The Weekly(ish) Update - Issue 0006

The Weekly(ish) Update
9th September 2009
Issue Six

At the moment I am conquering a lot of challenges, some quickly, some slowly, some painfully, but all one at a time...

This past week has been really difficult to get anything productive done as I have been in heaps of pain due to the back/neck injury I have acquired from driving the uncomforatbly small shuttle at work.

I am in the van nonstop for 8 hours and have to make time to get out and let the blood flow to my feet every now and again, which sometimes is less often than ideal, as we do not get given a break, and most of the guys who have been there ages have some sort of van related problem, which sucks, but I am not in a position to do anything else because my options are limited.

I have looked, and continue to look, for something that can allow me to continue the progress I have made, a new job that offers me more money, or better conditions, but in the current climate I think the best thing I can do is concentrate on what I have been doing, to make the most of the opportunity I have now to set up my own business.

I already have considered going back to Australia and earning a good living, putting myself back into the life I enjoyed before I returned to New Zealand, but part of me considers that taking the easy option, not achieving what I want to achieve, and giving up after working so hard towards my goals.

I have also thought about applying to drive a tour bus for another company, to go back to doing what I loved doing last year, but I do not want to commit to another company, regardless of how my previous employer treated me, because it simply would not be the same. A part of me knows it would not be as enjoyable, that I would have to start over again, and in doing so I would need to put my own goals on hold, which after spending so much time ‘in between dreams’ to get where i am, I simply can not see the logic in doing.

I want to set up my busniess here in New Zealand before i do the same thing in Australia on a bigger scale, that is and always has been the plan, and so that is what i am going to do.

I have never had any problems with my back or neck before, even though I have really bad posture and tend to ‘slouch’ heaps, I have never really understood the pain associated with the spine and neck until now, and I swear the two things that this reminds me of are tooth aches and severe burns, of which I have had problems with before, and even then I think that the pain I have been in the past few weeks is even worse simply because it is constant.

I have not been to the gym at all week, I can hardly move my left arm and when I do it hurts heaps, but I have managed to get my bike fixed and been able to use that when I have felt up to it. I also have been to a physiotherapist twice so far, with many more visits required I’m told over the next few months before it will get better.

To give you an idea it hurts heaps down my left arm and shoulder just typing this, so forgive me if I just focus on the highlights of my week, instead of doing anything too involved until I can concentrate a little bit better, and this week I simply tell you what I have been up to.

So apart from being in heaps of pain, and still not having sorted myself out financially, I have managed to get a couple of things done this past week, the main one being I now have myself a website address (www.customvision.co.nz) which I will over the next few weeks get set up, because at the moment all I could afford to do was purchase the name itself, not get it hosted so anyone else can view it, but that in itself is another small step towards what I want to do.

Something else that I need to spend a few dollars on is joining a photography club, I have figured out that the small fee involved each year will give me access to a lot of valuable information from people who otherwise would charge large sums of cash to share the information that they have, that, and the fact I am sick of spending so much time on my own outside of work, so I have decided to do at least this one thing to get me away from my own company, which is only so much fun.

I have really noticed this past month how unhealthy it is for me spending so much time on my own, sure I have been getting things done, but at what cost?

I have another competition coming up at the end of next month, this one is supported by Canon, and is probably the most prestigious competition in New Zealand for ‘student’ photographers, which I am eligible to enter because of the diploma I am doing, and so I will also start to gather ideas for that over the next few weeks, before I head out to take photos and set up the required portfolio to enter.

I have also put together another few ideas for my postcards, which I hope to have finalised and a small series to be able to sell put together by the start of October, as I need to start making some extra money to move forward on a few other ideas that I have, so tomorrow I will head out and take a few photos around wellington, because the market that is in the city is where I want to be around the first week in October with some items I can actually sell, and hopefully a few local postcards will attract some attention.

I would like to launch a version of my website by the end of the month, but properly by mid to late October, and as part of that I would like to try and be able to offer a limited series of framed photos to be purchased online via the website, that are printed on fine art paper using a high quality printer, so I might have to look at getting a good quality professional second hand printer between now and then, or at least work towards doing that as soon as practicable, so there are a few things happening that I am working towards which I am hoping will merge nicely towards the end of the year into what will become the start of my small business, the start of my Custom Vision, which i will have next year to mold into something that i can continue to grow with.

Till soon.. Stay safe.. Be You!!!

.K