But today brought an onslaught of decisions about things which are outside my realm of confidence. Part of me wants to bag this whole idea, pack it all up and go out and live in the desert for the winter. The other part of me wants to build a successful business. That's the part that gave me the headache today, because I am taking the all or nothing approach to this. I am either going to go all out and do it the right way, or I am not going to do it at all. At least I will know at the end of the season, regardless of what happens, that I gave it everything I've got. Besides, I've always been that way. I either do something or I don't do something- but I don't do anything just halfway. I do due diligence, I make a decision, and then I stick to it.
I'm like that in my personal life, too. I either like a person or thing, or I don't like a person or thing. Sometimes I will change my mind if the situation warrants it- and I will be straightforward about my change of mindset. There have been people that I have liked initially, and then as I got to know them better, I realized that I didn't like them very much at all, and people who initially rubbed me the wrong way, and then eventually we became good friends. But I'm not wishy-washy or two-faced, pretending to someone's face to like them and then talking trash behind their back. I am rather blunt about how I feel about a person or situation- not rude usually, but not wishy-washy either. Steadfast is a good word for it. But at least people know where they stand with me. Maybe I'm old-fashioned that way, because it seems like the trend today is to be more namby-pamby and two-faced. Given the choice between the two, I would rather be considered old-fashioned.
But today, my brain is overloaded with decisions, and I can't say with confidence that the ones I made are the right ones. So I am at the mercy of wondering, and even second-guessing myself. Is the money I spent on a website and an ad in the paper going to be worth it? What about the higher rent? ROI is really important to me right now. And this whole website thing. I'm still wondering about that. The whole process of deciding which company to use was, in itself, very stressful- and now that I have chosen one and purchased a website building product, I am faced with myriad decisions about the building process itself. What photos, what layout, what colors, what fonts? I am not a design professional. I like to be out in the wilderness and I like to cut rocks. But I also have limited funds so hiring someone to build the site for me is not within the budget at the moment.
Fortunately, the ad for the paper was a little easier, thanks to my friend who is the publisher. She was gracious enough to let me bring over a flyer and a business card so she could help me figure out how to turn them into a newspaper ad. That is what she does for a living, thank goodness. Of course, I'm sure she wouldn't be happy spending her days digging and cutting rocks. We all have our strong points. I'm glad advertising and design is one of hers. I want to get this advertising and design stuff done so I can go back to cutting rocks.
And then there is the decision to move into a different booth space. It is said in business that location is everything. Location, location, location. Does McDonald's make the best hamburgers? No way- but they own the real estate at the prime intersections all over the world so they have the best locations for the hamburgers they make. So my move today was all about location. I moved up to "A" row, a front row on the street - as opposed to "C" row with a back corner and RV park frontage. I cannot be seen from the main road like I could before, but I am located in the busiest part of this area of town as far as foot traffic goes. So here I sit, having signed the new contract and upped my rent by about $300.00 dollars, and my brain is on tilt from agonizing over this decision all day. These past 10 days the money has gone out way faster than it has come in.
But while location is important, so is the neighborhood. And my decision to move was influenced by that as well. Not that there is anything wrong with the vendors around me, but this end is rather sparse. There are many non-rented spaces even this close to the start of the season. It is like owning a rental house in a neighborhood full of unoccupied buildings, or an office building on a block full of vacant warehouses. I have wondered for the past ten days if people would walk down this row at all after seeing all the empty spaces between them and me. People tend to gravitate toward places where there are other people, and avoid those places which seem less busy.
And then there is the choice between facing the main highway into town or having frontage on a small local road that gets alot of foot traffic. After all, how many people can make a decision about buying a piece of jewelry, a gold nugget, or some lapidary equipment while driving past a sign at 50 miles per hour. I would guess not many. While my sign currently faces out toward the highway, I am betting that people actually stopping to look might be more conducive to sales. And the spaces on either side of me and across the street are rented with established businesses that generate alot of traffic. To me it seems like a better return on ROI in the long run - at least that's the point anyway..
And then there is the fact of the economy. Most people would say that this economy is not the time to go all out and try to establish a new business. But then there are also people who would say this is a time of opportunity for those who dare to go after it. I have always subscribed to the philosophy of "observe the masses and do the opposite". I may not have had the opportunity to move up to the front row if the economy wasn't like it is and other vendors weren't cancelling their reservations for the season. And now I can make a deposit for next year and hold my spot if I want to- a spot that under different circumstances may never have been available. I waited for six years to have a good spot at Jazz Fest in New Orleans- and I never got one. Someone had to die before you got their spot.
But trying times always weed out the masses and leave the strong, the lean and mean, the easily adaptable intact. A little scarred and bleeding, maybe, but intact. Well, I have come through trying times before. I have come out on the other side scarred and bleeding, but still standing, and all the stronger and wiser. So, I am telling myself this is no different than any of those other times.
And so my brain is swimming from all the decisions I had to make today. But the good thing is, with the exception of the design of the website, they are made. There is no going back now. The contracts have been signed, the money has been spent, the inventory has been purchased. What will happen, will happen. At least I can say I have hedged my bets. I gave it my best shot. I have done everything I can do and gone all out to start this season off well. And I will find out in March if any of these decisions, decisions, and more decision were good ones. Until then, all I can do is enjoy every day, turn on my saw and my polishing wheel, and cut rocks.
We can't wait to check out your new diggs!
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