I'm not really sure when the excitement of winter went away for me.  I remember thinking about all the possibilities when school was cancelled and how much time I had to do things I enjoyed.  I guess I didn't realize I was losing that excitement at the time, because more important things started happening, like getting my first car or graduating from high school. I see that excitement in my kids, but it's usually followed by a moan or groan about scheduling adjustments that happen when there is a snow day.  As a kid, I use to have snow ball fights or roll snow around to make sad little people with stick arms and crooked smiles.  Now I make nice "shovel-shaped" paths in my driveway.  The enjoyment of shoveling is ocassionally offset by the pleasure of to throw snow at my kids or better yet watching THEM shovel the snow.  It's the little things...

     I'm looking forward to the warmer weather, the colors, just being outside.  Hibernation is over and it's time to get out there and start doing those things you put off in the fall. That's always one good thing about winter:  it allows you to put off the yard work. But that time has passed, spring is here, and there are no excuses now. 

      That was thirteen years ago (this August,) and there is a quote from a photographer being interviewed at the Las Vegas WPPI conference that I keep in mind when I think about people with great ideas and the confidence in themselves to make great decisions:

"How are you able to create all these great images and have all these great ideas?"  He replies, "Two words: Good decisions."  "Where do these good decisions come from?" "One word: experience."  "And where did you get all this experience?" He replies, "Two words: Bad decisions."

      I thought that was a perfect way to describe how I believe anyone gets anywhere in the business world.  You have to make some mistakes and fall down before you know what decisions are the right ones, and that only comes from experience.  I continue to make mistakes and although I have been fortunate to not have too many things go wrong,  I have had to learn the hard way about a few things.   Stolen equipment or accidents happening, knowing to have insurance to protect you,  whether or not you should drink at the wedding reception you are working, or something as simple as consistency in appearance and workflow.   I have learned some of these the hard way and some of these through witnessing the negative consequences of other business owners' "bad decisions."

      2015 is going to be a year of change for me including a re-branding of my business and how I approach it.  There were things that I knew needed to be done but I wasn't sure how to approach them. There were other things that came to light when I went to WPPI this year.  I feel refreshed creatively and am eager to try out some of my new business ideas.  I'm looking forward to 2015 being more of a breakout year than I've had in the last decade!