I've recently been taking some time "off" from the shop - not entirely, but I've paused any sales other than digital files and any drawings I'm working on are likely going to be a part of launches next year.
If you've been following along on my socials, you've probably seen that I had a partial liver resection surgery in October. What this means is that they removed some of my liver tissue - I had multiple "plum sized" adenomas - aka noncancerous tumors - that were at risk for rupturing, which in turn could cause internal bleeding. One actually did have bleeding, causing a whole mess of symptoms leading to hospitalization and discovering the tumors and scheduling the procedure. The surgeon removed 3 tumors, 30% of my liver, and my gall bladder. It was a major surgery, and I'm honestly shocked to be doing this well only 3 weeks out.
I am still getting super tired really quickly, struggling to walk long distances, and get really lightheaded when I get up quick or walk upstairs. I'm convinced I can feel my liver regenerating even though doc says that’s not a thing- it feels heavy when I wake up and like there is something in my ribcage that is just moving around while I move. It's an odd sensation to say the least. Apparently, it can grow back completely in 6-8 weeks!
The plus side is that at week three, I was able to come home (I stayed in the hospital 1 week and at my parents' house for two) and I'm doing quite well considering. I don't know how I'll do when it's time to return to my actual day job of eight hours straight though. Hopefully the next 3 weeks of relaxing brings me lots of progress to where I don't need to nap multiple times a day!
Anyway, the point of this post is that due to some health setbacks, I didn't meet the business goals I was hoping to reach this year. Every year since starting Samantha's Doodles, I had exponentially increased my sales. This year my goal was pretty big and I'm bummed that I didn't reach it, but it's also a lesson in the fact that life doesn't wait for anybody and has its own plans. And honestly? That's okay.
I'm not here to beat myself up for things out of my control. I'm going to spend some of my time between now and January preparing a new and exciting offering for 2023 and really planning out my year. I'm hoping with this new strategy in place I will blow right past my lofty goals and will really take my business to the next level.
I can't say for sure what the future holds, but I'm not letting this deter me from growing my business. And, hopefully, I might be feeling like a whole new person once my liver grows back!! Wouldn't that be wild? Maybe I'll finally have the energy to run a business in my off hours without being so sleepy always.
Either way, I think I'll still enjoy the occasional nap... ;)