Into a new season
It’s a stormy September day in PEI…we’re expecting 80 km winds and 25mm of rain…environment Canada describes it as “intense winds and soaking rain”.
We had a charter booked for today that we had to cancel due to the forecast. I’m getting more comfortable with that as time goes on. It’s part of running a business that relies on weather. This year was great overall so I won’t complain though it never feels good to have to reschedule or cancel a full day of reservations because of rough waters.
Reflecting on this I realize how much I’ve truly grown since buying into Joey’s. I used to get really nervous and upset about cancelling a day — thinking mostly about the money lost and how that impacts me. I’m proud to say I now have a better grasp on this, the fear and lack doesn’t take control anymore. I feel more secure in the world of entrepreneurship and have learned to accept that we will always have storm days in our business.
It’s hard to believe I’m finishing off my 6th season of running a tourism business. We have a few more charters booked over the next few weeks (weather dependent!) but with not taking any more bookings my phone calls and emails have come to an almost complete stop. I can now put my phone down for big chunks of time without worrying about missing a message from a customer.
While I’m excited (and ready) for the break, I always have a hard time transitioning into a slower schedule. Going from working what felt like all the time (mostly because even when I wasn’t at work I couldn’t help but still be thinking about it) to having very few commitments on my plate is a hard shift.
It takes both my mind and my body almost a whole week to start to slow down and realize that there is nothing pressing and that it’s ok (and necessary) to chill out. Going from lobster fisher to tourism operator is an intense and wonderful 4 months. And it’s time for me to rest.
We were lucky to be able to stay at David’s family cottage for part of the week. I find that being away from home allows me to truly slow down and unwind. No laundry or other chores loom over me when I’m there, I can read, nap, go on walks and just enjoy the quiet of the south shore.
Now that I’m through my grace period week I’m spending this rainy day planning a new routine and schedule for myself. While I’m excited for the freedom the off season brings, I can struggle with the lack of schedule and commitments.
A few things I’m incorporating in right away:
Restorative Detox — I’ll be following a program with Simply for Life to do a little fall reset. While I’m feeling really good about my health and how well I took care of myself through the busy season I am excited to tighten things up a bit and think this is the perfect solution!
Workouts — I am so glad that I purchased a membership to Eternal Wellness for July & August so that I could maintain and build my strength. But now that I’ll be spending more time at home I am going to transition back to my home workouts. I plan to make biking & hiking more of a priority now as I love the trails in the fall. I am excited to watch the leaves change!
Writing — With more time on my hands I can be more dedicated to writing so you can expect to see more frequent blog posts coming! If there’s anything you’d like me to write about please leave a comment below.
I do have a list of end of season tasks that I’ll be working through as well. It’s exciting to pull everything together and see how we continue to grow the business each year. I do our bookkeeping because it helps me stay accountable to our numbers and truly understand where everything goes. I’ll be diving into that in the coming weeks.
I’m taking on a part time job which I’m really excited for. It feels like a great fit for me and will be a nice addition to my schedule. Stay tuned for more info about this!
Every stage and change in life comes with its own challenges. Whether you’re slowing down like me, heading into a busy season or have been going at a constant pace for a while, I hope you are making yourself a priority through it all. You are worth it!
