Hey friends. It's been a few weeks since I wrote anything and published it for all of my 13 followers to read. It's high time I contributed to my blog and what better way to do it than to recap my year and outline some ideas I have for changing my life.
I learned a lot in 2011. I learned that I have nowhere near the amount of friends I thought I had. I used to have a lot of friends from different areas of my life. Many of them begged for me to move back so we could "hang out" because they "miss me." Well, long story short, that never happened. I have struggled with trying to mend these friendships and beginning to make new ones. In 2012, my goal is to move past this-- realize that the door closed on those relationships for a reason and its for the best. I will move on and do my very best to nurture some new friendships.
I learned that professionally, I'm a 'yes' girl. I have a hard time saying 'no' in an attempt to be ambitious and excited about my job. It has done two things for me: It spreads my time too thinly and it opens up doors to get taken advantage of. In every situation like that, I end up feeling used and that my talents are being totally wasted and under-appreciated. So, in 2012 I will be more about me. Please don't misunderstand, I still care most about helping others in my job; that is how I'm most gratified. However, where people can make the most change is in a higher position to make decisions that will positively effect others. The whole point of working is to move up-- not to be in entry level forever! So, I will do my best to make that happen assertively while still helping others. It's a fine line but my balance is impeccable. :)
In 2011, I fell in love with a fantastic guy. A guy that encourages me to do the best at whatever I do....and he truly believes I can do it. He has so many wonderful traits and I'm happy and blessed to have him in my life. I could go on forever about him but I'll leave it at that. <3 In 2012, I'll go ahead and keep this one going :)
So, in 2012, my goals are to, of course, get in better shape. I cannot wait to do this! Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, My goal was to lose 5 pounds. Who tries to do that during the holidays?! This girl. BUT-- I did it and all it took was a little portion control and consistent workouts. I can totally do this.
I want to grow professionally. I'm already involved in a service organization and I volunteer weekly. But, I want to network and learn more about my city and the people in it. Being connected is the best way to be.
I want to get a few projects done. Thanks to Pinterest, my list of projects has grown, but there are some things I'd like to do before the year is done. I haven't scrapbooked since I lived in Kansas City in 2009. I want to the huge project of decluttering, organizing making my basement more homey. I can't wait to make it my little home!
A few other things I'd like to do are:
- Be more 'present.'
When I'm with others, I want to put my phone away and live more in that moment. Being distracted by whatever is happening on my phone only make me feel more overwhelmed.
- Get outside more.
Being outside is not a huge part of the culture here. Five months out of the year it's freezing and I'm the first one to go inside and cozy up under about 6 blankets. However, there's a lot that outside offers otherwise and I want to go explore it.
- Just keep swimming...
My gym has a pool. Why don't I take advantage of this regularly? Oh yeah, because I'm not an 87 year old woman named Clara. Most of the people that swim are elderly ladies. But, in a moment of clarity on the treadmill while my knee was screaming at me to stop while at the same time threatening premature knee replacements, I wondered, why not?! Why shouldn't I go swim? It's stellar excerise; cardio and even strength training. I could be a smart twentysomething that thinks about the future of my body and the probability of my knees sucking forever and, pardon the pun, jump right in. Instead of killing myself trying to run all these 5ks, I'm going to swim. Just keep swimming, just keep swimming.
