Ciao a tutti! I hope you're enjoying the sunshine wherever you are and taking it easy in this most languid of seasons. I just thought today I'd share a little about how I approach running my vintage shop and weekly edits while I am away in my native Italy - yes, that old tricky balancing act of work and play! If you are a freelancer or entrepreneur I hope you'll find these thoughts helpful.
First of all I need to state the obvious: the shop is really just me - and although great in many ways, this also means that when I am off duty...the shop is too! It's therefore important for me to always strike a balance between holiday time and work. After years of decamping to Italy in summer, I think I'm finally cracking the code...and it involves a little give and take (and some patience on my lovely customers' part too, which I am extremely grateful for!)
Crucially, being away (and often moving between different places) forces me to abandon the routine and consistency I try to focus on the rest of year, to instead adopt flexibility and accept I won't be able to post to the standards or aesthetic I do at home - and believe me, as a stubborn Capricorn who likes things just so...this is hard!
So how does it work in practice? Instead of the usual Friday weekly edits on my website, while I am away I am releasing some of my Italian vintage finds on Instagram Stories on a semi-daily basis. Orders are on a first come, first served basis via Dm, and payment is through the website via invoice sent by email (this allows customers to pay securely through the website as you would the rest of the year, either using PayPal or credit card.)
When things are quiet and I do get a longer stretch of time to focus on the website - but without a schedule or putting undue pressure on myself - I then proceed to upload these new vintage finds online (there are a couple there now!)
The main trade-off while I'm away is aesthetic, as the backgrounds will of course be different and there are no formal photoshoots like I'd do at home. I also don't go into detail such as measurements, although these can always be provided if needed (just message me).
The lesson is that I have to let perfectionism go if I want balance and a chance to enjoy a holiday break as much as I enjoy working on something I love. I'm sure some of you can relate!
If you also work for yourself (either as a freelancer or as an entrepreneur) I hope this little insight will inspire you to also actively reach for more balance during your off time. Any tips or tricks you use to balance work and play that you'd like to share? Let me know in the comments!
As always thank you so much for your ongoing support and for your patience while I'm away. I see it, and it means a lot to me.
A presto with more news, Vittoria x