grundyhome.com

2008 is the year of…

…being proactive. Most of the work emergencies I face are simply a lack of planning and preparation. In 2007, one of our developers had to work crazy hours to put together a series of pages for Holy Week, right before Easter. Why did this take us by surprise? As I’ve grown fond of saying, Easter has been scheduled for 2,000 years!
…positivity. I think a lot of my stress (and probably blood pressure) is related to my own negativity. I’m cynical and pessimistic about everything. I argue for the sake of arguing. But since returning to the office in 2008, I’ve worked hard to keep a positive outlook. When I catch myself starting to argue, I ask myself if I really disagree. If I have reason to disagree, I pause to gather the reasons why and make a more effective case for my position.
…trying new things. Over the Christmas break, I got hooked on Anthony Bourdain’s show “No Reservations.” One of the best parts of this show is the brutal fearlessness with which he goes into a new food experience. He strays from the popular path, into the dark alleys and remote villages of the places he visits. This has awakened in me a hunger for new things. I’m not quitting my job and traveling the world to eat sheep testicles, but I will stretch my usual life experiences into new ones. I’m starting small (trying new restaurants, ordering new dishes at the places I always go).
…philanthropy. I am blessed to have had the opportunities and experiences that I’ve had so far in life. Having spent quite a bit of time volunteering for Camp Fire USA, I am planning to give more of my time and money to charities. But I want to be more thoughtful in how I give, considering the impact and returns on these contributions. More than that, I want to be an example to my friends and family in hopes that they will do the same. As driven as we all are by our careers and hobbies, it is easy to forget our own humble beginnings and the great things that we can accomplish by giving back.

I always said that I hated New Year’s resolutions because they are arbitrary in nature. Why are you more likely to keep a resolution if you set it at the New Year, as opposed to say, March 3rd? What flipped a switch in me wasn’t the New Year–it was the long vacation at the end of the old year. I had nearly two weeks to reflect and consider my personal weaknesses, strengths, goals, and dreams. And this is where my resolutions come from–not the long-standing desire to lose weight or quit drinking at work, but one that will improve the quality of life for me and the people around me.

I’m shutting the doors of my company, Birch Lake Studios. I’ve decided, after months of struggling with the idea, to say no to new business. I’m working on a final client project, slated to launch early in 2008. I still have a couple of clients hosting with me, while I provide a minor bit of support and maintenance. I’ve been calling this a hibernation, going dormant, or a sabbatical. But I think the truth is that my heart isn’t in this type of business anymore and my interests are elsewhere.
My co-workers at Notre Dame have heard me go on about this for quite some time now. They also know that my entrepreneurial spirit hasn’t died; it just needs fewer distractions. I’m not officially dissolving the corporation; one day BLS may be reborn as another venture.

As I look back at my stats for 2008 and my neglect of this site, I am saddened that my most popular article (more popular than my homepage since its posting) is the one about tax deductions for pro-bono work. Seriously, why aren’t there better resources for small business owners?
As you can tell from the lack of posts here, the blog took a major hit as I got busy. I’d like to pick things up again, but with more focus on my work with Camp Fire USA, where I was elected to the board of directors. I am leading two new committees focused on marketing and fundraising. I am excited about these challenges and should have good writing material.

I’ve been very busy. Here are a few of the things going on:

1. Amber and I bought a house and moved up to Birch Lake in Vandalia, Michigan. It’s a small sport lake where Amber lived as a child. We’re excited about this, as stressful as it’s been. The entire process from first viewing to closing took place in under a month.

2. Camp is in full swing, with the season nearly half over. I spend most of my evenings at Camp, participating in activities and taking photos.

3. I also started taking video and posting to YouTube. We started a channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/camptannadoonah

4. I am now the full owner of Birch Lake Studios, Inc. My business partner moved on to a new full time job and decided to sell his shares in the company. Now that I am 100% owner and have a place on Birch Lake, I’m looking forward to taking clients out in a boat (which I haven’t purchased yet).

5. Notre Dame is very busy. We are deep into several big projects which I’ll surely discuss at a later date. As John says, he can gauge my workload based on how many cartoons I have been making. I think it’s been a few months since I drew one.
I’ll come back to my blog in good time. As you can tell, I’ve had a lot brewing. I have even more coming soon.