What.a.year.
If you asked me 18 months ago how I thought my first year self-employed was going to be I definitely wouldn't have been able to predict what 2016 has delivered.
You always start off asking yourself 'Am I going to survive? How?'
You then work feverishly to make sure you get some type of business plan in place, work out your business processes and ofcourse understand how to invoice (trust me this is harder than it seems at first!)
Most importantly for me though....you surround yourself with good people.
Then you descend into organised chaos!
Yes for me this year feels a lot like organised chaos, but at least it's my chaos...and not another organisations.
There's not one moment where I regret making this solo journey. But really...is it a solo journey?
Never.
For me I am always surrounding myself with good people. I love to learn new things in bite size chunks and these people help me fulfil this desire. This is probably the reason why I have 'itchyfeet' (that's the travel bug for those not familiar with the term or my aptly named blog.)
Without this team of good people around me I wouldn't have been able to achieve what I have to date.
From those who've given me the harsh lessons in business to date, to those who keep me thinking laterally and those gently offering support & guidance when I'm at my most vulnerable THANK YOU.
On reflection of 2016, I couldn't have asked for a better year. When someone says reach for the stars I think I'm currently sitting in them! There's more to be done though.
Of course there's always improvements to be made and more money to make, but that's not what drives me to succeed. Educating our industry and helping those who operate within it master social media, is what gets me out of bed in the morning and is the fundamentals of Grass Roots Media.
A recap of our year:- Grace Pettit started with the business back at the end of 2015 and left around May to pursue other opportunities
- Rural Voice was launched in February alongside co-founder Lucy Griffiths
- Anna Bailey joined as our Administration Assistant in June bringing a hoard of farming connections with her
- Chanelle O'Sullivan also joined the same month bringing a wealth of content marketing experience to her Content Management role
- The business was a Manawatu Westpac Business Awards nominee
- I was a Women of Influence finalist in Business Enterprise and Rural categories
- The team are working hard to establish and launch the AgWomen project
- I have been recently announced as a University of Auckland Young New Zealander of the year, top 10 finalist.
*breathe*
*celebrate*
*reflect*
*plan*
So what does 2017 bring?
For me it's a year of consolidation and business growth.
Year two is always the toughest in the world of start-ups but I'm going to make sure it's the year that makes us! We have a few initiatives to launch and processes to get right and with a year like 2016, it's going to be hard to top.
It's not all about awards and glory - it's about achieving our mission by sticking to our values.
The team is positive about what we are going to achieve in 2017 and I love how engaged and supportive they are. A huge thank you ladies.
Their attitudes and my greater network support gives me faith that in 2017.....
WE'RE GOING TO ABSOLUTELY KILL IT!!
Chelsea Millar is the Owner of Grass Roots Media NZ and co-founder of the seminar series Rural Voice. When she's not tweeting and flitting from location to location you can find her behind a camera or being active.
She was a finalist in the 2016 Women of Influence awards and is currently in Santiago in South America, heading to Antartica, for a well deserved break away!
