Creative Success – Starting Something New

I’m starting this year off with something completely new. It’s something I’ve never done before and I’ve got to admit I’m nervous and excited at the same time. I thought the first post of the year was as good an opportunity as any to make a point about the next 12 months and what I hope to achieve here on Fall For DIY during them.

I don’t know if you’ve noticed at all but over the past year I’ve been inching towards making this space a hub for people who want to be creative and would like to or are trying to, well basically, make stuff more. It doesn’t matter whether you want to make purely for pleasure and to have pretty things, or if you hope it will grow into something much bigger. Everyone is welcome here!

One of the main reasons I’m writing this post is because the last thing I want to do at the moment is join in with the January “we can do this” trend, when I’m feeling less than motivated myself. It just doesn’t seem genuine. November and December were such insanely busy months that now I’ve actually slowed down and stopped for a moment I’m finding it hard to get started again. Right when I feel like I should be the most driven – at the start of the year when everything is fresh and new – I actually feel the least motivated I have in this whole past year!

So, instead of watching Netflix, getting massively behind on work and waiting for “it” to hit me again, I’m doing my damn best to be productive. I’ve been thinking a lot about what made me first start blogging in an attempt to spark that excitement again. If you’ve ever read my story about how I started blogging or heard me harp on about it (for the 17th time) you’ll know at the time I was sharing simple techniques with customers in the bead shop, putting on workshops and generally teaching my friends (and anyone else who would listen) to make jewellery. These were the creative moments that always made me happy. The look on people’s faces when they actually get that this is their own hands and their own brain working in unison, right in front of their eyes to create something that is beautiful, really is priceless.

It doesn’t stop there. Showing people that handmade doesn’t mean badly designed has always been my main goal. I’m so happy that in the past 10 years the profile of handmade design is blossoming into something that holds more value than the mass produced, sweatshop, designer label, latest trend. (Note: I have to admit here that I do buy into this just like anyone else. I am not above falling in love with the on trend trainer as much as I (and my bank balance) wish I was.)

Underneath everything else this is my main motivation for writing the blog. It’s what still makes me smile when I hear from you when you’ve tried out a tutorial or been inspired to make something completely different! It’s what keeps me making our We Make Collective kits and planning for future collaborations with awesome creatives.

But another reason I began blogging was because I wanted to put myself out there as a creative person and even though I didn’t have any kind of plan at that point I loved the idea that it could potentially support a creative business.

Many years later and I’m still working towards that goal! But it feels I’ve come to a bit of a crossroad. There is more information than ever on how to build and grow an online business, but I’m finding more and more that the advice being given takes us further away from a creative career and more towards a specific set of rules to follow. And don’t get me wrong while these rules can be useful, the most successful people are the ones breaking the rules and creating new ones! Each time I’ve tried to follow in someone else’s footsteps I’ve felt like I’m turning my back on the reason this blog has become successful. When I try to do what everyone else is doing the blog loses a small piece of it’s soul. While it might on paper seem like the best idea, when it comes down the hard facts it is never as successful as something I truly believe in.

So that’s why today I would love for you to take this really short survey below. It’s the first one I have ever asked you to take and I actually think it’s going to be really important for the future of Fall For DIY. I want to make sure I am still creating those moments that help you be amazed by what you can achieve. That’s what really excites me about blogging and it’s what I want to be doing above all else! This could be mean more info about creating a successful creative business or it could be about focussing on certain skills. Perhaps we’ll make more videos or maybe ecourses? Right now I have no idea and the direction we take in 2016 is really up to you!

This post has ended up way longer than planned! And as a massive thank you for helping us figure this out (and actually getting all the way to the end of this post!) we’re offering a huge bundle of We Make Collective materials including (but not limited to) the travel loom, calligraphy pen, yarn, watercolours, inks and the complete new natural dyeing kit as a prize to one, randomly chosen participant. Just leave us your name and email at the end of the survey to be in with a chance.

I can’t wait to read your answers!