To know you was to love you. The last cake my auntie had of mine. R.I.P. Aunt Pam
You want to know what’s the craziest thing about being in business for yourself? Learning “Work/Life Balance”. In my opinion there’s a million different ways to go about work life, mom life, daughter life, fiancée life, heck just life! I recently just faced one of the biggest dilemma’s in business.
Let’s rewind…..2018 was a whirlwind. Let’s see…Since the last time I updated, I quit my job October 9th 2018. I got engaged October 13th 2018. I registered JassySassySweets on October 17th 2018. I traveled out the country for the first time ever with my fiancé October 20th. So it’s safe to say that 2018 was pretty good to me!
Then just like that life hit me. December 19th 2018 my aunt passed. Not just any Aunt. One of my closest Aunts. The one who was like a second mother. We shared the same house hold many times throughout the years. The one who was always “So Proud” of me. This hit, and it hit hard. My world was turned upside down. I had to cope with death, planning a funeral, responding to emails, remaining “normal” on social media (because let’s all be honest. When you have a business you’re judged with everything you post. Even on your personal pages.) and I still had orders to fill. The only thing I kept thinking was “How?”, how was I going to mentally get through this? My mind was racing a million miles an hour.
This is the part of business no one wants to talk about. Entrepreneurship sounds fun, exciting, and all things beautiful. BUT it’s hard. It’s a conscience decision to get up every day and work. Even when you have no work, you must work. Even when your personal life is a mess, you must work. Even when you are faced with the toughest of challenges, you must work. We don’t get paid vacation days, sick days, bereavement days, or personal days. I know you’re thinking, “Well you could have just shut down for a few days.” but that’s not an option when bills don’t shut down. So here I was, with money collected from my customers, a house hold full of family, and tears that wouldn’t stop. I had to push through. I had to fulfill my orders because when I made the decision to become a business owner, I made the decision to put my best forward and give my customers what they deserve.
Many times as consumers we get wrapped up in the hustle and bustle of our every day life. All too often we don’t take the time to think about the people we encounter. Rather it’s the convenience store clerk you paid money to for the coffee you bought this morning, the small bakery in town you stopped by last weekend to get cupcakes for a party, the small boutique you bought your favorite pair of earrings from, or the donut shop you got donuts from on Sunday, let’s all take a moment to think about them. The next time you’re rushing in to do whatever you need to do to get going, remember they are human too. Remember that they took a leap of faith to live their dreams and work for themselves to provide for their family. Remember that they too may have had a loved one who passed the night before, but they still had to come take ownership of what they started so that you, the consumer, could get what you need.
To all of my fellow entrepreneurs, keep striving. Keep going. Keep being great. It’s ok to take a break. We need it. Mental health is important. We need to stay healthy in every aspect so that we can continue to live out this dream we started. I have found baking to be my happy place. My outlet of emotions. My safe place. So know that the next time you order with JassySassySweets, no matter what it is, know that I have put my everything into your order with great hopes that maybe, my hard work will make your life a little sweeter. Even when mine may be little sour.
Peace, Love, and Happy Baking!
