Today marks one month as an entrepreneur (or solopreneur, as some call it). Yay!

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It may sound cliche, but it has flown by. Most days I am struggling to find enough hours in the day to get everything done. I had dreams of going on runs over lunch (or taking the occasional afternoon nap), and the exact opposite has happened – I’ve worked through lunch most days.

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It hurts just thinking about how much I used to dread going to work so often for the last few years. My poor husband would have to listen to grumpy ol’ me complain on Sunday nights about dreading the week ahead. And now? My husband has to pry me away from my computer.

And while some days I’m exhausted and don’t want to look at the computer screen for another minute, it has been the most fulfilling month I’ve had in quite awhile. As my calendar has told me all month, now is the best time to start living out your dreams. And that is exactly what I’ve done this month.

Some of the highlights from this month:

• less stress (which also means sleeping better and overall just being happier, which has been great for our marriage).
• the choice to sleep in a little more if I stay out late watching my church softball team.
• flexible schedule for doctor’s appointments and lunch dates, etc.
• gaining new clients (especially ones who send me free loaves of their delicious bread or pie to sample).
• watching several seasons of Gilmore Girls (dual screens are amazing).
• and being able to actually talk to clients during the day, instead of after work hours.

Some challenges from this month:

• struggling to find balance between blogging + social media + marketing myself, and actually doing client work.
• setting client boundaries + walking away from “the office” when it’s quitting time. it’s hard to leave work at work when it’s in the same building! for the past three years, I’ve only been helping my clients after hours and on weekends, so some of them are used to hearing from me during those times.
• trying to do too much — which is a mistake I have made time and time again. I say “yes” to projects more often than I should!

Even with the craziness of projects and new clients, there are several new things happening around here! You didn’t think that I would take it easy during my first month, did you? First, I’ve created several new service package offerings:

• Brand Overhaul Package: You’re a professional, and it’s time to look like one! Receive a totally customized logo and website, with cohesive, branded social media elements, too.
• Digital Branding Package: Strong, consistent branding leads to a strong brand credibility. This package includes website design, branded social media profile elements, and 20 branded social media graphics ready for you to post.
• Social Graphics Package: Social media maintenance takes TIME. Lots of time. And you don’t have time. Stop spending all your time trying to piece together graphics for your channels.  Weekly and monthly options available.

More big news from this month: I’m also adding video services! I’ve had a few clients inquire about where to go for video services, and it just so happens that my husband, Aaron, is an Audio/Visual Technician by trade. He can do animation/graphic videos, as well as get behind the camera and shoot live footage. I can’t wait to show you some of the promotional videos he’s working on for local businesses.

After a month of dealing with the highs and lows of entrepreneurship, and developing new services to help my clients more, I’ve decided one thing: I love it so far. It’s everything I thought it would be. I know there will probably be even more struggles and challenges, but I can only hope there will be twice as many victories!

I’m not saying that this is for everyone, but I love being my own boss, having more flexibility and getting to help even more people. Sometimes, it’s still unbelievable to me the people that I get to help all over the world. If you are a freelancer, or wanting to take the leap to go freelance full-time, you NEED to check out Stress Less & Impress. This course literally changed the life of Jess Creatives!