Change is not a four letter word

Yet I tend to react to hearing the word “change” as if I’m hearing a four-letter word. I cover my ears. I stop listening. My knee-jerk reaction is to respond with a vehement howling “Noooooooooooooo.” Then I may run wildly around the room waving my hands and screaming like a banshee: “The sky is falling, the sky is falling” in my best Chicken Little imitation. Mass hysteria! Panic! Doom! Mayhem! Or, in the words of comedian Jeff Foxworthy, PANDELERIUM !!!

Phew. Ok. I feel better. I got that off my chest.
The recent changes to the Ruby Lane and Ruby Plaza websites have caused outright pandelerium for both sellers and shoppers alike. As a shop owner, I’ve had to hold off listing treasures I’ve found that I just know my customers have been searching to buy. As a shopper, I’ve been unable to complete a transaction – only to have that item snatched up by another lucky shopper. I did manage to complete the transaction for a super awesome egg bracelet for my egg jewelry collection.

Every cloud does have its silver lining. In the midst of the chaos, shoppers were able to purchase from us … items did get listed … sales did happen … we were able to communicate with Ruby Lane’s awesome staff … we were kept updated of the status to the best of their ability … and we worked hard at having patience.

This morning I fired up my computer, signed into my Ruby Lane and Ruby Plaza shops and was amazed at the speed of page loads. Pictures were all there. Links worked smoothly.

I made the business decision to put all my energy into selling exclusively on Ruby Lane and Ruby Plaza. I am proud to have my business linked to the premiere online selling site for antiques and vintage items. The newest Ruby Plaza venture is in its infancy and shows great promise. While some have questioned putting all my “eggs in one basket”, it is a decision I researched diligently after selling “all over the place” before. I had diluted my energy, lost my focus, and spent most of my time dashing from one site to another. Everything was half-done. A little bit here. A little bit there. I worked myself to a frazzle for very little financial gain, and even less emotional satisfaction. Since making the decision to become exclusive to Ruby Lane and Ruby Plaza, I have never looked back. I’ve never second-guessed that decision. I’ve learned that my lack of attention to detail was slowing down my progress and not allowing my business to flourish. There were intricacies to selling online that I had not taken into consideration. Since concentrating my focus on selling successfully on Ruby Lane and Ruby Plaza, my sales have increased, my knowledge about selling successfully on Ruby Lane and Ruby Plaza has increased, and my actual workload has decreased. Yes. You read that right. Decreased. As they say, I am now working “smarter not harder.”

I’m choosing to look at the past few days as time to do some shopkeeping. Cleaned up my office. Caught up on paperwork. Worked on my writing. Took some photographs to have at the ready. Cleaned some inventory. Did some research and reading. Oh, and nursed a bad head cold. Timing is everything, you know.