2016 Year End Review

Hey People!

I know its been quite a while since my last blog . . . about 2 months. But hey who’s counting. I thought I’d take the time to sit down on this cold Saturday morning and really write down my thoughts about the year of our Lord 2016.

When I tell you it has been a TRYING year that doesn’t even begin to encompass some of the trials I faced this past year. They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger and in that case I’m a damn Amazon at this point.

Now there were some highs as well because life is filled with high and low points. I can say that with the help of my amazing class reunion committee we pulled off our 10 year high school reunion. MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENT! My sister graduated from college (Elon University, my alma mater). And step by step I’m making my house into a home via many diy projects, thrift stores and Ikea. My line sister got married and it was pretty much a reunion for our chapter.

Also thrown into this mixed bag of life for 2016 was getting “laid off” from my temp job because they were downsizing their amount of temps. (Which I later found out to be a lie *Kayne shrug*) I took a break from temping and did a small stint as a nanny, and yes I loved the family but Lord Jesus when my last paycheck bounced and my account was negative -$600, I just about died. Back to temping after that ( the family moved out of state). Oh and best believe I’ve been job hunting constantly and getting interviews but no job offer yet. I KNOW one is coming! And my not so great financial habits of overspending doesn’t help my credit card debt or my stressing over finances. There were times the stress was so overwhelming I just broke down. When you’re in a constant rut of being underemployed and trying to make ends meet it take a toll.

But through all of that I have to say my faith has gotten so much stronger. I have also learned to just let go and let God. I’m a strong proponent of being self sufficient and doing what you can to help yourself but there also comes a time where you just have to put it in the Lord’s hands and pray. After this trial by fire also known as 2016 I am very much focused and centered. I also now KNOW MY WORTH professional wise and I have goals that I know I want to accomplish for 2017. In addition to writing out my goals I am researching the best ways to reach those goals so I set myself up for success. This blog is going to be a huge accountability tool for me in my quest of self improvement. For starters I’m going to share some of those goals.

1. Open my etsy shop FINALLY! I’ve been talking about it for the past year and I’ve set a launch date. Feb 1, 2017.
2. Pay off my credit card debt. All $7099 of it in a year. It is daunting yes, impossible no.
3. Lose these 30 pounds I’ve put on over the past 3 years. (Stress and eating out too much) And then keep it off. That’s the hard part.
4. Start my emergency fund! Save that $1000! And contribute to my savings account on a REGULAR basis. I’m at $107 currently. (That’s better than the $5 I was at 2 months ago)
5. Monetize this blog and start that YouTube channel!

My goals are not impossible but they will require me to change my habits. I can’t keep doing the same thing and expect different results. It doesn’t work like that. I’m saying GOODBYE to self doubt because there is no room for it. I’m going back to a kid mentality where you didn’t think anything was impossible or beyond your scope you just did it. As I write this post I am crazy excited to revisit it next year and see the progress I have made in my goals and how that will change my life. Don’t worry I’ll include you along for the journey because there will be several post and even videos documenting the process.

This was a cathartic post and I needed to release. I’ve already dubbed 2017 the year of Tracey! It’s going to be all about me and pushing myself to be my best self. Time to put in that work.

My two cents! xoxo

Tracey