It’s that time of year where you might be reflecting on the year that’s just passed and what’s coming up in the year ahead.

I know I’ve sure spent plenty of time reflecting over the holiday break!

Over the holidays, I intended on being super productive and rebranding plus moving my website to Squarespace 7.1, but as soon as the holiday vibes hit, I realised I needed space to process, breathe and reflect instead, so that’s just what I did.

It’s officially 2021 though, and it’s time for a fresh start with plenty of renewed energy and focus!

I’ve learnt how important it is to review what I’m doing, celebrate my wins, and reflect on the things I’ve learned so I don’t make the same mistakes again.

You can see my first annual review on the blog here.

In 2020, I didn’t always keep these past lessons in mind, but it was still a good year in so many ways, even with the challenges the year threw at me.

I've also been thinking about the New Year, making plans and setting some big goals (you can read more about how I set my goals and plan for the year here).

I'm crazy excited about what 2021 holds and can't wait to share more with you! 

Let’s dive in!

What went well in 2020?

Slowing down and focusing on what’s necessary.

Around June, the challenges of the year started to get to me and I burned out quite spectacularly for about 3 months. This forced me to step back from a lot of what I was doing and really reflect on what was working for me and what wasn’t. I worked with a health coach and prioritised self-care a lot more. I basically stopped marketing apart from emailing my list and participating in a couple of groups I love. It led to some of my best income months, too. Letting go of shiny object syndrome was freeing, doing less felt good, and I will still able to get amazing results for myself and my clients.

Saying yes to opportunities to get in front of other audiences. 

I set a big goal of being featured 36 times in 2020, between guest Facebook lives, online summits, guest blog posts or podcast interviews, and I hit that goal in December. As a shy girl, I never thought this would be possible for me, but I’ve loved the experience and will be focusing on this goal again because it allows me to share value and support more women doing amazing things with their businesses.

Committing to my email list.

While I basically stopped blogging in 2020 and wasn’t always consistent on social media, I did prioritise showing up to my email list most weeks. I worked with an amazing email marketing strategist to help me map out a content plan and review my funnels and have really been optimising everything overall. I’ve learned a lot about email marketing, and love being able to show up and share value with my subscribers.

Relearning WordPress.

I set a goal at the start of last year that I wanted to dive back into WordPress after not using it for years. As the year went on, I wasn’t sure how I was going to fit this in, but I ended up taking on a client project using WordPress later in the year. I’m a big fan in investing in my skills and signed up for a couple of WordPress courses to help me master the platform again, and it was a huge timesaver compared to Googling and trying to figure everything out on my own.  

Refined my processes and added new packages.

I really streamlined my processes this year, and setting up Dubsado was a big part of that. This allowed me to maintain a killer client experience and helped save time on admin. I’ve also grown my coding expertise and dived into Squarespace 7.1, both of which allow me to create easier to maintain websites for my clients. This has led to better results for my clients and some amazing testimonials for me! I’ve also added an SEO consulting package and Design Intensive package to help my clients in different ways, both of which have been a lot of fun!

Taking time away from my business.

I had 2 weekends away with my husband, plus took 3 weeks off from work at Christmas time. Taking time off to spend with family was very much needed to recharge. It was a time to dream and connect and eat plenty of good food, and every time I’ve come back more inspired and focused. Getting away from the computer is massive for getting the ideas flowing and trying new things! I want to be more intentional with this in 2021.

I continued to invest big in myself.

I already mentioned working my way through 2 WordPress courses, but I’ve also completed a couple of courses on Squarespace SEO and coding, website conversion, business systems and copywriting and I’ve invested in a couple of memberships that support me with growing my business and stepping into my role as the CEO of my business. Investing in my personal development helps me serve my clients more deeply and really contributes to my success.

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What didn't go so well and what did I learn?

Inconsistent with blogging.

One of the ways I love sharing value is through blogging, yet in 2020, I only managed to write 5 blog posts here plus a couple of guest blog posts. I feel disappointed at this, but I’m recommitting to my blog this year. I have a lot of content I can repurpose from my emails and the lives I’ve done in my Facebook group, anyway. My blog generates a decent amount of traffic, so I’m going to be more intentional with growing it. Blogging always takes me longer than expected, so I’m adjusting my schedule to better fit it in.

Health and fitness. 

I don’t particularly like working out, especially since I hate being sweaty, so I have resisted consistent exercise for way too long. I also like the quiet time at night and like staying up late, but this doesn’t work so well with a 3-year-old that likes waking up at 6.30 am. I also have bad habits of snacking at night and drinking way too much coffee, all of which means my energy levels are not where I want them to be and don’t support the growth I want to see. Working with a health coach really made me realise the importance of looking after myself better, so it’s a big priority in 2021.

Disorganisation and clutter.

This one is a funny one since my family often comment that I’m quite organised, and in a lot of ways I am, but I feel like clutter, both physical and digital, has gotten on top of me and it’s leaving me feeling disorganised and unfocused. Working with a health coach really highlighted how important it is to have a clean, organised space is for my productivity and mental space.

Hourly work. 

This is the year I let go of hourly work and moved towards Design Intensives instead. I found hourly work wasn’t a good option for either me or my clients. I always felt rushed trying to keep the time down and it was hard to quote for the time things would take since you had to factor in communication, feedback and edits. My clients had more uncertainty about what they would pay at the end and there tended to be a lot of back and forth for updates which could add up. Design Intensives mean that you know what the price is upfront, plus there’s a live feedback element which means we can get so much done during our day together!

Launching a group program.

One of the things I did this year was to launch a group program, but it didn’t go as I planned. I burned out right at the start, I had my computer die on me just after starting, I struggled to get a new webcam because Covid meant everyone needed them and they were hard to get here, I didn’t have enough prepared ahead of time, I had to learn how to edit videos when Loom stopped working and more. It was chaotic, but I learned a lot about balancing expectations, how to edit video, to have everything ready up front and how to run and launch a program.

What am I working towards in 2021?

Creating a course.

I put a lot of work into creating my group program in 2020, and this year I’ll be refining things and relaunching it as a course. I love empowering women to be able to grow their business with good design and marketing that helps them stand out online, and changing to this format will allow me to support more women in an affordable way.

Smashing a big income goal.

I’ve set a big scary income goal for this year. I’ve broken my services down to see what I need to sell at what rates to hit that goal, and I’m feeling excited about hitting this milestone and really challenging my money mindset. I’m setting myself up for success by doing a coaching program that will challenge me towards this goal, and I have some exciting plans in the works, so watch this space!  

Rebranding. 

I’ll still be Jessica Haines Design, but I’ll be freshening up the look and feel of my branding, messaging and website, changing things up in my Facebook group, and really aligning things to who I am and where I see my business going in the future. Keep your eyes peeled for more updates soon!

Getting organised.

As I mentioned, I get overwhelmed by clutter, so at the moment we are going through and decluttering our house. I’ve also noticed my file organisation is a mess and it makes things like blogging and sharing on social media a lot harder, since I can’t easily find the drafts I’ve started or images to use. 2021 is the year I’m spending on really getting everything decluttered and streamlined, with solid systems to support my growth. Once I’ve done this, I’ll also be working on automating and outsourcing a bit more in my business.

Balance. 

I created my business for flexibility so I could spend more time with my family and doing things I love, but turns out I’m a bit obsessed with my business. I need to set up boundaries around work hours along with habits to keep me focused and help my switch off from work. This will allow me to have more downtime with family, time to focus on my health and fitness, and indulge more in the hobbies I have.

This Year’s Theme

2020 was the Year of Growth.

I overcame personal and business challenges and really looked for opportunities to learn and grow from them. I also grew my expertise in so many ways. Things turned out a lot different to what I expected at the start of the year, but overall I feel like I’m finding my groove with it and really stepping up to make 2021 magical.

My word for 2020 is Nurture.

I reflected a lot on what I want this year to feel like and how I want to grow. I’ve looked at what I want my life to look like in 5 years’ time, and really reflected on the habits and behaviours that will get me there, and Nurture really helps encompasses all of this.

In 2021, I want to Nurture:

• My relationships with my boys, by fully switching off and being present with them, creating new memories and spending quality time together

• My health, by creating a fitness routine that works for me, eating good food to nourish my body, sleeping more and adding in more self-care

• My mind and body, by being intentional with where I focus my time and energy and really creating balance

• My business, by setting up systems and habits that will support my productivity and growth

• My clients, by improving my packages, streamlining my processes and making things as easy as possible for them

• My followers, by sharing value, challenging the way they think, and showing up consistently

• My home, by decluttering, doing home improvement projects and really creating a space we love to be in

There’s a lot more to this word for me, but I’m still thinking and reflecting and really letting things develop.

I actually resisted this word because I chose it as my word for the year 2 years ago and didn’t do anything with it. This year I’ve signed up to One Little Word with Ali Edwards, to help me keep my word front of mind and get really creative with inviting it into my life, and I'm so excited to see where this Nurture leads me!

Final Thoughts

The last year has been massive for me both personally and in business. I’ve worked hard and learned a lot, I’ve put myself out there and I’ve challenged myself in so many ways.

2021 is the year of going all in. For taking lessons from my 3-year-old about being powerful, really stepping into that power and owning who I am. There will be changes as I align who I am with where I’m going, and I couldn’t be more excited!

What were your wins in 2020 and what are you working towards in 2021?

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