Just trying to keep moving forward

Hello, and Happy Sunday!

This week was long and packed with work, but I made it through! The highlight of my week was definitely Tuesday when I drove to Chicago to paint a holiday scene on windows for a bar right across from Wrigley Field. The weekend was a little intense, with a late basketball game on Friday, an early football game on Saturday, and an 8-hour shift at the gym’s front desk today. But I rallied, made a lot of money, and it was all worth it. :)

Things That Went Well

The holiday window painting went super well! When I got the address and realized it was so close to Wrigley Field, I was both excited and a little nervous. This project is by far the most visibility one of my pieces has had, and I wanted to give it my best effort. I’d say I delivered!

I showed up on time, stuck to my schedule, and the project turned out great. The best part? Another bar owner across the street saw me painting, stopped to grab my business card, and the next day when I called to follow up told me, “I have someone who can do this, but you really looked like you knew what you were doing. I want something with a lot of color—name your price, and I’ll write you a check.”

Honestly, that’s one of the best things I’ve heard as a new business owner. I quoted my highest project price to date, and he agreed! That project is coming up this week. I’m nervous, but I’m going to give it my all.

Also, I had no idea how big the Chicago holiday bar scene is! So many bars were setting up huge holiday displays while I was working. I’ll definitely focus on marketing my holiday window painting services there next year.

Things That Could Be Better

I kinda need a break, but there isn’t one in sight. I’m so thankful and excited to be busy and getting so many mural inquiries, but my energy has been low this week. After Sunday’s race and spending all day outside in the cold on Tuesday, I think I got a little sick. On top of that, I’ve had brain fog all week.

I don’t want to complain because I made a lot of money, and I knew this phase would require a lot of work. But damn, the building stage is not for the weak. I keep myself motivated by remembering that once I’m more established and booking consistently higher-paying projects, I won’t have to take every opportunity that comes my way. For now, though, I’m in the grind, and I’m in it to win it.

That said, I keep having this nagging thought that the other shoe is going to drop. Like, everything’s going well, and I feel like this could be the start of consistent work and making some money. But it feel like it’s all going to crash and burn because I got too cocky. I know it’s imposter syndrome, and I’m working on staying positive and believing that I deserve success.

Personal Life

What personal life?

One of the guests in my suite on Saturday actually asked me, “Do you even have a life outside of work?”

I did manage to call one of my best friends, who recently moved to California, and we had a virtual paint date to celebrate her birthday. On Friday, I had coffee with my friend Ibtissam. I’ve been tutoring her through the Adult Literacy Network for the past three years, and over time, she’s become like my Madison mom. She invited me to her house for the first time and made me traditional Lebanese food and Turkish coffee. She’s so wise and wonderful, and I really look up to her.

Things I’ve Learned

I’m still reading The 80/20 Principle, and the section I’m on now talks about delegating tasks and not spending time on work you don’t want to do. One day, I hope to have enough work to justify hiring assistants—either for painting or admin tasks. Right now, I’m protective of everything I’ve built, from client relationships to my website. But I know micromanaging won’t help me grow in the long run. I want to start setting up clear expectations for myself and the “Syd the Muralist” brand so that eventually, others can help me maintain it.

On the organizational front, I’ve been experimenting with how to keep track of all my clients. I started with spreadsheets but recently began tinkering with HoneyBook. Right now, my system is part spreadsheets, part file folders, and part in my head, which isn’t sustainable as I grow. I don’t have the perfect solution yet, but I’m working on it!

Thanks for following along on my journey. Here’s to more murals, more lessons, and finding balance along the way!