Looking Back at 2022: A Year in Review

Dec 31

Holy cow, I feel like I blinked and 2022 was gone! I always love reading about how other small businesses do things behind the scenes (I always learn so much!), and started doing my own recap last year too. I don’t usually set huge goals each year so much as try to fine tune the next baby steps to move the business forward. Hope it’s helpful!

2022 By the Numbers

This is where it’s super fun to look back and think about everything we accomplished this year. In 2022, we…

Designed 11 new brand suites (plus 3 big design refreshes)
Designed and built 19 new web sites (85% Squarespace, 15% WordPress, plus UI design for a few others)
Delivered 7 Design VIP Days and 4 half VIP Days (a mix of web site updates, digital marketing, and print projects)
Hired an accounting firm and business coach (and still going strong with our fabulous design assistant)
Won 1 national award from Graphic Design USA
Had 4 new five-star reviews on Google My Business
Ended the year with 931 Instagram followers

What Went Well

After working full-time for myself since 2016, this is the first year that I hit my big scary revenue goal, which was super exciting 🎉. Next year I want to hit or exceed that goal without working so many hours. It felt like we attracted more clients (both businesses and nonprofits) who aligned with our company values and were doing really amazing work. I love working with folks who aren’t your typical lawyers, consultants, or whatever—they are passionate and excited and doing good in the world. It’s an incredible privilege to be a part of. In what has felt like another heavy year, I want to put all the good karma I can back out in the world, and helping people achieve their dreams fills my cup like nothing else.

I was overjoyed to have the full Due West team together in August here in Colorado Springs for a brand photoshoot. It was amazing to feel supported and have everyone in one place. We started using Asana this year and I’ve been using the quiet time around the holidays to update our on-boarding, project management, and off-boarding materials to help improve and streamline our client experience. We also took on more retainer and Design VIP Day projects, which are great for clients who have a task list every quarter or so for us to work through. I love having the opportunity to continue working with our past clients after their initial brand and web site launch!

What Didn’t Go as Planned

By far the hardest part of this year for me personally was burnout. I said yes to too many projects and let my boundaries slip, especially as things got really busy later in the fall. I under-scoped too many one-off projects that ended up not being profitable in the long run and also ran into technical issues that took an enormous amount of time to resolve. But I also quickly hired a business coach to help me right the ship and come up with some ways to work smarter and not harder in the new year. I’m looking forward to introducing some more clear policies and processes in 2023 that will hopefully help keep things running smoothly and at a more manageable pace.

Along with burnout was a love/hate relationship with social media and networking. As much as I love Instagram and hanging out with others online there were times this year where I just didn’t have the capacity to post or engage like I normally would. I’m okay with that, but hope to have more energy for it in 2023 since it’s a fun way to connect with other designers, keep up with trends, and meet potential clients.

What I Learned This Year

Here are my big takeaways from 2022:

Put it in writing. Clear is kind. I think I’ve assumed from my two decades of professional experience that everyone understands and operates the same way and that’s just not true. I’m currently reworking our contracts, email responses, and templates to be really clear (and repetitive) about expectations, responsibilities, and timelines in an effort to keep projects humming along in the new year. Same thing with scope creep. There has to be a really clear line in order to pinpoint when scope creep is happening, so I’m working on better defining those points in all of our materials so that it doesn’t feel like such a tough thing to call out in the middle of a project.
Take breaks. If I learned one thing from this year, it’s that sometimes breaks are needed before you get to the point of overwhelm (or illness). I’m giving myself permission in 2023 to go take a walk, get some extra sleep, or take a vacation before the stress becomes too much vs. waiting until after the dam breaks. Like the oxygen mask analogy, you have to take care of yourself first or you can’t be your best self for anyone else.
Ask for help. I did a lot better this year with delegating and asking for help, and it’s absolutely something I plan to continue improving on in 2023. While it can be scary to delegate (when you’re used to doing it all yourself), it gets a little easier each time and helps you start earning your time back. After reading The E-Myth Revisited this year, I’m even more clear that I don’t want to be the lynchpin in the business and that the best thing I can do long-term is start documenting our SOPs (standard operating procedures) and trusting others to help me get the work done. I’m also addressing my weak spots with a business coach and making sure I have a business structure in place that allows me to continue running DWD well into the future.
Give yourself some structure. Like many small business owners, I escaped the rigid corporate world seeking the flexibility that comes with being your own boss. However I’m learning that I do better with a routine in place, and that having clear policies and processes helps minimize decision fatigue and the feeling of reinventing the wheel for each project. While there will always be unique projects or days I want to dip out early for a hike, I’m really starting to value structure and the benefits of deeper project management (despite the extra time it requires) because it makes it easier to delegate and keep tabs on the many moving parts of a business.
Price for sustainability. In many service businesses pricing can be a nebulous thing to figure out. The longer I do this and the more serious I get about the business, the more obvious it is that I undercharged for a long time as a freelancer. Our accountant, business coach, and the Profit First method (which we started last year) have really opened my eyes to what rates are required in order to pay taxes (so much goes to taxes!), pay the contractors who help us deliver high quality work, and invest in quality software and resources. This has been the first year I can see beyond the feast or famine cycle, and my goal for 2023 is to build up more savings and runway for the business so that we can be sustainable and around for a long time to come.

Goals For 2023

When it comes to goal setting, I look forward to Susannah Conway’s free Unravel Your Year planner, which I have printed on Lulu Xpress and work through each month. Kerstin Martin also released a fantastic free guide called The Calm Business Review, which you can also print at home or send out for professional printing. Both are excellent resources for evaluating the last year and setting goals that feel good for the year ahead (my coach has been a big help here as well). Here are some of mine:

Build out a new client resource library, to house process FAQs, documentation, and videos to help our clients now and as they grow in the future.
Thrive instead of survive. For me this means more time off, more clear boundaries, and maintaining my energy levels so that I can bring my best, most creative self to every engagement. It also means improving the business’s financial runway and investing more in my retirement account this year.
Pass on projects that are not a good use of our time. Thankfully I’ve found a great technical partner this year who can help with requests for web site support (on sites we didn’t build), business email set up, and other troubleshooting tasks that go beyond our core offerings.
Brush up on technical skills. This will be the year I dive in head first to Squarespace Fluid Engine, and I’m eager to spend more time learning the ins and outs of Procreate. Our design assistant has also been taking classes on Skillshare so that she can take on more digital and print projects in 2023.

It’s always amazing how much comes up at the end of each year, but I love having a dedicated time like this to reflect and goal set for the year ahead. Wishing you all the best in your own business planning for 2023 and a prosperous new year!

Keep up with us in 2023 through our quarterly newsletter and on Instagram!

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