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What are ya, new?

1/4/2016

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Decades ago, Sarah "Poodah" VanDrunen used to say that to me all the time, when I would fumble through an interaction or stumble through a Young Life skit. "What are ya, new??" she would tease. And we would laugh about how awkward newbies are and the accuracy of her verbal poke.

This week, I'm new all over again.

I'm embarking on Jon Acuff's "30 Days of Hustle" to help prod me into doing the stuff of running a business that I'm not a pro at. Stuff like reaching out to former clients with emails, asking to reconnect. Stuff like trying to set up coffees with potential new clients to see how we at The Well can help them succeed. Stuff like COLD CALLING and SALES and all the other terrifying words that haunt introverts' dreams.

It's got me feeling like I'm new. Fumbling. Stumbling. Second-guessing this "running my own business" thing and wishing for a desk job.

Here's my BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) for the month: Connect with 5 potential clients, and generate one new one by 1/31/2016.

Now that I've said it, I'm hoping it will be a little easier. At the very least, now I've GOTTA do it. Here's hoping I'll be a little more proficient as 2016 unfolds.

Here I come, year. What are ya, new?


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My First Eight Months with Well Communications

12/21/2015

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Over the past eight months I have been an employee for Well Communications Group. Prior to May 2016, I was an intern for Well Communications Group while finishing up my last year of School as Northwest Nazarene University. One of WCG’s main clients I NNU which is rather fun because now I am able to design for the very university I graduated from.
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There are a number of things I really appreciate about working for Well communications Group. I’d say the first thing would be how versatile the company is. What I mean by that is that Well Communications Group is sort of like a Graphic Design broker. It collects clients and then delegates projects among its employees. Consequently, as an employee I am not stuck in the same design style all day long, but I get given a variety of different styles and clients to design for. Sometimes I am given the task of really creative and illustrative designs while other times my jobs are more productions work, including type setting and text layout. I thoroughly enjoy this, because it is expanding my creative mind in many different fields at once and keeping me from getting bored of doing the same thing over and over again. Well Communications Group is also very good about making you feel like part of the team, and a necessary asset to the Company. I feel like I have enough freedom to really explore my own creativity within the parameters set by the project at hand. Additionally, my input and critique is welcomed and appreciated.
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The reluctant entrepreneur

6/17/2015

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My daughters are at Young Life camp this week. They are having the "best week of their lives" at Young Life's Malibu Club resort in British Columbia. And today is Day 5, where they will take their turn navigating the Ropes Course, an obstacle course on wires and ropes, suspended 20+ feet in the air. It's a thrilling adventure... but the hardest part is that first step.

I'm feeling a lot like that today.

Last fall, I began the journey to expand my business beyond my solo freelance gig. I've done some studying, I've read quite a bit, I've even taken the leap of faith to hire my first employee. But going "public" is something I've dreaded.

Maybe because the more who know what I'm up to, the more public the possible failure. I'm afraid of not being totally on top of all the necessary tasks of running a "real" business. Showing people my imperfections as I hone the system is scary.

But earlier this week, while taking a very rare two days off, my old Fultz Design email box filled up. I kept getting messages from clients that their emails were bouncing back. It seems that fate - and GoDaddy - were pushing me out of the nest, ready or not.

So this morning I took a deep breath and sent out the email.

The one that said "Fultz Design is now Well Communications Group!"

And I prayed. And started filtering through the Delivery Status Notification (Failure) messages, hoping that parenthetical word wasn't an omen.

As I did, I was surprised by something I should have expected.

Several replies weren't auto-generated. They were from real people. Friends. Colleagues. Vendors.

"Congratulations!! So cool to see you growing your business and creating success!"
"Good for you sweetie!  Proud of you. But not the least but surprised!"
"Congratulations, Jenny!  I'm so excited for you and your new adventure!  I look forward to working with you and your new team!  May God bless you in your work! "

It's amazing what a little encouragement can do to a fearful heart.

So here we go, taking that first scary step. My knees will be knocking, just like my girls on the Ropes Course. But as those ahead, behind, below and above shout words of encouragement, I'll press on, one step at a time. And I'll try my hardest to enjoy the adventure!


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a Confirmation email

1/4/2015

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At the beginning of each Sprint class, we give our "elevator pitch" - that 30-second description of who we are and what we do.

Mine changed significantly that week.

"Hi, I'm Jenny Fultz with Well Communications Group, where our pool of talented creatives specialize in knowing our clients so well that we can design, write, post, broadcast and produce on their behalf. We also believe in creating a better world, so Well Communications commits to funneling a portion of our billable revenue to fund clean water initiatives in third world villages."

Feedback was positive, which always feels good. (We artists crave affirmation!) My instructor called it "exciting." I was jazzed.

I bounced my idea off of Sheri - the gal who started this whole dang snowball. She thought it had great merit.

But it was when I returned to my desk and opened my email that I knew I was onto something.

"Dearest Jenny," the email from one of my Young Life volunteer leaders began. "You know that Rachel and I traveled to Haiti last summer to volunteer at an orphanage. We are wondering if you would help us brand our fundraising drive to help the orphanage with their CLEAN WATER crisis..."

I was hooked. I would do anything to help. Mostly - I was elated that God can affirm through a random email from a friend who had no idea what I'd been thinking.
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Decor and Dreams

1/3/2015

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After shopping for a few hours on a Saturday, I returned to my new office with an ottoman, five plastic picture frames (to be filled with my best work - a portfolio on the walls), a clock radio, a scented candle and some sundry supplies. I WAS BIG TIME NOW! I couldn't help but get excited about my new space. It felt so official.

That evening, I attended church, where our pastor encouraged us to pray for the persecuted Church worldwide. I instantly felt pangs of guilt. How can I possibly spend so frivolously on decor and candles, when people - REAL LIVE PEOPLE - are huddled, fearful, trying to live out their faith in the midst of persecution and terror?

"What do I do, God?" was my prayer. "How can I possibly reconcile my easy, privileged existence with the knowledge that there are others who suffer so much? Is it enough to be charitable? To just give cash?"

A weekend of mulling, praying, thinking, dreaming... all while painting my daughter Catie's room. Ideas began to gel.
  • What if I could support a mission with my proceeds? I have great friends entering the mission field right now. Could that be an option?
  • How can I get my employees to buy in? They don't know my friends. Should they choose their own charity? Would that open a can of worms?
  • What if I could choose a mission that is so basic that it couldn't be controversial or off-putting to any clients... like CLEAN WATER? (Water? WELL COMMUNICATIONS?? Now my company name is more than just clever - it's MEANINGFUL!)
  • What if my employees could earn a trip to the recipient village, so we can build relationships, truly benefit the communities, and inspire my employees to be more productive so their jobs are about much more than a paycheck or portfolio piece?
I thought I might be on to something. It was time to test it on my classmates and friends.


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Still catching up...

1/3/2015

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I felt the change coming, like a tidal pull. I was becoming a company.

I signed the lease on my 200 square foot office, which came furnished with two mismatched used desks and two mismatched chairs. I couldn't imagine trying to be creative in such a bleak environment, so I went shopping at discount stores and second-hand shops to try to add some atmosphere to my corner of the building.

Driving from store to store, I wondered what I should name the business.

"Fultz Design" seemed too much about me. Plus the word "Fultz" has an awkward, guttural sound, like being caught in mid-burp.

I wanted to communicate the concept of having a group of talented individuals who stand ready to fill in the gaps of already-defined and well-running marketing plans. A labor pool of creative talent.

I began to think in terms of slogans. Catch phrases. Tag lines.

"Well Communications - a pool of creative talent."
"Tired of missing deadlines? Get WELL soon."
"Tired of dealing with Diva Designers? Get WELL soon."

But could I name my business solely on a clever tagline?


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HERE WE GO!

1/3/2015

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Evidently, I just went live.

I'M NOT READY!!
Story. Of. My. Life.
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Catching up, part 1

1/3/2015

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It seems like I never really START anything on my own.

I'm usually prompted by someone or something. You know, that "you really oughta do this" voice that most of us have in our lives.

This time, it was my friend, Sheri.

She watched me, for three years, grow increasingly busy with my freelance design business. She saw my workload that grew from a few hours a day to daily busy, to getting up at 4am to meet deadlines. She watched me try to juggle workload, kids, volunteering... and never have a day to relax without fretting that I was giving up "billable time."

"You need an intern," she said. "Let's visit the Business Incubator," she suggested.

Before I knew it, I was being encouraged by Denise at the TECenter to become a client there, to have an office, and to grow my business from a job to a company. Will from the TECenter described my life with great accuracy when he said "you're in the Whitewater (referring to the book, "Predictable Success"). You're overwhelmed with keeping up with the business you've created. You've created a job for yourself, which is great. But what you want to do is create a company, and your job will become running the business."

So I signed up for the Sprint class at the TECenter, and learned about the Lean Startup model, the Business Model Canvas, and the need for crafting my product to fit the needs of the market. I'm pretty sure I was then DROWNING in Whitewater, trying to complete the required reading and hold the recommended customer interviews.

My biggest lessons from the class:
  • get to know your customer first, then develop your "product" to accurately match their needs
  • start with WHY (thank you, Simon Sinek) - once I define WHY I'm in business, it will be easier to attract the kinds of employees who will identify with that WHY and stick with the job out of loyalty
  • the WHY will also drive customer loyalty
The class launched a series of events that were, I believe, divine encounters. Small affirmations that I'm headed in the right direction. This blog (my first!) is an effort to document those encounters, and describe my WHY - and watch it morph.

I'm great at starting things, and not so great at finishing them. So I make no promises about the regularity of entries or whether they'll ever get published. But if they do, you can probably thank Sheri.


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    Jenny.

    Founder of Well Communications Group. Designer, writer, creative, mom, wife, Jesus-follower.

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