Here are a few of my favourite lessons or realisations, and how they relate to our core values:
- Take one day at a time
As a dreamer, big picture thinker and over-achiever, this doesn’t come naturally to me! But it’s been the most incredible life lesson, and kept me agile and grounded.
It’s so easy to get caught up in the future, when the present has so much to offer. So take a moment to be grateful for where you are right now. Find the reasons to celebrate 2020.
‘Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying I will try again tomorrow.’ – Mary Anne Radmacher
- Value quality over quantity
I used to fit far too much into my schedule and finish each week exhausted. Lockdown forced me to do less, and to really focus on what’s important – for myself and for Yellow Door. For example, we’ve reassessed the amount of content we create for each client, and focus on whether it adds value for the intended audience.
So my challenge to you is to do exactly that – have another look at your content plan for 2021 and whether it’s the right strategy for your business. If you need a hand, we’ve put together a package to kick start the new year for your brand.
- Trust is everything
One of our values at Yellow Door is integrity: we strive to do the right thing, whether or not anyone is watching.
This made the transition to working from home a pretty seamless one – as we 100% trust our team and didn’t need to micromanage them. We all had our ups and downs in terms of productivity, head space and motivation; but managed to rally together to continue to deliver at the level our clients know and love.
- Be authentic, always
Another one of our values is authenticity: we are a team of real, honest people. We are trustworthy and we don’t just talk the talk, we walk the walk.
Brands that used to get by with smoke and mirrors fell short this year. I realised how grateful I am that we took the time to build a really strong foundation for our business. We put our heads down and keep going – never losing sight of who we are and why we do what we do.
So take a moment to think about your personal brand, how your business is portrayed to the world, and how much emphasis you place on team development. Are your company values lived in the organisation day-to-day?
- People come first
The long-standing relationships we’ve developed over the years enabled us to retain almost all of our clients during the pandemic. It was a privilege to be able to go above and beyond the scope of work to help them through lockdown, and it’s reassuring to know that our team, partners and clients feel that they can depend on us.
This feedback from Ilse at Nibbly Bits is a lovely example of this:
Yellow Door Collective is amazing! The Nibbly Bits Team are incredibly happy with the website and online store that they have created for us.
Their dedication, professionalism, and patience 🙂 are some of the things we love most about them. Looking forward to continuing working with them.
- Create products that people need and love
Leaning into our can-do value, we look for simple, creative and cost-effective solutions to each scenario.
The pandemic pushed me to lean into my ideation and activator strengths to think out the box and come up with new products and ways of doing things.
We managed to secure 18 new website projects and 8 new retainers this year – which is testament to this approach.
We’ve also launched three retainer packages, and the 2021 content plan package which I mentioned.
- Continue to evolve
Being agile and able to adapt has always been central to our approach, but it took on a whole new meaning in lockdown!
Acclimatising to Zoom meetings was one of the hardest adjustments for me, as I found it draining and much trickier to really connect with people. On the plus side, it saved us time and money, and taught us to be more efficient. So my take away is to find the balance going forward – keep short, status meetings online; and book in proper time for strategic conversations in person where possible.
What has been your biggest learning or takeaway from 2021? Please post a comment and let us know.