A Trellis New Year’s Message
Trellis staff party at an Apple Orchard. Check out Mike’s beard.
I just sent in my LLC renewal – Trellis is entering its third year!
2020 was a bit of a “fly by the seat of my pants” kind of year, as it was for many of you. I’ve been grateful, though, for the steady work I’ve had – usually just the right amount that I could care for my children and get my work done.
I also got to support my clients as they pivoted and innovated to serve their clients and members. One client rebranded itself and turned a 700-person event into a virtual conference – exceeding their registration goals and delivering great, engaging content. A marketing team I coach helped its sales team increase pipeline opportunities by more than 50% - in a year with no trade shows. I worked with other leaders who worked fast to help their industries pivot and to keep their employees safe.
As this is a forward-looking letter, rather than a retrospective, I’ll touch on some of the 2020 changes that Trellis has carried into 2021:
Distance Learning and Working: The home office continues to house two adult professionals, two pre-teen distance learners, and one canine mascot. The dog definitely is the winner here, as she always has someone to cuddle with and is almost never alone. My fourth grader does not like video calls, so she is self-regulating when it comes to not interrupting my calls. My sixth grader has said hello and chatted with many of you, as he pops in and out as needed.
Writing: When I started my own business two years ago, it was partly so I could have time for my own writing. In 2020 I experimented with memoir and fiction, but my biggest step forward was in blogging. I started the blog Dear People Whom God Loves. I get super vulnerable about the challenges of parenting and working in the pandemic, and then share a piece of writing from the late Father John Clay of St. Stanislaus Catholic Church in St. Paul. This effort has helped me in my work: I keep creating and trying new things (learning Instagram! Slowly building an audience!).
Volunteering: My family and I started 2020 committing to volunteer together once a month. We packed food boxes and distributed books before the stay-at-home orders slowed us down. While we’ve done some local food drives together, for the most part volunteering has become what I can do from my desk. This includes the blog, which I do to create more engagement for my parish. I also have been working with the Minority Business Growth Alliance to help minority entrepreneurs get access to consulting support and business resources. I’m looking forward to continuing the blog and my work with MBGA in 2021 and finding more opportunities for my family to safely pitch in.
Productivity: I actually like Zoom networking. I started brand new client relationships over Zoom and have gotten to spend time with people from Boston and Atlanta and San Diego and all over. We’re all forced out of thinking about networking in terms of who we can get together face-to-face with, and that’s been fun. I’ll be back to coffee shop meetups for the pastries at Spyhouse and Quixotic here in St. Paul when the time is right. But I hope to also keep meeting people from all over. I also got a great calendar plug-in to make scheduling much easier and paid for a pro Zoom account.
I know 2021 will be another year of learning and growth. I’m hopeful my kids will be back in school in 2021 and that I’ll be seeing clients in person again too. I hope to continue to take on new clients and new projects, and I appreciate all the referrals and goodwill that has come from my network this year.
All my best wishes to you and yours for good health and wellbeing in 2021!
Katie
Taylor is a frequent guest star on my calls