September 2023 Recap
HOW IS IT OCTOBER ALREADY??
I blinked and summer was gone.
me, to summer 👆
September was great though! I worked remotely from Mexico City, and I honestly just love fall so much. It’s the season for me. I feel motivated, inspired, grateful, and eager for what’s ahead.
So with that - let’s dive into the JPK Design Co September 2023 recap!
Business
Client work; working on a Business Association website currently
Sent out a few proposals, signed a new client, and generally just… 💃feelin it✨
Created an Everything Page to be the one-stop for all my free downloads, services, and (upcoming) digital downloads and templates. Check it out! It’s meant to be a ‘Start Here’ for new website visitors. In fact, I might even rename it to that eventually…
Reworking client processes and my web design packages. Launching those October 16 - just around the corner!
Education
Working through SquareStylist’s new Standout Foundations course (for the second time). And verrrrrry tempted to purchase up to the full course. I want to learn ALL THE CODING and create moments of joy, delight, beauty, and clean functionality for all of my clients. And I believe CSS is a GREAT way to do that and level up websites.
Still teaching myself Notion and really getting into it. In fact, I’m creating a robust client portal in Notion. And I’m…. I’d say, 85% finished. I had a great template to start with (SquareStylist’s from up above), and I’ve tweaked a bunch, added a bunch, and just need to test functionality and record video tutorials. Hoping to get it rolled out to new clients by mid-October.
Still teaching myself Figma, but I’m putting it in the back corner for a bit while I focus on other things
Books Read
Some good books (or at least books that have some goodness in them) I read recently while in Mexico City, that I think you might enjoy because there are some interesting take aways in each of them:
I’m currently reading Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, a seminal book about the social psychology and persuasion. It’s well-written, conversational, and has some good insight - some of it now very obvious to all of us who get marketed to every day/hour/second, as this book was originally written in 1984. But it was updated recently and so far I’m enjoying it!
Great for people who are curious about psychology, or working in a business where you may need some adjacent marketing knowledge. LINK (Amazon)
The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness - “Doing well with money isn't necessarily about what you know. It's about how you behave. And behavior is hard to teach, even to really smart people.” I got a lot of value out of this book! (Well, until my e-lending library hold ran out before I got to finish it.)
Great for people building their business or re-examining their relationship to money/wealth. LINK (Amazon)
The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks Than 12 Months - another book that was taken from me too soon (by the library), and while I tend to skip prescriptive books that say things like “I’ll tell you EXACTLY what you need to do know to {Big Bold Claim}”, this one has some helpful insight into planning.
Great for people looking to be more strategic with their time. LINK (Amazon)
note: I’ve linked to Amazon here for all these, but I’m a BIG FAN of checking out e-books or real books from your local library. I use Libby, but there’s several apps out there. All you need is a library card!
Personal
Keeping up with 3x/week runs, and it feels great. Especially because sometimes when I wake up in a funk and I’m like, I REALLY don’t want to….but I do anyway. And it always helps me reset my brain and get back in the groove.
Took a coworking #workcation in Mexico City. #Coworking because some friends from Chicago rented an airbnb with me, and #workcation because we all worked remotely together. It was quite fun! The day they flew out though I lost electricity and internet overnight, and into afternoon on the next day… that was a little hiccup in my work sesh, but I ended up working from a coffee shop in the morning and it was fine, albeit annoying!
Things I’m Loving
Rain (can’t help it, I’m an Oregonian at heart)
Alpha Foods Green Chile ‘Chick’n’ Tamales
SOUP SEASON
Otherland candles (I have Tapestry - Burnt Maple, Smoky Oud, Vetiver - and am obsessed)
AppSumo* (affiliate link). AppSumo offers limited deals on digital tools and software products. I’ve purchased several deals through them, and check back in regularly to see what other new deals I can snag. I have my eyes on Tidy Cal next … 👀
August Blog Posts
Upcoming
In the works: Launching a new digital downloads and Squarespace templates shop later this year…. stay tuned!
Sunsetting my separate SEO services by the end of the year. Will roll ‘em up into new web design packages.
A re-brand of my website and, well brand… coming October 16. That is just around the corner oh my gosh.
