2022 was a busy year for Amenable, for the small businesses and nonprofits that we partnered with, and probably for you, too. We’re already looking ahead to what’s coming in 2023, but we also want to take time to look back and both reflect on and celebrate this past year. With that, enjoy a year in review with the team at Amenable.
One of our team’s core values is learning to balance planning and adapting. But it’s hard to know where you’re planning to go unless you truly take a good look at where you came from. So, for our year in review post, we asked our team to take a minute to think back on 2022—on their favorite projects, their biggest challenges, new routines, new discoveries, and more. Here are (just a few of) the things they had to say.
“My favorite project with Amenable this year was working with TeenPact to update their interactive map. They wished to combine some states into regions and we didn’t want to roll out a solution that required someone to make custom map graphics every time they needed to tweak a region in the future. This job not only gave me a chance to learn more about how the SVG [Scalable Vector Graphic] image format works under the hood, but a fun challenge to use that knowledge to automate the generation of the states and regions within that interactive graphic so that they could make changes with the click of a button.”
“I just started last week so I haven’t worked on too many projects yet! However, I think brainstorming and vision-casting different ways to mobilize various social media platforms will be my favorite! I am particularly excited about working on Pinterest and Instagram to use the platforms strategically. Also, anything that involves making a reel is always so fun for me!”
“Working with August Huckabee and WestRock! It was so cool and different getting to do something in the music industry!”
“I really enjoyed working on content for our brand and web update quizzes—whether it was writing content, building quizzes, or just creating promotional materials for them. I think they’re more interactive ways to connect than a blog post or email, so it was fun to change things up!”
“Writing content for Camp Get-A-Way’s donor brochure or researching and presenting on donor management system options for Camp Get-A-Way.”
“Restoration Immigration Legal Aid’s year-end booklet. I love their vision for helping migrants.”
“I’m torn. I loved working on the Matthew 25 Initiative’s Lent theme in January. The concept was based around suminagashi art. Suminagashi is the process of marbling plain paper with water and ink to transform it into something vibrant and colorful. It originated in Japan as early as the 12th century and is a meditative art work that requires focus and patience. I loved the idea of centering this Lent brand around an art form because it is contemplative in nature— which was one of the goals of the Lent series. And secondly, I really loved working on Restoration Immigration’s Annual Report. It was fun to bring more shape to their brand through typography and visual elements. It’s work that I’m really proud of!”
“I’ve really enjoyed getting the Amenable blog up and running with quality new content every week!”
“I’ve enjoyed the sense of community within Amenable this year. Starting a new role early in 2022 only to have to go out on maternity leave a couple months later, to then having to continually adjust to life with an infant has been challenging. The entire team has met me with grace as I transition to new schedules (over and over again!) This year, I’ve really enjoyed some illustration work (see art in this post!), working behind the scenes with SEO, putting together emails and most of all, some collaboration efforts with other churches and nonprofits.
If you had three words to summarize a whole year in review, what would you say? Here are some answers from our team:
For some, the challenge came in struggling with the best ways to equip and empower their clients to be more independent when it comes to marketing and communications. For others, there was disappointment in postponed projects.
But what was the common theme? Balance. As a small team who works entirely remotely, most of us—in one way or another—struggled at times to balance the demands of work with those of school, other jobs, family, personal obligations, and rest. No matter who you are or what kind of work you do, you can probably relate with this. So, if you want to read up on it, this article from Harvard Business Review talks about balance as a cycle—not an end goal—and gives some tips backed by interviews of working professionals. (Side note—If you’re part of a small team looking for ways to incorporate balance into your work, check out our blog posts on How to Accomplish Big Things with a Small Team or How to Collaborate to Avoid Burnout for even more about this!)
We’re big readers around here. In case you hadn’t heard, Hannah once read 183 books in one year and Debbie reached the library’s limit for the most books you can check out in one visit. So, if you’re looking for some good reads for the new year, you can count on the team at Amenable for the best recommendations. If we had an office, here’s what our bookshelf might look like:
As a team, we’re each excited about specific projects we’re working on—creating a website, helping a small business fully rebrand, and getting a nonprofit growing, just to name a few. But regardless of the specific project, our team said they are excited to help solve clients’ problems in practical ways, find new ways to communicate, and build relationships and cultivate trust with new partners.
We’re grateful for the things we were able to accomplish in 2022. Thank you for following along for our 2022 year in review. And to our partners—thank you even more for choosing to trust us. We (really and truly) couldn’t do this without you! It looks like we’ve got a busy year ahead of us. Here’s to 2023 and the ways we’re all learning, growing, and trusting. Who knows—maybe partnering with your organization is going to be our next favorite project! If you think we could be a good fit, please reach out to us and say hello—we’d love to connect!
