I) WILL focus on keeping up with demand while also innovating new delightful designs for the future. Let me say that again so it sinks in because it’s so tied to taking back our life – we have to focus on the demands of every day AND create a wonderful future. Every day has to be both. Because we are going to make the day great…and we are going to make our future bright. The Jane Win list is different than your list, but we all have the list, the demands and the future we want to make great. This September I am pumped up to really dig in, work, and do everything I can to make it all great. Speaking of great, check out JW in the press this week…
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