Setting Intentions for 2023

Happy Wednesday everyone! I’ve been slowly taking the Christmas decorations down today and am planning a proper deep clean over the next few weeks. I usually like to take everything down quite soon after Christmas but this year, with how busy I was and out of the house really right up to Christmas Eve, I didn’t feel like I got to enjoy the decor like I usually do. It was also our first Christmas in our house as last year we went to Canada!

A New Year, is often the time when people set unfathomable goals for themselves, hoping that “by this time next year” they’ll have lost a huge amount of weight, shed a bad habit or two and will have finally balanced house work, working out, spending meaningful time with their partner, kids and friends, getting 8 hours sleep and drinking the right amount of water everyday. I don’t think this “New Year, New Me” mentality is at all helpful and generally means that halfway through January, when you’ve replaced your nightly two litres of water for a glass of wine and the January workout plan is still sitting open at day 4 or 5, this generally has a negative effect on our mental health.

I do however, think that having an idea and a direction for the year is really helpful and instead of setting unrealistic goals, I like to think about my intentions with an open mind, knowing that things change and adaptability is key.

With that in mind, I’ll share a bit about how I’m planning for 2023.

A lot of my plans are based on improving on last year and let me just say that last year was incredible! I set out with the goal to try more markets and to have a Christmas pop up. I wanted to launch a new product and I hoped to be involved in more shops too. And all of those things happened!

I attended 23 markets this year across Suffolk and Essex, with 12 of them happening in November and December. I was approached to be involved in a few more local pop ups this year, including 2 in Colchester and Chelmsford, Woodbridge and Nayland. Plus, with the help of Hannah’s gorgeous illustrations, I got myself in front of the last minute shoppers of John Lewis in Chelmsford and I am still not over that experience!

This year, I’m hoping to be a bit more present at home with my baby boy. I’ve learned a lot about which markets work for me and can very happily say I won’t be attending 23(!) but will register to be at the ones which were the best fit for Smith & Co. This really stretched us as a family (including my brilliant in-laws) and while we totally made it work, we are all (me especially) hoping for a little less mum away from home time this year. I’m also planning to really invest my time and energy in building the website up and focussing on SEO and online sales. I’m also focussing more energy on wholesale and finding the sweet spot on the price list this month. I’m also really hoping to be a more consistent newsletter writer and content creator on social media including my instagram and new for this year over on Pinterest!

Personally, I’m hoping to eat more vegetables and a bit less chocolate, I’m hoping to do a few more city breaks and a bit less living like it’s lockdown and most of all, I’m hoping to just enjoy mum life more and embrace living in the moment with my baby boy instead of feeling like I’m constantly rushing to the next thing.

I’d love to hear if you’ve made any intentions for 2023, have you had time to reflect on the year just gone?