More Than a Side Hustle

I recently asked myself the hard question. Is my business for real or is it just a side hustle? To help me answer myself I enrolled in the class Starting and growing my Business for Self Reliance. It is a sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and LDS business College.

We learned business skills, principles, and habits that would promote success in our endeavors. Some of these skills include:
1. assess goals weekly by charting commitments and checking in with an action partner
2. Keep a business journal of successes and challenges to evaluate progress.
3. Exercise faith and step outside your comfort zone.
4. Identify customers needs and meet them with unique awareness.
5. Get specific about income and expenses
6. Finding and keeping customers.
7. Improving myself and my business skills.

Not only were we learning but we were helping each other. Someone else's story sometimes sparked enthusiasm for our own ideas. The brainstorming was beneficial to all of us. I learned that personal and business progress is of continuing importance but we don't have to do it alone.
At the end of the course I was able to re-commit to being a stained glass teacher and builder. I can do this. I can and will be successful because there are systems in place, positive habits to form and dreams to bring to reality. It's a committed effort with responsibility that is worth the hard work if each day we are fired up about our dream. It was a fun perk to have a stained glass artist on the cover of the class manual. I'm sure the question will arise again some day but I will be ready. There is a love/hate relationship with art because it comes from within. As Earnest Hemingway said about writing, "You just lean over your typewriter and bleed. "