We are currently in the process of a major rennovation over at my main website, CatholicMom.com. It's been a few years since the last refresh, so I figured it was time to take the plunge and bite the bullet. Thanks to my amazing designer, Tim Norton of 6WebDesign, the process has been relatively painfree.
One of the things I've learned over the years is to try to look at moments of "growing pain" like this one with open eyes, and to learn something in the process. So for posterity's sake, I'm going to share a few notes here for myself (and perhaps for you too!) in order to remember what this process has taught me.
- Have a vision -- Don't be afraid to shoot for the stars. Honestly, this whole project started with a chance encounter I had with the Today Show website. I loved the look of the site and its graphics heavy design. Tim and I set about taking the site apart and looking piece by piece at what I wanted to emulate. Did I let the fact that I'm a mom, working from home with a budget the size of a minnow stop me? No -- and blessedly neither did Tim. If you compare our end results side by side with that "dream" site, I'd say it's amazing how close we came!
- Don't be afraid to pivot -- It's likely that having a vision will make you feel strongly about the end product you're seeking. But if you find yourself halfway through, or even 8/10s of the way through, and things aren't turning out as you expected, don't be afraid to make a u turn. Better to take your time and get things just right rather than to refuse to budge and end up with an undesired outcome.
- Take your time -- The world of the web seems so fast and frenetic these days. Tweets and status updates have us living in a moment by moment reality that sometimes gives a false sense of time. It's still a truth that good, quality work takes time -- rushing may give you immediate gratification, but in the end taking the time necessary to complete a project to the best of your ability will always be more gratifying.
I'm hoping now that the major work on this project is complete, I will be back blogging here daily on weekdays. I thank those of you readers who have stuck with me through extended absences and promise to recommit to pondering the importance and the elusive challenges of personal productivity in our homes and in our lives.
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