We were lucky to catch up with Sarah Butler recently and have shared our conversation below.
Sarah, thanks for taking the time to share your lessons with our community today. So, let’s jump right in – one of the most essential skills for unlocking our potential is self-discipline. Where does your self-discipline come from?
Hey! Thanks so much for having me! It’s great to be here. My self discipline comes from having a schedule. I stared my business when my son was about 8 months old. It was much easier then, babies sleep so much. Kids go through different stages which means I needed to go with the flow. When I realized I needed to plan majority of my work schedule around my son; tasks and workload became easier. I began to make weekly to do lists instead of daily ones. I thrived with weekly lists because I wouldn’t feel as stressed with work tasks but I was able to take my son’s lead if he needed me more one day than another, without feeling so much guilt from one side or the other.
Self discipline also goes hand in hand with self care. I made sure that I don’t work during nap time (which doesn’t exist these days) or after bed time. This time is set aside for me and whatever I want to do, outside from all the titles I hold. It’s important to have just you time, regardless of how many tasks you have on your list.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
My name is Sarah and I was born and raised in Michigan. I’m a wife, boy mom, cat mom and small business owner. In my downtime, you can catch me doing a DIY project, shopping, gaming or being with family/friends. I’m a fandom girl; I love Star Wars, Marvel, etc.
Galactic Sapphire was born when I couldn’t return to work due to child care during the last year of the pandemic. I needed a creative outlet and I never imagined I’d be here today. Galactic comes from my love of Star Wars (thanks to my husband) and Sapphire is my son’s birth stone.
We specialize in being spooky and witchy all year. We have a variety of accessories that make you feel magical along with seasonal apparel. You can always find ghosts, pumpkins and bats in our shop! We carry gemstone and crystal jewelry, stickers and bookmarks, and more. The best part? Everything is handcrafted by me. It’s important to me to create art and be unique every day of the year, whatever that looks like for you. We have our spring collection launching March 1st. 2024!
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
There have been alot of impactful moments in my small business journey. One quality that helped me was disciplining myself on the boring stuff. Listings, financials, paperwork; it felt like the more I did that the more it took away from creating. Once I found a system that worked for me and stuck to it, it made it feel easier.
I learned that things will ebb and flow, including creativity. There were numerous times I would sit down to work and draw a blank. It was like writers block. When I would create something, I didn’t like it. I decided to take the day, or some time, and try again. For myself, I learned that it wasn’t worth the wasted time and it would come to me later on.
I’m not sure it qualifies as an area of knowledge, but having like minded people in your corner. I talk to a few other women small business owners and it changed the game for my confidence. I realized everyone is having a shared experience even if it’s not at the same time. Sometimes we thrive and sometimes we survive. I think it’s important to highlight that it’s okay when things don’t go the way we expected. The best way to learn from mistakes or failures is when they happen to you and how you choose to move forward.
My best advice to give someone else early in their small business journey is to believe you can do it. Because you can. You will learn your own ways of doing things, your own ways to discipline, motivate and hype yourself up. You can do this if you want it.
Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?
When I feel overwhelmed I tend to step back. I need to ground myself when it comes to having a scattered mind. I usually take a walk, play with my son, listen to music, snack; really anything enjoyable that will take my mind off of work.
Re entering my work space after that break is when things are the most chaotic. I write everything down that needs done regardless of priority. Then I go back through and do a priority list for the week or remainder of the week.
My advice to anyone feeling overwhelmed is to step back and look at the big picture. Everyone’s coping strategies for anything in life are different, you won’t know what works for you until you go through trial and error. My best strategy to share is to write it down. Tasks are more likely to be completed if they are written down and “out of your mind.” Write down anything of importance when it comes to your business even if it’s an idea. You never know where it can take you.
Contact Info:
- Website: Galacticsapphire.etsy.com
- Instagram: @galacticsapphire
- Facebook: Galactic Sapphire
- Other: Tiktok- Galacticsapphire
