When it comes to goals, I can come up with about a million things I would like to achieve for myself, or the business, but most of them are just not realistic. I look back to when we first started TLC Inspirations, and feel pretty good about how far we have come over the years, and the how we’ve evolved. And, yet, we still have not achieved our ultimate goal of success.

We started out creating greeting cards and photo prints, and have expanded into sewing and crocheting the last couple years. I loved creating greeting cards, but we wanted to do more. So, we connected with others on Etsy, Artfire, Facebook, and Twitter, building a network, and surrounding ourselves with “like minded” artisans. We originally had a stand alone website, but elected to move to Artfire and Etsy. And, this past year, we decided to try a craft consignment shop, closing our Etsy shop. We have also started a YouTube Craft Tutorial Channel. Some of these things worked for us, and others did not.  We have learned a lot along the way from many of you, and we have tried to share our knowledge as we move along.

Now, back to goals:  what they are, and how to keep them.

Here are some of my personal and business goals:

• I would have never pictured myself a “blogger”, but here I am! So, one of my goals is to be more consistent with my blogging, and a bit more personal. I am uncomfortable putting my self “out there”, so this is a bit of a hurdle for me. In order to keep this one, I will need to create an actual blog schedule (I take turns with Rachel) and keep that schedule.  I can! I will! I am!
• “Tweet, Tweet” (as in, tweet more on twitter).
• Believe in myself more, and quit telling myself that what I do isn’t good enough. This is another tough one for me. I tend to be a perfectionist to a fault and, therefore, can never accept anything that isn’t exactly up to par. I am not sure how to keep this one, except to learn to “let go” and accept my creation for what it is, an expression of who I am.
• Organization is another area that I need to improve on. I have too many things going at once.  This may never change, but I can always hope.
• I want to be freer with my creativity, and allow myself to do things that are “out of the ordinary,” and fully explore myself. I don’t know where this will lead, but I want to find out!
• Create better tutorials. When we started our YouTube Channel, I had NEVER done a video! This was really out of my comfort zone. Now that I’ve done it a few times, I am really enjoying it.  My goal for this year would be to improve the quality of the content, and get a little more creative with the video itself.  ”onwards and upwards”.
• Find my “NICHE” this year!

We have had many personal distractions while working TLC Inspirations, and I am hoping that we are finally getting to a point of seeing the rewards of sticking with it, and finding our place in the “creative” world.

Here are a few tips for setting goals and keeping them!

• When setting goals, it’s important to be realistic, and set goals that you can actually achieve. Don’t set yourself up for failure.
• Make a list of short-term and long-term goals. It’s good to have milestones along a journey.
• Ask yourself, “Where do I want to be in 1 year, 5 year…?”.
• Make sure the goals you aim for, fit in your life.  How will these goals affect my family, business, my health?
• Ask yourself, “Does this goal add something to my life, or take away something?”.
• Replace a bad habit with a good one.
• Don’t beat yourself up if you falter. Pick yourself up, and try again. Or realize that you need to make some adjustments.
• Stay positive! Negativity is a waste of time and energy.