Those who know me might be surprised to know that my husband and I practised martial arts for a while. If you lived next door to us during our first year of marriage you may have caught site of us in full combat gear, throwing punches and kicks at one another in the backyard, or walking down the street to the dojang carrying our bags of weaponry.
Why do I bring this up? Because my martial arts teacher had a saying, one which I can never remember correctly, but one which I think back to time and time again. It was something along the lines of “by falling down, we learn to get back up again”. I have thought about this saying during various trials in my life, both great and small. By falling (or failing) I learn to get back up again (rise above challenges) and each time I fall, it gets a bit easier to get up. Rising above does not necessarily mean I eventually succeed, though sometimes a new approach can lead to success. For me, rising above most often means letting go of the negative thoughts which failure so easily leads me to. I struggle with this. When I fail I tend to be a nasty wretch to myself. I say “you suck”, “you can’t do anything right”, “you should just give up” etc.
This is the trap I am in right now. I am writing this post as a tool to help me get back on my feet mentally. I took part in another Artisan Market and the honest truth is that in five hours I did not sell a single pillow. Right away my mind turns ugly on itself. I feel discouraged. I feel like I wasted my time and that I didn’t sell anything because my pillows are terrible. Let me claim some truth now. It was not a waste of time. I bought some gorgeous presents from other vendors. I met some really nice people and had enjoyable conversations. I got to treat myself to delicious meals that I didn’t have to lift a finger to make. I got to show off my beautiful pillows. This is the truth.
See for yourself. Here are some of my favourites that I recently made for the fair. They should be up on my etsy shop by the end of the month.
I had a very similar experience last June. By reading your post I realized just how much I have let that one event affect my entire interior design perspective since then. Thanks for posting. I love the pillows!
Thank you. I hope you too are able to get back on your feet 🙂
You shouldn’t let your results at that fair get you down. Traffic was *very* low, and it’s hard to convert your prospects when so few people are stopping by your table. Selling is a matter of engaging with everyone that stops to look; *some* of them will buy something. And even some of those who don’t, may nevertheless stop at your table another time, if they see you again (provided they enjoyed the first time! ;-)), and buy something then. In which case, you may not have wasted your time at this fair after all.
But regardless, do keep it up. You have a well made product, and a very friendly sales manner. One rough day does not a failure make.
Thanks Donald! You have a lovely product yourself. I’m glad it looked like you got some well-deserved business during the fair. Can’t wait for my sister to see her present!