Back to Work

I am back from a fun trip to Montreal. There is a lot to do and see in this city and it is a very walkable city. As someone who loves to walk, this was great for me! Heard a lot of wonderful music since the Montreal Jazz Festival was taking place while I was there. I decided not to bring my cell phone or my laptop on this vacation. I knew I’d end up doing something work related with one or the other, so I went cold turkey.

Now I am back to reality and this week it is not pretty. Today I did a quick touch up in a beauty salon that I had done some work in over a year ago. The finishes have all held up well, just a few minor nicks and dings. I spent 3 hours there and the client new well in advance what the bill would be, and that payment would be expected today. Instead of paying me today, he conveniently did not have his checkbook and will ‘put a check in the mail’. I wonder how he would react if a client of his ‘forgot their money’ after a haircut and said they’d put the check in the mail… I find this very irritating, especially since I had to call and ask where my check was when I did work here last year. After my phone call, I was promptly paid, but it irked me that I had to ask for payment that was past due.

Next, I found out that a job I thought was going to happen in July into August is now very uncertain. I will have to get more info about what is going on, but it has me a bit bummed and scrambling to fill in this time frame with other work.

Tomorrow I was to start a job working on some cabinets in a Master Bath. Today when I called to confirm, the client said she was uncertain about the finish now and wanted to explore more options. We decided that I would come as planned and test out a few more options on the cabinets. We talked more about what might work well and I am hopeful that one of the new options will work out. This, of course, will set my scheduling back a bit, but I am hoping I will still be able to make some good progress.

Today when I checked out my favorite blog site, Design Inspiration, I learned that they will be teaching classes at this year’s SALI stenciling convention in San Francisco (July 16th-21st). I am bummed because I would love to take these classes since I am so obsessed and inspired by their great stencil designs, but… since I just returned from vacation, I cannot afford the time off again so soon, nor the cost of this convention. Also, I have a lot of issues with the SALI organization, so do not wish to support them at the moment.

My first day back to work after vacation was a bit of a struggle. I’m feeling a little overwhelmed about a lot of things going on with various jobs and I am also feeling a little anxious about business in general. It’s always so unpredictable. I know that goes with the territory… the down side of being an entrepreneur. Usually I can go with the flow, which, I guess is why I’ve been able to survive for the past 11 years with my business…but every once in awhile, it just all gets to me. I think maybe I just need a good night’s sleep… so off I go!