we’ll be millionaires.
I’m not sure I want to be a millionaire. But I would like to have earned enough to live on comfortably, with enough extra to convert the loft and trade our car for one we all fit into.
Instead of resolutions, in the style of The Moiderer, I’m going to envisage how 2013 works out for us by travelling to this time next year and doing a review of how it went.
In 2013, Tim and I took our fledgling web development business from strength to strength, building up a regular stream of work that required us to take on and train up a number of apprentices, giving them work experience and employment, and eventually an office manager to handle the most hated task, the admin. We were able to branch out from our initial core offering of affordable websites for businesses into consultancy and advanced development. This was supported by our technical blog site, where we ran regular series of articles for both beginner and more advanced bloggers.
Being able to depend on a regular income from the web business meant that I could let my blog be my personal space again, and in contrary fashion that meant that it actually became more successful – it turned out that people enjoyed my niche blogging, book reviewing and political rants. I was able to use its profile to campaign against unpleasant welfare changes much more successfully than previously.
I attended both Cybher and MumsnetBlogfest in more official capacity, talking with authority on WordPress and how to use as a blogging tool for business and pleasure.
My book reviewing became a pleasurable hobby – I took a leaf out of Keris’ book and ran a regular weekly post on what I’d received and what I’d read. I also got to hold giveaways and work with lots of interesting authors and publishers throughout the course of the year.
Learning to balance our business, blog and personal life meant that we got the house sorted, extra bedrooms built, lovely bookcases and shelving sorted for the living room and home education into a routine that worked for all of us. More outings and relatively local meetups for Big, stretching Small on science and maths and of course, taking in our annual joint to Tudor times. Smallest and Tigerboy particularly enjoyed their trip to the past as it’s enforced slower pace gives them more focus. I don’t particularly enjoy the sewing but Big and I attended several making weekends with friends so we got to grips with parts of the costumes that we hadn’t previously.
I also supported both Big and Small to develop their blogs to be able to try out working with brands in their own rights – Small particularly enjoyed tie ups with game development companies while Big mixed it up with her personal and technical blogs.
In family terms we got into the habit of regular skype calls with my parents, and travelled a couple of times to see them. In our smaller family unit we worked out a routine that allowed us to spend quality family time together regularly, mixing up family film night with trial family dinner parties, and games nights, both electronic and board. We also reinstated a family book club, reading one title a month for discussion. Recognising that we have different needs and starting to work on being open about how to meet them was a massive breakthrough for us all.
All in all, it felt to me like 2013 was the year I finally matured into the person I know I can be.
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