Sorry about this week, but "things happen."
What is there to say... I am not sure right now.
Getting organized is always a challenge...
for #My2020PatreonChallenge it is a really big challenge... but I love it... it is helping me keep going with all the things I need to learn.
Today I have been checking my planning pages. I had to do them all over because a soda spilled on my last set...
Also updated some other forms I am working on to keep me informed about my goals. I think I will be going with ONE set of planning pages at a time... some of my other efforts are short versions, but the updating is a challenge. ONE set to reference is enough for me. I have it in my daily notebook now... which seems to be working out good.
The tiny notebook forces me to limit my pages. Since I created my planning pages (18 pages right now, and more in the planning stage) it has really helped. That is why I am moving toward just using that set. I pretty much have one page for each activity or site I need to track.
I haven't gotten back into tracking site statistics again... that is a job on its own... AND will need some place to be recorded. Patreon is my main interest, but Etsy and Ebay need some kind of tracking page.
Finding the right "flow" for my work is seriously important. I use my notebooks to help me. I am not sure what other people do.
I think I am going to be using LARGE size text now... it really is a lot easier to read. (It will mean I don't have to write as much, too... won't it??? haha)
I guess I will get back to my list for today.
It's the Sabbath tonight... I have to find a way to "REST" for a whole night and day... I'm not sure I will win the battle, but I keep trying. I have movies to watch, letters to write, and I can take as many naps as I want. :-)
Take care of yourselves...
enjoy your families, help others, trust GOD...
We can find a way through anything...
we just have to look for the answers in places we never knew existed.
In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
patreon.com/DebsRetirementPlan
etsy.com/shop/work2gather
more to come :-)
27 March, 2020
My Thursday Update on Friday... I missed the midnight deadline !
I spent hours doing my latest revisions and updates at my Patreon page and then it was midnight... really, it was on-the-dot midnight when I finished and went to make a post about it... either at Patreon or to Twitter, I can't remember.
It is now going on 1 am...
I really did make a quick decision between this post and doing my Patreon plans. I never thought it would take so long. Another lesson... I wouldn't be late with this if I had chosen it first. :-)
So, what kind of things did I change at Patreon?
https://www.patreon.com/posts/35316193
Actually, I have been working on my planning pages this week -- as part of my get organized effort. I ended up including the financial estimates for each project so I could see if they would work, and I discovered I had way too much money in some project tiers. In my revisions I went to a reasonable funding goal with the number of Patrons I would need to reach it. Where I had hundreds of patrons wanted, I now have 25, 15, 40... small numbers, depending on the membership level. I like it better -- IF I can find them.
I am also in the process of making lists of the actually things I am fundraising for. I want to see how much money I must have to get the items I really need. Then I will share the information with that tier.
The problem is huge... I am sharing with no one if I put the information into a private tier environment. If I put my posts on the PUBLIC page, there is at least HOPE I might find someone to read it! What to do.
My CHALLENGE posts are mostly moving to the private mailbox in April.
I am too tired to remember what I was going to write about (yesterday)… I may have to post another blog in the day hours.
I think that is a good idea.
I will see you later.
In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
patreon.com/DebsRetirementPlan
#My2020PatreonChallenge
It is now going on 1 am...
I really did make a quick decision between this post and doing my Patreon plans. I never thought it would take so long. Another lesson... I wouldn't be late with this if I had chosen it first. :-)
So, what kind of things did I change at Patreon?
https://www.patreon.com/posts/35316193
Actually, I have been working on my planning pages this week -- as part of my get organized effort. I ended up including the financial estimates for each project so I could see if they would work, and I discovered I had way too much money in some project tiers. In my revisions I went to a reasonable funding goal with the number of Patrons I would need to reach it. Where I had hundreds of patrons wanted, I now have 25, 15, 40... small numbers, depending on the membership level. I like it better -- IF I can find them.
I am also in the process of making lists of the actually things I am fundraising for. I want to see how much money I must have to get the items I really need. Then I will share the information with that tier.
The problem is huge... I am sharing with no one if I put the information into a private tier environment. If I put my posts on the PUBLIC page, there is at least HOPE I might find someone to read it! What to do.
My CHALLENGE posts are mostly moving to the private mailbox in April.
I am too tired to remember what I was going to write about (yesterday)… I may have to post another blog in the day hours.
I think that is a good idea.
I will see you later.
In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
patreon.com/DebsRetirementPlan
#My2020PatreonChallenge
19 March, 2020
19 MAR - The power of CHOICE
Blogging my way to the future... will that create a history of my life? Somewhere... until it gets deleted. :-)
I listened to a Focus on the Family radio theatre program (Adventures in Odyssey) on losing a loved one tonight... and cried through most of it. The theme was how families are a mixture of saved and unsaved. It is so hard to think of the people we love not making it into heaven. CHOICE is a very huge freedom that is often abused, at another's expense in so many circumstances... salvation, abortion, euthanasia, government, and whatever you can think of.
CHOICE is our word for GOD's gift of Free Will.
The power of our choices is always on my mind these days... lots of prayers about what it means to us in this age. How DOES God judge our sins, individual and corporate? We like to think He is the author of everything bad in our lives, but He is not. Some just happens, some is caused by us, some by others, some by Satan... If I ever find the answers to my spiritual quest, I will let you know.
I have been working on my big plan for this year as I learn new things. I have been revising some of my goal pages to find a better way to keep track of everything. Been reading as many articles as I can handle, depending on the day.
I tried my ADOBE account the other day because I found a password from 2010... imagine, I was signed up for Adobe in 2010. I still haven't signed up for Illustrator, or the whole suite of their products "in the cloud" -- but I will, eventually. I can do the tutorials until then.
I may sign up for the Microsoft Office suite first, because it is less expensive. I need to make some of my writings into digital selling options.
It is such a financial commitment I find it hard to make the plunge. I liked it better when you could just buy the products once and then they were yours. I hate the "cloud" - a false vision of security in the heavens... it is just a big server somewhere.
Been looking at computers and prices.
I like dedicated machines these days. I am thinking of getting a Chromebook for all the GOOGLE products. Not yet, but when I can. Money is always the issue.
I came across some posts by Dave Ramsey about surviving a financial struggle like the COVID-19 virus restrictions. I shared it with those I could on my social media spaces. You may want to look for information on how to cut back and rebuild... try daveramsey.com for some ideas. I love most of his "baby steps" in financial foundations.
Many people live "paycheck to paycheck" even when their income is huge. I love the way Dave Ramsey puts it :: It isn't an income problem, it's a spending problem. I know the Welfare version of life, lots of poverty and homelessness, but I can't imagine having huge incomes and not having money for life. I guess the problem is some version of PRIDE... wanting to appear better/wealthier than you are... keeping up with the "Jones'" When Ramsey explains it, he says all the money is committed before it is even received because of debt payments... cars, houses, credit cards... thousands of dollars of credit card payments.
One day I thought about my plan to have a credit card with only a $25 payment. I realized my interest rate would be that much, so I could only carry a debt of $100 to make a payment to fit my budget. The whole situation became clear to me. I would have that $100 debt forever because I would only pay the interest every month.
I may try for a reloadable card now. :-)
With all my reading and trying to make the best options fit into my life, I am slowly finding a path through this CHALLENGE. I may post one-topic updates at my PATREON page, and then do a mixture of topics here. I am still thinking about it, but that is my latest solution. One topic might be better for everyone... you, me, anyone who finds my page.
I have created a folder to collect notes about what to share. Nothing in it, yet, but it is right next to my computer space. It should work great. I was so busy today I didn't even get time to make a list of topics for this post. I hope you will stay with me as I transition to better writing.
Let me find a graphic to share for today, and then I will be gone.
Pray that GOD will "plow the field" for me (from INDEPENDENCE DAY) so I can just get going with my dreams. I need so much, I really hope you will help me.
In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
etsy.com/shop/work2gather
patreon.com/DebsRetirementPlan
I listened to a Focus on the Family radio theatre program (Adventures in Odyssey) on losing a loved one tonight... and cried through most of it. The theme was how families are a mixture of saved and unsaved. It is so hard to think of the people we love not making it into heaven. CHOICE is a very huge freedom that is often abused, at another's expense in so many circumstances... salvation, abortion, euthanasia, government, and whatever you can think of.
CHOICE is our word for GOD's gift of Free Will.
The power of our choices is always on my mind these days... lots of prayers about what it means to us in this age. How DOES God judge our sins, individual and corporate? We like to think He is the author of everything bad in our lives, but He is not. Some just happens, some is caused by us, some by others, some by Satan... If I ever find the answers to my spiritual quest, I will let you know.
I have been working on my big plan for this year as I learn new things. I have been revising some of my goal pages to find a better way to keep track of everything. Been reading as many articles as I can handle, depending on the day.
I tried my ADOBE account the other day because I found a password from 2010... imagine, I was signed up for Adobe in 2010. I still haven't signed up for Illustrator, or the whole suite of their products "in the cloud" -- but I will, eventually. I can do the tutorials until then.
I may sign up for the Microsoft Office suite first, because it is less expensive. I need to make some of my writings into digital selling options.
It is such a financial commitment I find it hard to make the plunge. I liked it better when you could just buy the products once and then they were yours. I hate the "cloud" - a false vision of security in the heavens... it is just a big server somewhere.
Been looking at computers and prices.
I like dedicated machines these days. I am thinking of getting a Chromebook for all the GOOGLE products. Not yet, but when I can. Money is always the issue.
I came across some posts by Dave Ramsey about surviving a financial struggle like the COVID-19 virus restrictions. I shared it with those I could on my social media spaces. You may want to look for information on how to cut back and rebuild... try daveramsey.com for some ideas. I love most of his "baby steps" in financial foundations.
Many people live "paycheck to paycheck" even when their income is huge. I love the way Dave Ramsey puts it :: It isn't an income problem, it's a spending problem. I know the Welfare version of life, lots of poverty and homelessness, but I can't imagine having huge incomes and not having money for life. I guess the problem is some version of PRIDE... wanting to appear better/wealthier than you are... keeping up with the "Jones'" When Ramsey explains it, he says all the money is committed before it is even received because of debt payments... cars, houses, credit cards... thousands of dollars of credit card payments.
One day I thought about my plan to have a credit card with only a $25 payment. I realized my interest rate would be that much, so I could only carry a debt of $100 to make a payment to fit my budget. The whole situation became clear to me. I would have that $100 debt forever because I would only pay the interest every month.
I may try for a reloadable card now. :-)
With all my reading and trying to make the best options fit into my life, I am slowly finding a path through this CHALLENGE. I may post one-topic updates at my PATREON page, and then do a mixture of topics here. I am still thinking about it, but that is my latest solution. One topic might be better for everyone... you, me, anyone who finds my page.
I have created a folder to collect notes about what to share. Nothing in it, yet, but it is right next to my computer space. It should work great. I was so busy today I didn't even get time to make a list of topics for this post. I hope you will stay with me as I transition to better writing.
Let me find a graphic to share for today, and then I will be gone.
Pray that GOD will "plow the field" for me (from INDEPENDENCE DAY) so I can just get going with my dreams. I need so much, I really hope you will help me.
In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
etsy.com/shop/work2gather
patreon.com/DebsRetirementPlan
12 March, 2020
12MAR - Marketing to find ONE MILLION supporters!
I actually spent $10 to buy a marketing ebook I saw on Etsy … yesterday, I think. Time is so crowded I have a hard time remembering what I did on what day without my notes! After downloading it and browsing the Table of Contents, I decided to see the Appendix topics, starting with building email lists.
That is one of my current challenges... how to do it, where to share the links to have people sign up, etc. In reading some of the instructions, I realized I might just need my MailChimp (.com) account to do the "landing pages" I have read about elsewhere... big help! I was trying to figure out how to make one! Soon I will head over to MailChimp and see what I can find.
The big problem was there was no publication date, and the shop was pretty deserted since 2018 or 2019, and the blog link had a top year of 2012!!! So I left a message at the Etsy shop and will wait to hear back. Knowing when something is written helps you to interpret the writing... if it is still useable.
ONE section shared the definition of "vulnerable" -- and that was very moving to me. I would never have looked up the word myself, so finding this section was worth the book to me. Her definition came by way of dictionary.com (I search words now but I think it is still available). Here are the three parts of the definition she shared ::
-- capable of or susceptible to being wounded or hurt, as by a weapon
-- open to moral attack, criticism, temptation, etc.
-- (of a place) open to assault; difficult to defend
It meant so much to me because of Working Together, the business-ministry I have tried to build for Christians in the End Times. It meant so much to me because of all I have endured for some years. It meant so much to me because our world is becoming more angry, more violent, more criminal, more unfeeling, more focused on "me" and money and whatever it takes to get "mine." Some of the news stories I have been reading make me cringe...I can't imagine some of the things people are doing to each other, innocent kids, elderly people, people with disabilities, and more.
Right now I can't recall what she compared it to, but it may have been how vulnerable we are when we try to market our dreams to the world. This section was on page 100, according to my notes. The book is called "Marketing Playbook" and it is written by Lisa Jacobs. -- It looks like it was published in 2017, found on a page when I was looking for her Etsy shop name. :-) I think you should be able to find her shop by searching her name at Etsy.
I still need to read the main chapters, but my mind is find ideas on how to reach that many people over this year. It is such a huge idea, but I know others seem to do it. I may not be worth all that attention, but I will still see what I can do. I will try to read more over the weekend and find some ideas that will work for me.
I almost bought another older book about reaching people for support, but I need to read this one first... time is so full I hardly find time to read at all... well, important things, I guess.
I am finding the need for DESIGN software is becoming more critical. It takes time to learn any program. I worked in MAC when I first started using computers, at a college I went to. Then Microsoft took over my activities with creating things. I have spent a long time now learning Open Office, mostly the spreadsheet option. I think learning ADOBE may be the next step. It seems to be necessary for all, or almost all, of my designing goals. The "vector" image I have learned about recently is the one I have been needing for so many years... I think, I hope, I need to find out! I will need to make a decision about that soon.
I made a design at Printful on a 6-12 month onesie to see what I could do for the baby clothes goals I am working on. It is due to arrive tomorrow. Here is the mockup of the design I made. I hope it turns out the way I created it.
That's the best image I have so far. try to click on it to see if it gets larger for you. I can't do that here.
I am trying to use the PRINTFUL design option and find a way to make it work for me better. So far, text is the easiest tool to use, but it has great limitations. I tried one of their clip-art hearts here.
I want to find a way to create ONE design that can be placed on lots of different products.... it seems that vector images is that path.
In other moments I have continued my efforts to organize my notebooks and recordkeeping. I am getting that done. It's my effort to have my goals for review each day, my records of what I have to do and what I get done, my costs, my budget and how well I keep to it (or not) -- I guess these are part of the whole year's learning curve.
My new Patreon tiers have helped me to find the place to put my goals... big goals and small goals. I hope to achieve these and move into more of the things I have tried to accomplish all my life. If GOD allows, I hope to reach a point where my "Bucket List" items are also checked off, maybe shared with my Patrons, and others.
Well, my head is full of things I am want to do and don't want to share with you yet. Pray for me. Help me to become who GOD made me to be. Be a part of my efforts to save as many vulnerable people as possible.
In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
patreon.com/DebsRetirementPlan
etsy.com/shop/work2gather
and more
getting updated every week
hoping to catch up with this BIG Challenge :-)
That is one of my current challenges... how to do it, where to share the links to have people sign up, etc. In reading some of the instructions, I realized I might just need my MailChimp (.com) account to do the "landing pages" I have read about elsewhere... big help! I was trying to figure out how to make one! Soon I will head over to MailChimp and see what I can find.
The big problem was there was no publication date, and the shop was pretty deserted since 2018 or 2019, and the blog link had a top year of 2012!!! So I left a message at the Etsy shop and will wait to hear back. Knowing when something is written helps you to interpret the writing... if it is still useable.
ONE section shared the definition of "vulnerable" -- and that was very moving to me. I would never have looked up the word myself, so finding this section was worth the book to me. Her definition came by way of dictionary.com (I search words now but I think it is still available). Here are the three parts of the definition she shared ::
-- capable of or susceptible to being wounded or hurt, as by a weapon
-- open to moral attack, criticism, temptation, etc.
-- (of a place) open to assault; difficult to defend
It meant so much to me because of Working Together, the business-ministry I have tried to build for Christians in the End Times. It meant so much to me because of all I have endured for some years. It meant so much to me because our world is becoming more angry, more violent, more criminal, more unfeeling, more focused on "me" and money and whatever it takes to get "mine." Some of the news stories I have been reading make me cringe...I can't imagine some of the things people are doing to each other, innocent kids, elderly people, people with disabilities, and more.
Right now I can't recall what she compared it to, but it may have been how vulnerable we are when we try to market our dreams to the world. This section was on page 100, according to my notes. The book is called "Marketing Playbook" and it is written by Lisa Jacobs. -- It looks like it was published in 2017, found on a page when I was looking for her Etsy shop name. :-) I think you should be able to find her shop by searching her name at Etsy.
I still need to read the main chapters, but my mind is find ideas on how to reach that many people over this year. It is such a huge idea, but I know others seem to do it. I may not be worth all that attention, but I will still see what I can do. I will try to read more over the weekend and find some ideas that will work for me.
I almost bought another older book about reaching people for support, but I need to read this one first... time is so full I hardly find time to read at all... well, important things, I guess.
I am finding the need for DESIGN software is becoming more critical. It takes time to learn any program. I worked in MAC when I first started using computers, at a college I went to. Then Microsoft took over my activities with creating things. I have spent a long time now learning Open Office, mostly the spreadsheet option. I think learning ADOBE may be the next step. It seems to be necessary for all, or almost all, of my designing goals. The "vector" image I have learned about recently is the one I have been needing for so many years... I think, I hope, I need to find out! I will need to make a decision about that soon.
I made a design at Printful on a 6-12 month onesie to see what I could do for the baby clothes goals I am working on. It is due to arrive tomorrow. Here is the mockup of the design I made. I hope it turns out the way I created it.
That's the best image I have so far. try to click on it to see if it gets larger for you. I can't do that here.
I am trying to use the PRINTFUL design option and find a way to make it work for me better. So far, text is the easiest tool to use, but it has great limitations. I tried one of their clip-art hearts here.
I want to find a way to create ONE design that can be placed on lots of different products.... it seems that vector images is that path.
In other moments I have continued my efforts to organize my notebooks and recordkeeping. I am getting that done. It's my effort to have my goals for review each day, my records of what I have to do and what I get done, my costs, my budget and how well I keep to it (or not) -- I guess these are part of the whole year's learning curve.
My new Patreon tiers have helped me to find the place to put my goals... big goals and small goals. I hope to achieve these and move into more of the things I have tried to accomplish all my life. If GOD allows, I hope to reach a point where my "Bucket List" items are also checked off, maybe shared with my Patrons, and others.
Well, my head is full of things I am want to do and don't want to share with you yet. Pray for me. Help me to become who GOD made me to be. Be a part of my efforts to save as many vulnerable people as possible.
In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
patreon.com/DebsRetirementPlan
etsy.com/shop/work2gather
and more
getting updated every week
hoping to catch up with this BIG Challenge :-)
05 March, 2020
Moving Forward - Challenge Update - 5 MARCH
The week seems like a month! but I am moving forward in things.
I am in the process of remaking my Patreon page, but I am keeping the CHALLENGE the same. In all my searching for how to do this, I am learning a lot of things to try, and some are very good.
The biggest issue to me is finding enough funding to purchase all the equipment and supplies I have needed for year... my whole life, it seems like... and to be able to access the help I need for each project. Deciding how much I need is always the problem. I have researched prices for years and years and years. I have an idea of how much I need, but not an exact number, or the information on exactly what equipment and supplies I want to buy. From my view, what I buy depends on how much money I have.
In reading some things recently, the link between THANK YOU benefits and projects seems to be very important and the special part of a financial relationship with those who choose to help. I was thinking of general areas of creativity (like ART, JEWELRY, RECYCLING) that I want to develop. Now I am thinking in terms of individual projects (Silk-Screen prints, silver and gold, melting plastic into useable products).
I really like the ability to limit participation from my end. I can only make so many art prints by hand, make so many metal castings, experiment without space to do it in. The only tier that really has flex in it is the CHALLENGE tier, which is why this year means so much to my whole life, past and future. I really hope and pray that you and GOD will make it into a pivot point for everything.
Jewelry seems to be the most difficult area of my goals to estimate. What I want to do and what I can do with my current budget are very different things. They always have been. Hence, lots of problems reaching a profitable life.
I knew I wanted to use the individual project format, but couldn't find the right way to do this. Now I think I am going in the right direction. I have notes and I am still working on the exact projects to do, looking for the costs to share, and planning how to share it with my PATREON audience. It is very exciting for me to reach this point. I am not yet at the S.M.A.R.T. space for making my goals, but getting there. :-) ----- SMART goals have time limits... I don't have those yet.
I will begin changing my Patreon page as soon as I find the right details to share. It will most likely be a slow change, but I am not sure... I tend to be a marathon person with things like this, once I get going, I never want to stop until it is done.
Keep checking for the new tiers, and all that is related to changing them.
I am in the process of remaking my Patreon page, but I am keeping the CHALLENGE the same. In all my searching for how to do this, I am learning a lot of things to try, and some are very good.
The biggest issue to me is finding enough funding to purchase all the equipment and supplies I have needed for year... my whole life, it seems like... and to be able to access the help I need for each project. Deciding how much I need is always the problem. I have researched prices for years and years and years. I have an idea of how much I need, but not an exact number, or the information on exactly what equipment and supplies I want to buy. From my view, what I buy depends on how much money I have.
In reading some things recently, the link between THANK YOU benefits and projects seems to be very important and the special part of a financial relationship with those who choose to help. I was thinking of general areas of creativity (like ART, JEWELRY, RECYCLING) that I want to develop. Now I am thinking in terms of individual projects (Silk-Screen prints, silver and gold, melting plastic into useable products).
I really like the ability to limit participation from my end. I can only make so many art prints by hand, make so many metal castings, experiment without space to do it in. The only tier that really has flex in it is the CHALLENGE tier, which is why this year means so much to my whole life, past and future. I really hope and pray that you and GOD will make it into a pivot point for everything.
Jewelry seems to be the most difficult area of my goals to estimate. What I want to do and what I can do with my current budget are very different things. They always have been. Hence, lots of problems reaching a profitable life.
I knew I wanted to use the individual project format, but couldn't find the right way to do this. Now I think I am going in the right direction. I have notes and I am still working on the exact projects to do, looking for the costs to share, and planning how to share it with my PATREON audience. It is very exciting for me to reach this point. I am not yet at the S.M.A.R.T. space for making my goals, but getting there. :-) ----- SMART goals have time limits... I don't have those yet.
I will begin changing my Patreon page as soon as I find the right details to share. It will most likely be a slow change, but I am not sure... I tend to be a marathon person with things like this, once I get going, I never want to stop until it is done.
Keep checking for the new tiers, and all that is related to changing them.
I am making a lot of samples at PRINTFUL so I can see the actual products before I invest my time and money promoting them. I made the design above just to try out one of the poster choices. Change is hard. We all struggle with it. Finding my path to the future has always been a difficult walk. I don't know why it had to be so hard, but it did create in me a vision of what needs to be done. I am hoping GOD will provide the finances to finally start getting things done.
Pray with me for that blessing.
Thanks.
In Christ,
Deborah Martin
work2gather.us
patreon.com/DebsRetirementPlan
#My2020PatreonChallenge
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)