I can’t quite believe that is has been a whole year (a leap one at that) since I said my farewells and left the office for the final time after being made redundant.

A year where I’ve been able to focus on me and set some new life goals. Twelve months that have just flown by, yet filled with 366 days of challenges and adventures.

One goal was to spend more time working on my craft business. The business I’d been running in my spare time since Feb 2010 that I’d neglected for quite a while due to various reasons.

At the end of 2015, with my new goals mapped out, I spent a lot of time doing groundwork in preparation for 2016. So, when 2016 arrived, I started running regular weekly and monthly classes and have recently expanded one class into other venues.

My old role where I was writing and running code for analysis purposes has definitely not appealed to me. I haven’t been near a piece of sas code or SQL since leaving and don’t feel the need to either. That part of my life is currently parked, but never say never.

There hasn’t been one day of those 366 where I’ve missed the hustle and bustle of working in an office, especially the politics and unnecessary meetings. I still have to do paperwork though.

My home office is my craft room, overlooking my garden. It’s where I can spend time each day expressing my creative side, from designing and preparing projects for classes or crafting for me.

My other offices are the various venues I use for classes where I teach people how to make the designs I’ve created.

It’s great to be able to have time to think and find inspiration from a range of places.

The one thing I knew I would miss was some of the people. There are those I’ve kept in touch with, either online or face-to-face over a hot chocolate, cocktail, lunch or dinner. There are also others who have slipped away, either for the moment or for longer. Only time will tell. But, I’m also enjoying meeting people at my classes and have developed new friendships.

Leaving an organisation where you’ve spent almost 23 years of your life is a scary and daunting experience. It’s a shame that it is only when you have these sorts of experiences that you truly realise what is important, and only then do you begin thinking about writing a whole new chapter.

I don’t regret following my heart and head by opting to take the severance package, it’s one of the best decisions I’ve made.

I’m feeling the most relaxed I’ve been in years, am enjoying life and can honestly say that I love my job. A huge thank you to everyone who has supported me over the past year.

With some potential new opportunities in the pipeline, I’m looking forward to seeing what the next 12 months bring, setting some new goals and continuing to write some new chapters.

Happy crafting

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