29 and Feelin’ Fine!
I have been 29 years old for 19 days and so far so good! I was very worried about getting one year closer to 30 but now I realize it is not something to be concerned with but something to embrace. My 28th year of life was the biggest year in so many ways – good and bad – I learned so much and grew immensely as a person. I am ready to take all the lessons with me through this next year and apply it in the most positive way that I can! Life is short and we only get one chance at making the most of it. Since switching out of 9-5 jobs with steady pay I have gone through some ups and downs financially and there have been times when I have told myself that going back to a boring desk job would just be easier. But then I think about all of the things I have done in the short period of time I have become a freelancer and independent business owner, so many opportunities have opened up to me that I would never have thought would have. These opportunities make me excited to get up every morning and take on the day, they inspire me to continue to move forward despite all the hardships I have gone through (and will go through). I am so lucky to have a partner that is so supportive of my journey and I am determined to make it work in part to make him proud and show him that the sacrifices were worth it. I am a true believer that if you work hard and love what you do everything else will fall into place so I pray every day that is the case! I have learned that working for yourself takes lots of discipline and a lot of strength – I wake up early and have a list of things I need to do each day. I also take on side work that I am not so passionate about to be able to continue to do what I love most of the time. Through all of this, I have not regretted taking the leap. Yes, I have my weak moments but the more I push forward and find new ways to make money doing what I love I have discovered a whole new world that I am so excited to explore. A few things I have done as a new business owner to stay sane and keep balanced:
1. Meditate: I downloaded the Headspace app and all you have to do is press play and you are talked through a 3-minute meditation session. It helps clear my mind and get on track to remember what is really important through all of this.
2. Write down my monthly and yearly goals: Writing down your goals is so important! It helps manifest the things you want into happening! I like to write down my monthly goals which are smaller and more attainable but still gets me out of my box and then bigger goals that are much more attainable throughout the length of a year.
3. Use a planner: My planner organizes my whole life and it is a great way to look down and see what days I have things going on and what days I am free. That way I always know when I am available if a meeting happens to come up! I am very specific about everything I need to block out time for so I never have to reschedule or cancel a meeting (because that is not a good look!).
4. Make a list: Every Sunday I make a to-do list in order of priority, it helps me understand what my week is going to look like. It also helps me stay on track, some days if I am at home working all day I will get sidetracked doing little mundane things. When that happens I stop and look at my list then regroup to be as productive as I can!
5. Food prep: This may seem odd but I was spending so much time cooking myself meals throughout the day or I would be spending way too much money going out to lunch. So now I grocery shop and prep all my meals on Sunday so I can quickly grab a healthy meal or snack and get back to what I was doing. I am not spending so much time in the kitchen anymore and it has helped immensely with my productivity.
6. Block out time for in-home chores: When I first started working from home I was barely working because I was getting so distracted by cleaning, doing laundry, organizing and all the other things I need to do. Before I knew it, it was 2 pm and I have not even looked at my emails or my to-do list. So now, I block in times to get a few household things done and time myself so I can get back to work in a timely manner. I also found that doing those things on the weekend really helped me stay focused on my tasks at hand during the week.
All in all, when I look at the week, month or year ahead I am finally excited about what is to come! I used to dread Mondays because I was working 40 hours a week for someone else doing something I did not love. Now, I have the balance between making steady money but also having the time to work on my own business and build that up for success. The sky is the limit!
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Have you read any of my other posts?!
Winter Wedding Magic w/ Meritage Jewelers
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