Actually it became official Monday. I am no longer a Pampered Chef consultant. I feel relieved that I don't have to make phone calls and set up shows and all the other stuff that goes along with it. I was also feeling pressure to recruit new consultants to join my team, but I was never comfortable with that. I felt like I had to be pushy to do it, and I'm not that way. Granted, I did enjoy being a consultant in the beginning (except for the recruiting part) - and most of the first two years of it. Then I became apathetic. The last year was one of questioning: Do I keep this up? Should I keep this up? It just took some serious thought and talking things over with Billy for me to come to the decision that I needed to get out. If I wasn't enjoying it anymore, why keep doing it half-heartedly? I wasn't doing myself or my customers or the company any good that way.
I've cleaned out my bags, boxes, and drawers. I've thrown old things away, shredded old copies of receipts, and put business materials that are still usable into a box to take to my former director so she can use them or pass them on to someone else. My next step is closing that bank account before I incur a service charge.
Even though I'm officially not a consultant, I still get emails from the company and I can still access the consultant website. I don't care about the emails, but I'm glad I can still access the site for now. The new selling season starts in March, but on Monday, Feb. 8, they'll have the new spring products online for consultants to see. I just want to know what's coming. The last two seasons haven't really thrilled me, but you never know when they might introduce the next great thing. Maybe I'll still have access to the site by then. I don't know their timetable on deleting my consultant privileges.
So, what do I do now? What's my next step? I would like to take my jewelry from just a hobby to a small business. There are a lot of differences between that and my being a Pampered Chef consultant:
1. I don't have to maintain minimum monthly requirements to remain active.
2. I don't risk losing career sales, increased commissions, and bonuses if I don't sell a certain amount over a certain period of time.
3. I don't have to make phone calls every night to drum up business.
4. I don't have to have home parties if I don't want to, but I can if someone is interested. (Two friends have already offered.)
5. If I do choose to have a home party, I won't have all the prep work, clean-up work, or the load to carry that I did with Pampered Chef.
6. I can set my prices and whatever I make from it is mine.
7. I can truly work from home.
8. I get to express my creativity in various ways.
9. There's no pressure to recruit anyone to join my "team".
The list could go on.
I'm currently deciding on my business name. Once that is settled, I'll get a website for showcasing my jewelry and I'll set up a Facebook Fan Page. I get more exposure through FB than I did through my Etsy shop, which is like finding a needle in a haystack the size of Texas.
My goal is to have my website up by March 1, which is 3 1/2 short weeks away. I've got some work to do!
Update: Monday, February 8 - Today is the day they release the information on the new spring products. My website access has been canceled, so I'll find out when the general public does. Hopefully I won't get emails from the home office anymore.
Showing posts with label pc. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pc. Show all posts
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
The End
One of my goals for this year was to make a decision on whether or not to continue as a Pampered Chef consultant. After a lot of thought and some discussion with Billy, I have decided to end my time as a consultant. I still love the products and plan on buying them in the future as I need them, but the business side of it just wasn't for me.
I've been fighting that decision for the past year. In fact, I had almost decided to stop last year, but the company restructured part of its consultant network and I thought I'd give it another shot.
It was half-hearted, though. I got out of the habit of making my nightly consultant calls and it got to the point that I hated to ask people to host shows. Most of my hosts either had a connection with the seminary, which didn't lend itself to very profitable shows, or lived out of state, which took my profit to pay for gas. My lack of interest during the spring and early summer led to me losing my career sales and my 2% commission increase. A few people came to me asking to host shows, and they were good ones, but it still didn't revive the old passion I felt for the job.
One option would be to go inactive for the next six months, which would leave me the option to reactivate my status anytime during that period. I considered it, since I'd still have my consultant discount for anything I'd want to buy myself. One drawback to that is my bank charges a fee for each month my account doesn't have a direct deposit. Another drawback would be having to figure taxes next year for minimal activity.
My other option would be to send in a formal letter of resignation to the home office. My resignation would become official on the first business day of the first month after they had received my letter. If I went this route, I'd be able to close my business account with no penalties, and I would have little or no tax issues to deal with.
This morning, I mailed off my formal letter of resignation to the home office. If they get my letter in time, which they should, I will no longer be a consultant as of Monday, February 1, 2010.
I've been fighting that decision for the past year. In fact, I had almost decided to stop last year, but the company restructured part of its consultant network and I thought I'd give it another shot.
It was half-hearted, though. I got out of the habit of making my nightly consultant calls and it got to the point that I hated to ask people to host shows. Most of my hosts either had a connection with the seminary, which didn't lend itself to very profitable shows, or lived out of state, which took my profit to pay for gas. My lack of interest during the spring and early summer led to me losing my career sales and my 2% commission increase. A few people came to me asking to host shows, and they were good ones, but it still didn't revive the old passion I felt for the job.
One option would be to go inactive for the next six months, which would leave me the option to reactivate my status anytime during that period. I considered it, since I'd still have my consultant discount for anything I'd want to buy myself. One drawback to that is my bank charges a fee for each month my account doesn't have a direct deposit. Another drawback would be having to figure taxes next year for minimal activity.
My other option would be to send in a formal letter of resignation to the home office. My resignation would become official on the first business day of the first month after they had received my letter. If I went this route, I'd be able to close my business account with no penalties, and I would have little or no tax issues to deal with.
This morning, I mailed off my formal letter of resignation to the home office. If they get my letter in time, which they should, I will no longer be a consultant as of Monday, February 1, 2010.
Friday, September 14, 2007
Friday Fourteen
Wow! It's been a while!
There's not a Friday Fourteen that I know of, but I missed yesterday's Thursday Thirteen and I have had so much going on lately that I can fill you in on 14 things.
1. I went ten days ago to have some dental work done. Thankfully I didn't have to have a root canal! Ten more days until I get my permanent crown.
2. The boys' schooling is going nicely. We've all gotten into a good routine and are usually finished with everything by 12:30 p.m. Jacob is doing well with his reading, too. I made him some flash cards for practice, and I add to them each time he learns a new sound. He's proud of his progress.
3. My friend Kim and I have decided to start meeting each Wednesday morning to work out. This Wednesday was our first day. We walked about 3/4 mile or so on the outdoor track, then went inside to use some of the weight equipment. We finished up with some crunches, then sat and relaxed for a few minutes in the sitting area of the dressing room. I'm very sore today, especially my right arm. At times I can hardly bend it. I think I'll take some pain reliever before going to bed tonight so I can sleep. Last night I had a hard time finding a good position for my arm and woke up several times.
4. Billy and I watched One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest last weekend. It wasn't great, but it held my attention enough to watch to the end. It was great seeing Christopher Lloyd and Danny DeVito when they were young. DeVito reminded me so much of someone else, but I haven't been able to put my finger on it. I want to read the book now because I didn't understand part of what happened in the movie. One more book to add to my ever-growing list.
5. This weekend I'm hoping to watch The Lake House. Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves are in some of my favorite movies. Anyone seen it?
6. Caleb is learning about ancient Greece right now, so we've been reading some Greek myths. He loved the story of Echo and Narcissus. Today we read about King Minos, Theseus, and the Minotaur. He really liked that one, too. He thought the story of Daedalus and Icarus was okay. Next week we'll read about Arachne, Hercules, and Odysseus. I'm really enjoying this part. I remember reading and falling in love with Greek myths when I was in 8th grade.
7. I've been working hard with my SWIM Secretary duties the last few weeks. With the new semester starting up, I've been busy inputting all the new wives' names into our database. Then we decided to clean up our email account. I didn't realize there was a limit on the number of sent emails each day and ended up blocking the account. We decided to get another account elsewhere, so then I was busy researching free email services and determining which one would serve us best. Then I had to get it set up and export our address book - nearly 1,000 email addresses. Now I have to count up the hours I spent doing all that so I can include it in my September monthly report.
8. In other SWIM news, we had our Fall Opening last Saturday. There were about 95 wives present, with about half of them new to the seminary. The program was good and several wives signed up for various programs.
9. Caleb decided he doesn't want to be in the science fair after all. I think he got aggravated because I went from Home Depot to Lowe's to a nursery without finding what I was looking for. I had decided to go back to Lowe's to get what we needed, but he said he didn't want to do it. He just wanted to get the few groceries we needed from Wal-Mart and go home. There's always next year...
10. Tonight is the last night of new Monk and Psych episodes until January. Too bad! But at least Survivor starts back up next week. The week after that is CSI, CSI: New York, and ER.
11. The 51st Annual Greek Food Festival is in two weeks! I can't wait to go back so I can eat some more souvlaki. I might even try some spanikopita (spinach and feta cheese fried in phyllo). They'll also have baklava sundaes there. That sounds good. Really sweet, but good. Oh, and Constantine Maroulis will be there, too. He's supposed to demonstrate a recipe Friday night and play two short concerts on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. They need to book Yanni.
12. I've got a full month of bookings for October - 4 cooking shows. I'd like to get one more show. I've got another lady who's very interested in the stoneware that's on special next month, but I haven't been able to get in touch with her. Maybe I'll be able to reach her tomorrow...
13. Pampered Chef has some really good-looking recipes out this fall/winter. I can't wait to start trying some. One I'm wanting to make next week is the Mediterranean Hummus Pizza. I'll get Billy to pick up some of the good hummus from Fadi's. I'm also wanting to make some Warm Nutty Caramel Brownies. (I think that's what they're called.) I tried some Truffle Brownie Cups the other night at our PC Cluster meeting. They were sooo good, and they look really easy to make.
14. Sundays are now chock-full of activities. After church and lunch, we'll all be home for a couple hours before heading back for the afternoon. I'm attending a Bible study series called "The Truth Project" (by Focus on the Family) for the next 11 weeks. The boys have started AWANA, too. It begins right after the Bible study session is over. I'll be helping some in Cubbies this year. (They've added a new group for 2- and young 3-year-olds called Puggles.) Billy will be using the 4 hours we're gone each Sunday afternoon to work on his online class and other school work.
Now that things are slowing down again (or so it seems), I hope to get back to blogging regularly.
There's not a Friday Fourteen that I know of, but I missed yesterday's Thursday Thirteen and I have had so much going on lately that I can fill you in on 14 things.
1. I went ten days ago to have some dental work done. Thankfully I didn't have to have a root canal! Ten more days until I get my permanent crown.
2. The boys' schooling is going nicely. We've all gotten into a good routine and are usually finished with everything by 12:30 p.m. Jacob is doing well with his reading, too. I made him some flash cards for practice, and I add to them each time he learns a new sound. He's proud of his progress.
3. My friend Kim and I have decided to start meeting each Wednesday morning to work out. This Wednesday was our first day. We walked about 3/4 mile or so on the outdoor track, then went inside to use some of the weight equipment. We finished up with some crunches, then sat and relaxed for a few minutes in the sitting area of the dressing room. I'm very sore today, especially my right arm. At times I can hardly bend it. I think I'll take some pain reliever before going to bed tonight so I can sleep. Last night I had a hard time finding a good position for my arm and woke up several times.
4. Billy and I watched One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest last weekend. It wasn't great, but it held my attention enough to watch to the end. It was great seeing Christopher Lloyd and Danny DeVito when they were young. DeVito reminded me so much of someone else, but I haven't been able to put my finger on it. I want to read the book now because I didn't understand part of what happened in the movie. One more book to add to my ever-growing list.
5. This weekend I'm hoping to watch The Lake House. Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves are in some of my favorite movies. Anyone seen it?
6. Caleb is learning about ancient Greece right now, so we've been reading some Greek myths. He loved the story of Echo and Narcissus. Today we read about King Minos, Theseus, and the Minotaur. He really liked that one, too. He thought the story of Daedalus and Icarus was okay. Next week we'll read about Arachne, Hercules, and Odysseus. I'm really enjoying this part. I remember reading and falling in love with Greek myths when I was in 8th grade.
7. I've been working hard with my SWIM Secretary duties the last few weeks. With the new semester starting up, I've been busy inputting all the new wives' names into our database. Then we decided to clean up our email account. I didn't realize there was a limit on the number of sent emails each day and ended up blocking the account. We decided to get another account elsewhere, so then I was busy researching free email services and determining which one would serve us best. Then I had to get it set up and export our address book - nearly 1,000 email addresses. Now I have to count up the hours I spent doing all that so I can include it in my September monthly report.
8. In other SWIM news, we had our Fall Opening last Saturday. There were about 95 wives present, with about half of them new to the seminary. The program was good and several wives signed up for various programs.
9. Caleb decided he doesn't want to be in the science fair after all. I think he got aggravated because I went from Home Depot to Lowe's to a nursery without finding what I was looking for. I had decided to go back to Lowe's to get what we needed, but he said he didn't want to do it. He just wanted to get the few groceries we needed from Wal-Mart and go home. There's always next year...
10. Tonight is the last night of new Monk and Psych episodes until January. Too bad! But at least Survivor starts back up next week. The week after that is CSI, CSI: New York, and ER.
11. The 51st Annual Greek Food Festival is in two weeks! I can't wait to go back so I can eat some more souvlaki. I might even try some spanikopita (spinach and feta cheese fried in phyllo). They'll also have baklava sundaes there. That sounds good. Really sweet, but good. Oh, and Constantine Maroulis will be there, too. He's supposed to demonstrate a recipe Friday night and play two short concerts on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. They need to book Yanni.
12. I've got a full month of bookings for October - 4 cooking shows. I'd like to get one more show. I've got another lady who's very interested in the stoneware that's on special next month, but I haven't been able to get in touch with her. Maybe I'll be able to reach her tomorrow...
13. Pampered Chef has some really good-looking recipes out this fall/winter. I can't wait to start trying some. One I'm wanting to make next week is the Mediterranean Hummus Pizza. I'll get Billy to pick up some of the good hummus from Fadi's. I'm also wanting to make some Warm Nutty Caramel Brownies. (I think that's what they're called.) I tried some Truffle Brownie Cups the other night at our PC Cluster meeting. They were sooo good, and they look really easy to make.
14. Sundays are now chock-full of activities. After church and lunch, we'll all be home for a couple hours before heading back for the afternoon. I'm attending a Bible study series called "The Truth Project" (by Focus on the Family) for the next 11 weeks. The boys have started AWANA, too. It begins right after the Bible study session is over. I'll be helping some in Cubbies this year. (They've added a new group for 2- and young 3-year-olds called Puggles.) Billy will be using the 4 hours we're gone each Sunday afternoon to work on his online class and other school work.
Now that things are slowing down again (or so it seems), I hope to get back to blogging regularly.
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