The Year that Changed My Business

What a crappy year 2020 has turned out to be! Never in a million years did I ever see something like this happening, bringing everything to a standstill and it doesn't seem to be getting much better! 

​My business was about to take off in March. I had a job advert out to expand my classes, I had worked tirelessly with a business coach to determine the direction I was going. I was preparing to franchise.
Suddenly, I didn't have a purpose anymore.
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I guess you could say I was one of the lucky ones. I don't own a premises so haven't got the overheads to pay, no staff to employ. Thank goodness I don't. But I do have a house to pay for and a family to feed. All income just stopped. Vanished. This has hit our industry hard. Don't get me wrong, EVERYONE has been hit hard and so many businesses have closed down for good making the worlds future unknown. But with no guidance on what babies and toddlers can or can't do, our industry has no idea where to turn. 

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I had a few weeks of feeling pretty pants about it all. Gutted to watch what I had built up slowly unravel. There were no recommendations from one mum to another encouraging others to join our classes. Social Media was a nightmare, flooded with everyone going online, and with access to classes from all over the country, it was a huge battle to fight. I didn't want to take advantage of people who were soon going to be struggling as well so decided to keep my online classes cheap and to support everyone through lockdown. Plus it was going to give me something to do! But money was running out. I needed something else. 

I ummed and arghed about joining another business to sell books or skincare products for example but I knew it wouldn't be enough so I decided to turn my business into a direction I had been wanting to go for ages. All round support for mums and their families, including mental health and feeding support to name just a couple. I qualified as a mental health first aider and put together 4 amazing collections for evidence based resources and downloads supporting mums all the way from pregnancy to when their toddler is 3. I designed sensory kits and pamper packs to be sent out too. Finally, I felt I had a purpose again. 

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​Now 4 months on, I am planning to restart classes. Everything is still up in the air with so many unknowns but I am doing my best to stay positive and bring some joy back to babies, toddlers and their parents and carers. The original plans will slowly come back into play when there is more certainty and I WILL achieve what I originally set out to do. 

​My next plan...win Most Loved Activity Leader in the South West in the Whats on 4 Kids Awards 2020. Not heard about it? You can vote for me on the link below! Every vote counts. Let's end a horrific few months on a high and help me to bring back the award. It might just be the thing I need to fly with the business once more.
 
www.whatson4kids.co.uk/awards/vote
Find Most Loved Activity Leader category
Find South West
Vote for Nikita Dixon: Story Sense

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