Let's Get Started, Shall We?

Very early in my career as a young IT professional, I attended an employee training session where one of the executive speakers talked about the difference between "vocation" and "avocation".  The word "vocation" means, "a person's employment or main occupation".  The word "avocation" refers to "a hobby or minor occupation".  As I recall the executive was trying to espouse the notion that our corporate vocation should also be our avocation.  He was trying to tell us that we need to learn to look upon our corporate jobs as both business and pleasure if we wanted to get the most out of our career.  That may be true for some, but my proclivity for curiosity and creativity have always prevented me from having a singular pursuit in life.  I've never wanted to focus entirely on one thing and never wanted to be recognized by others as only having one pursuit.

And, in case some of you may be reading this and assuming that the mindset I described above probably led to lack-luster career achievements in IT, that was not my experience.  In fact, I think the mindset I describe above made me a better problem solver, a more well-rounded employee overall.  It also led to a lot of exhaustion trying to do too many things at once.

Also, very early in my IT career I began watching "This Old House" and "New Yankee Workshop every weekend going back to when Bob Villa was the host of "This Old House".  Those shows are what lured me into becoming a maker.  I developed a passion for working with wood and making furniture.  Over the course of 30+ years, I developed my crafting skills by first watching the shows and then trying things out using the tools I had available at the time.  My first big project, believe it or not, was to build my own house.  It is the house I still live in today.  Over the course of 18 months, I worked nights and weekends to get it finished.  In that process I learned from many mistakes, but better learned how to use tools, how to think three dimensionally to solve a problem (something that is critical in furniture making).  After and during the house building experience, I began spending a minor fortune setting up a woodworking shop.  

So, while I was working my way up through the ranks of corporate America, I was also building my woodworking skills.  I made many things for my house and gave a lot of the pieces I made to friends and family.  Little-by-little I developed a reputation as a "craftsman".  That reputation led to requests for commissioned works that I usually sold for cost.  Even after all of these years, however, I still struggle when I'm asked to make something for someone.  What if they don't like it?  What if I don't like it?  What if I fail?  These concerns/fears, I learned over time, are the most important aspect of being a craftsman.  Most certainly, there have been failures along the way, but those fears also helped me to listen to my customers and ask 1000 questions to ensure that both the customer and I are on the same page.

Now, I have recently retired and have the opportunity to focus solely on my craft (almost).  After several fits and starts with other online sales platforms, I have landed here, on Shopify, and am quite happy with what I have experienced here.  Figuring out all of the hurdles involved with online sales is fairly daunting, but I am slowly figuring it out.

There is one thing I want everyone to know about what I make.  Every single piece you see in my store was made by hand.  I have no means of mass production, so I will never have a lot of products for sale, but you can rest assured that everything I sell is one-of-a-kind and made one item at a time with my two hands.  I hope you enjoy!