No Resolutions, Only Reservations

Today is my first day back in the office after 10 days off of work, which was so necessary after a year like last. To be quite frank, I don’t know how Beyonce does it. Although I had no resolutions, 2016 was really incredible for me, but it was without a doubt a whirlwind. I started this site two days into the year while balancing a full-time job where I earned a promotion. I went on a dozen vacations and had a damn good time. The best thing about documenting your journey is being able to easily look back at your progress, because without it my year would’ve been a blur. In 2016 I got better, but it was exhausting. So exhausting that it was difficult to get excited about 2017. A 10-day work break was hardly enough time for me to catch my breath.

I can’t say that I believe in New Year resolutions, because I believe you’re capable of change any minute of any day. However, I do make plans for how I anticipate spending the next 363 days based on how I spent my last. This is where my personal focus will be from now until December –

1. Take Care of Myself – This means less fast food, better skin care, routine workouts and going to the dentist the first time I make the appointment instead of rescheduling it two or three times. It also includes taking the time out to sit still and revisit my journals. Dissect how I’m feeling and why. Everything that happens on a daily basis can get hectic. Having the time to look inside is not only necessary, it’s the key to growth.
2. Figure Out How, Not What – It’s so easy to say what you want to do, but ask yourself how you’re going to do it. I could say “I want to pay off my student loans”, but how will I do it? It’s so important to list the actionable steps in order to be able to do so. Instead of saying “I want to save $10,000” create tactics such as “I’ll give up cable to save an extra $150 monthly” or “I’ll increase my savings from 12% to 20% each check”.
3. Read More Books – I only got to about 12 of the 15 I had hoped to read in 2016. I plan on starting my year off with The 7 Habits of Highly Effect People by Stephen R. Covey. I chose two words to theme my year around. The first is increase, the second is execute. I’m great at planning, but often get lost in the details of execution. Everything I do should lead me back to those two words in some way. The questions I’ll be asking myself this year are “will this allow you increase in some way?” and “is this helping you execute your goals?“.
4. Be Intentional – With my days, my time, my relationships, the posts I publish on The B Werd and my goals. If I learned nothing else in the last year, it’s that time is extremely limited and should be invested, not just spent. I have no desire to waste it on people or things where I gain no return.
5. Practice Manifestation Daily – I can’t remember if I’ve talked about the law of attraction on here or not. In case I haven’t, I began practicing it in 2013 and it’s been working ever since. It’s the act of being clear about your desires, believing you can have them, then trusting the universe (and God) to bring you to it, or it to you. I’ve never been as ridiculous as to believe I could desire a Porsche Cayenne and it’d appear in my driveway, but instead I desire the opportunities to be put in a position to put a Porsche Cayenne in my driveway.
6. Learn to Invest – Over the last couple of years I’ve been blessed enough to be able to save a nice amount of money. Some I’ve put up for rainy days and some I put up for expensive shoes. A large portion of it has just been sitting in an account and one of the most resonating things I read last year was “don’t save to save, save to invest”. There’s no point of me having all of that money sitting year after year. On top of the couple of books I’ve ordered, I’ll be consulting with a few professionals to make some small and safe investments.
7. Teach more – Because everything that you learn should be given away. One of the most frequently asked questions I got last year was some variation of “how did you start your blog?” and those are the people I plan to help first. Realize that getting started is the hardest part, so if I can push you over that speed-bump you’ll be smooth sailing after.
8. Step Outside of my Comfort Zones – I’m good at pushing my limits, but this is more so about doing the things that make me uncomfortable. More public speaking, more networking with unfamiliar faces and names, more reaching out to strangers because that’s how relationships are built.

I’m hoping for a prosperous and productive year for you all. Know that your results begin and end with you.

Listen to my discussion with the AntiHeroes about what inspired me to start The B Werd, the difficulties I’ve faced from judgment and growing my following.

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