If at first you don’t succeed…so much for skydiving. (Henny Youngman)

That quote always makes me laugh…and sometimes it causes me to reflect on what it has taken to succeed. (At least, my version of success.) This month reflects the 10-year anniversary of my starting this business — on a part-time basis, of course, since leaving my regular paying job was the goal but not the reality. Exactly two years after that I would move to Orlando, Florida and take the big full-time leap into The Greater Unknown. If anyone is thinking of starting their own creative business — I assure you, I know your fear. Sometimes I think I’ve made every mistake there could be for an entrepreneur. (…and not to brag or anything, but I think I’ve even invented some new mistakes. I’m just that kind of girl.)

An artist who frequently joins us on our job sites, Monica Zeuli, recently took this picture of me at the end of a long day. We had just finished the walls for a treasured client (I think we are on Phase 5 or something like that) and I felt we had really done a good job as a team. As artisans, we have to strike a fine balance between hand-crafted and balanced precision. It’s artistry that I call “perfectly imperfect”.

Seeing the pic reminds me of how much I love doing this every day and how the research, labor, color mixing, business issues — everything, basically — almost never feels like work. It’s funny that on the 10-year anniversary, our business is expanding into new arenas and a new phase has come forward for Garay Artisans. (One that we’ll share very soon!) It’s an exciting time for us…and scary: another big leap into The Greater Unknown (someone should really make a map of that place). I do hope that you keep coming back to read up on all the shenanigans. However, please note that skydiving will not be included.