Eight Months.
Eight months. 248 days. 5,952 hours. 357,120 minutes. Here's what we've learned since unlocking the door to welcome our first sale at 3601 Buttonwood...
- We are not the same girls we were 248 days ago. Notably, my roots are at least 1/4 inch longer than socially acceptable because I've been too busy to spend two very needed hours getting them done. But more notably, we are much wiser about our business and about ourselves. We are probably also kinder, more humble, and more thankful for the opportunity we have been given. We also laugh in the face of standing on our concrete floors for 16 hours in a row...if you are going to challenge us, ask us to stay all night long.
- Speaking of which, remember the first time you stayed up a significant portion of the night with your newborn child? It is an experience that ushers you into parenthood in a way that nothing else can. I think doing my first overnight at PJP during Thanksgiving week bonded me to World Pie Domination in a way that will never allow me to relent on the journey. (All that said, one overnight a year is good, thanks...I hope against hope that it isn't required during the week of Christmas.)
- And so, going through important first milestones, such as our first Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons, is the only way to figure out what is going to happen on those days at PJP Buttonwood. Because the image in my head for the day before Thanksgiving included soft lighting, Christmas carols, and stacks of freshly baked pies boxed and ready for pickup. And when the day before Thanksgiving actually imploded upon itself and was a hot mess, my managed expectations took a hard hit. Getting back up and going back at it was harder than I thought it would be.
- This time of year, many advertisers call to schedule a breezy chat about our 2015 marketing budget. Bwhahahahahahahahahahaha. I'm not even sure what I'm doing 12 hours from now, so...
- Speaking of chats, blogging about the sub-par Christmas wreaths at 3601 Buttonwood will make 96.8% of The Kroenke Group really mad at you. But there will be new ribbons on the wreaths. Ahem.
- We are hoping Santa brings us new oven mitts. And a person who just answers the phone for us next Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. And an Ecolab dishwasher contract termination clause. And wine.
- I don't care for spreadsheets. That is all. Please don't ask me to format any cells and return it to you by email, because it likely won't happen.
- That said, if the IRS sends an envelope that is stamped "IMMEDIATE ATTENTION REQUIRED", that will catch my focus. Even if it is a bill for $.17 of payroll tax shortfall. I have an irrational fear of tax calculations. Probably because the only calculator I really know how to work is my iPhone calculator and I'm certain to lose any argument based on mathematical calculations and tax tables.
- As 2014 draws to an end, can we all just make an agreement to stop using voicemail? I'm fairly certain I haven't returned a single voicemail on my personal phone in the past 248 days and the prognosis for the next 365 days is looking similar. Jeanne actually retrieves the messages from the PJP phone line and she writes them all down and returns them in order. Bless her. Text me.
- In 2014, we stumbled into this idea of World Pie Domination. In 2015, we move forward with focused attention on World Pie Domination. I'm a little intrigued to see what the next 12 moths bring us.
And as always, there would be little point to any of this without you reading the blog and without you rooting for us and without you stopping by PJP Buttonwood, so thank you. Thank you for a game-changing 248 days in 2014. And to so much more together. Cheers.