Lesson #2: How do you find the time?

My journey to $15K on Etsy in 10 months

I’m writing a mini MBA series to share some of the lessons I’ve learned building my Etsy store, Wonton In A Million. See Lesson #1: Does the idea matter? for a more detailed intro. And to learn how I built it by doing just a little bit each day, check out my Skillshare class on “How To Start (And Finish!) Your Very Own 365 Day Project.”

Every week, I spend at least 20 hours on Wonton In A Million. This is 20 hours outside of the work I do full-time as a designer at a fintech startup.

I get asked “How do you find the time?”— a lot — usually with this sentiment:

When I hear this question, a huge part of me is flattered. But another part of me wants to shake the person and say, but you can do it too!!! Seriously. Come build something with me. Here’s how:

1 — Do something every day

I used this technique to teach myself how to draw. Over 365 days, I went from this:

To this:

For Wonton In A Million, I went from this:

To this:

And $2K a month in revenue.

So the trick, for me, has been to commit to something every day. One thing. As for what to commit to: your one thing has to force you to do all the myriad other things you need to do to move forward. For example, I’m committed to posting at least one Instagram photo every day. Why this works for me is because it forces me (1) to constantly have new photos to post, which means to constantly have new products, partnerships, and interesting things to take photos of, and (2) to constantly be promoting, which is something that I’m constitutionally uncomfortable with. Combined, these are the crux of what I need to do to grow my business: make products, sell them.

2 — Say no, a lot (and the corollary of this: be very clear about what you will always say yes to)

My “no” list: Freelance design projects. Saturday plans before 5PM. Most weeknight plans. Networking events. Sunday afternoon plans. Sunday evening plans. Things I actually don’t want to do (this one seems obvious, but it’s the easiest for me to forget).

My “yes” list: Events that are important to my friends, like birthdays, bachelorette parties, and bridal showers, but also art exhibits, jewelry exhibits, and company launch parties. Travel. Family dinner once a week. Catching up with friends who are visiting from out-of-town. Resumé reviews, essay reviews, anything I can do to help people I care about get ahead. And importantly, all opportunities to exchange time for money.

Together, these two rules loosely form the system within which I’m able to find 20 hours to build an Etsy business alongside a full-time job. Oh — and I lose sleep sometimes. ;) Work in progress, definitely.

What is the system that you use?

Thanks for reading — and for joining me on this journey to see where Wonton In A Million goes! Follow me on Instagram for daily dimsum goodness. Follow me on Medium for more writing. Shop Etsy for products inspired by your favorite meal of the weekend. Get in touch at cynthia@wontoninamillion.com. And stay tuned for more mini MBA lessons from my year of building my Etsy business.

Other posts in this series:

1. Lesson #1: Does the idea matter?
   Yes. Of course it does. But maybe not in the way you think.
2. Lesson #2: How do you find the time? (This post)
   Every week, I spend at least 20 hours on Wonton In A Million. This is 20 hours outside of the work I do full-time as a designer at a fintech startup. I get asked “How do you find the time?” — a lot. Here’s how.
3. Lesson #3: What do you have to believe?
   In May 2015, I went to Iceland with a group of 8 beautiful, creative souls, and I learned from my travel companions the most important lesson I’ve learned about being a creator to date.

If you enjoyed this, you might also enjoy…

1. 7 rules for being more productive
   I’m design-hacking my life
2. How to design a 365 day project
   In 2014, I undertook a project to learn how to draw in 365 days. These are the rules and parameters that helped me to stay consistent, accountable, and committed. Also check out my Skillshare class on the same topic: “How To Start (And Finish!) Your Very Own 365 Day Project”
3. Lessons learned from founding 2 startups
   Why I left the life of a founder, and joined a team to build out someone else’s vision instead of one of my own.
4. What you get when you learn how to code
   I learned how to code via AOL profiles (who remembers those?). The internet is very different now, but one thing that I’m sure remains the same: it is still just as thrilling as it has always been to write that first line of working code.