I’m finally back after a long hiatus! December was a hectic month with the holidays, home construction, family visiting and a last minute New Years trip to LA. I’ve never been happier to be home…I’m starting to feel settled for the first time since August.
I hope you all had a great start to the New Year. We spent last week in LA, exploring the town, eating delicious food and enjoying the sunshine with friends (if you follow me in Instagram, you know all about my adventures!). I can’t wait to share the highlights with you – LA guide coming up! I’m still soaking in the fact that it’s 2017 – this year flew by. This photo was taken almost a year ago…craziness.
As with every new year, I try to reflect on how I can be a better person…whether that means taking better care of myself physically & mentally, being a better friend, daughter, sister, girlfriend. I’m not always one for resolutions, but I do think self-reflection is important and the beginning of the year feels like the appropriate time to do it (& obviously other times throughout the year as well!)
After doing some reflecting, I put together a short (but challenging) list of goals for 2017.
- On Christmas day, I was going through my old storage boxes at my mom’s and found a report card from 4th grade. I opened it up and found inside detailed notes from my teacher, focusing on areas of strength…and areas of “development”. One of these areas of development was listening. She mentioned that after explaining tasks, I had to ask her to repeat them before I fully understood. I wasn’t fully listening at age 10, and almost 20 years later, I’m still guilty of this. Being a good listener is such a admirable quality – it shows interest, compassion, focus. Definitely something I need to work on. I’ll be researching ways to do so, so stay tuned!
- This goes beyond being just being “productive”. Sure, that is important, but I mean it more in the sense of spending quality time with people I care about & doing things I love. There are so many hours that go wasted on online shopping, scrolling through Instagram & Facebook, watching TV. Yes, once in awhile it’s nice to unwind and do these things, but it’s also important to make time for people you love and things that make you happy. I think about this now more than ever as I’m nearing the end of my 20’s. You never think about time as a limited resource until you hit a certain age…it finally hit me this year and it’s time to make the most of it!
- It’s no coincidence that this is on my list after splurging on remodeling & furnishing a new place! But honestly, saving money is important…always. It’s a real shame to have worked hard all of your life and have nothing to show for it in the end. It’s never too early to start saving for retirement, or your next big investment, and I needed to start saving yesterday (or like 2 years ago). Currently trying to figure out easy ways to do this. If I have an epiphany, I will share, don’t worry.
- Another thing I’ve been guilty of my whole life…being late. Not like obnoxiously late, but fashionably late. Either way, late is late, and it’s never good. For people that don’t know me, it probably comes off as inconsiderate and rude, and I don’t want that to be their first impression of me. Also, I find every time I’m running late, I’m extremely stressed about it. Anxiety is at it’s peak. With all that said, it’s not doing me any good so there’s no need for me to continue to do it. For all you late-arrivers, you know it’s SO hard to avoid so wish me luck. For all of you punctual peeps out there, please fill me in on your secrets. I. need. help.
What’s on your resolutions list for this year? Please fill me in! Some ideas for you:
Clean out your closet, declutter your inbox, learn a new language, spend more quality time with friends, expand your vocabulary…
And last but not least, 4 tips to help you accomplish your New Year’s Resolutions.
