Proactive vs. Reactive

The past year or so has taught me all new levels of being proactive that I’d never needed to be before.

Shipping orders for our store, tracking packages, and making adjustments to our shipping rates to keep up with USPS.
Um, getting people to buy stuff from said store means that I have to order from the manufacturer, build their shipping costs into my costs, market the products, and a whole bunch more stuff.
Helping a wide variety of organizations with their web development needs has meant deeply listening to what they are asking for and proposing solutions they aren’t even imagining.
Not having a boss or board has meant that if I’m not on top of it, I’ll work 80 hours per week every week and never take a vacation.
Taxes. Oh for the love of all things, I have to track sales tax, city business tax, state & federal income tax, and social security tax. Most of them are due on the same days but you’ve got to watch it! One of the reasons I’m so shy about hiring someone right now is taxes!

I won’t bore you with the details of all the things I need to stay on top of as a small business owner.

The point is that when I’m proactive I catch things before they are problems. I discover opportunities I didn’t even know about. I catch mole hills before they are mountains.

For me, I live in a weird space of half business and half ministry. It’s good business for me to keep on top of things and anticipate stuff to just keep a step ahead. But it’s also a good ministry practice.