This was my first tax season as a small business owner. There was lots to learn for me. I met with both my tax accountant and my financial advisor.

Getting a Job

Unfortunately I came to the conclusion that I need to get a paying job. So I’ve spent a lot of time updating my resume and portfolio site. My timing isn’t great, so it may be a while before I find something. The San Jose Mercury seems to have articles about more Silicon Valley layoffs a couple of times per week.

I’m a web designer and some of the things I’ve learned from designing cards full time, definitely translate to that profession. As a designer of software my strength was always to create interfaces that work for real people. For greeting cards, on the other hand, usability isn’t a big issue. Instead it’s all about the aesthetics. I can tell that I’ve grown a lot in that area. It’s a lot easier for me than it used to be. So that’s a positive.

Leaving the Bay Area

I’m also considering moving to a cheaper area. The Bay Area is super expensive and I could save at least $1,000/month if I move to Sacramento. That kind of money is hard to ignore! I’ve looked at some other areas that would allow me to save even more, but most of them looked depressing even on Zillow. If they don’t look appealing even when real estate agents are trying to sell them, I can’t imagine what it’s like to actually live there. 😱 But Sacramento seems alright. I went to some of the areas I’m considering for a vibe check and decided on a couple that I liked.

Instagram

Obviously with starting my job search, I haven’t been able to work as much on my social media presence. My goal was to hit 500 followers on Instagram by the end of June. I have 457 followers right now, so it may still happen.

On a positive note, Waffle Flower commented on the get-well card I created with their Sneak Peek Club Kit for June. As you can see below, it’s a shaker card. I used color palette #124 from Sarah Renae Clark’s Color Catalog in it.

YouTube

As far as YouTube is concerned, my goal was to reach 1,000 watch hours by the end of the year. I’m currently at less than 60 watch hours, so that seems pretty unlikely.

If you’ve read my previous blog posts, you’ll have noticed that I’m still organizing monthly YouTube hops. Some people have left, others have joined and we’re getting a little bit better month by month. I’m accepting new members, so if you’ve thought about joining, DM me on Instagram. The theme for June is Things with Wings.

Affiliate Earnings

My affiliate earnings on ShareASale seem to be stuck at about $30. The pay-out limit is $50, so it’s pretty frustrating that I haven’t been able to move the needle for a couple of months. On the other hand I got $12 from Amazon, so there’s that.

If you want to support me, click on the buttons on my affiliates page before you shop. It doesn’t cost you anything, but I make a small commission.