Review of my 19 for 2019 List
I didn’t share this list at the beginning of the year. Not for any particular reason, I don’t think. I had just started this blog, and I originally intended to write about my list and goals for the year but ended up writing about and sharing other things. However, I do intend to share my 20 for 2020 list when it is finalized, so I decided I could and should do a recap of this year’s list.
For those of you who don’t know, this idea is from Gretchen Rubin’s podcast, Happier. And for anyone who has read any of my blog posts, that shouldn’t come as any surprise.
This was my first time doing a year goal list in this form, and it was a lot of fun. I tend to break my list into different categories: physical, recreational, academic, etc., which you’ll see. Each goal falls into a category, so they will be numbered under each category, not 1-19. But I promise, there are 19. If you don’t believe me, you can count them.
I like putting my goals into categories because then I can tell if I have a specific focus for the year, or if I’m just trying to improve my life across the board. I’ve done the categorizing part of it for a year, and I highly recommend it - whether you are just coming up with goals or resolutions for 2020 or you want to make your own 20 for 2020 list.
Some of these goals you might remember from my Happiness Project Experience posts, I tried to integrate them into those months when I felt that the theme fit. But some didn’t seem to fit into any particular month and others were meant to last the whole year.
Anyways, here we go…
Physical Goals:
Figure out my curly hair - DONE/IN PROCESS. This is one that I can’t quite check off and ignore, and I knew that going into it. I have straightened my hair for years and finally decided that 2019 was the year I would embrace my natural hair in all its wavy, curly, unpredictableness. And I am very proud of how far I have come. It started with reading the Curly Girl book, giving up my straightener and curling irons (except for shows and when I travel), buying all kinds of curly hair products, getting a Curly Girl hair cut, and resisting the urge to want to control my hair. And I have to admit, my “getting ready” time in the morning has gone down significantly, and there have been several days when I have loved the look of my natural hair - which is healthier now than it has been in years. I plan to continue figuring out my hair and am excited to see how my curls look in years to come.
Get eyelash extensions - DONE. If you have seen me at any point since April, you probably noticed that I have extensions. I got them just before a trip to a wedding, and haven’t stopped maintaining since. They also have cut down on my “getting ready” time in the morning (seeing a common theme here?) and I just really enjoy the look!
Recreational Goals:
Take a trip off of my list - DONE. Since I love lists, it is only natural that I have a list of trips I want to take on my phone. Some even have who I want to go on the trip with too. So this year I went to Waco, Texas to see the Magnolia empire. Since I love Chip and Joanna Gaines and Fixer Upper, this trip had been on my list for a long time. So when I had the opportunity to travel to Austin for an entrepreneur conference, I was thrilled to get to go visit Magnolia with my mom and a couple of our other relatives. It was awesome, and I definitely plan to go back. However, I’m glad there were other things to do on the trip and that I didn’t travel the whole way just to go to Magnolia.
Get a massage - DONE. I finally got this done in November as part of my Happiness Project Experience goals for October. I enjoyed it, and it could be a fun treat, but it isn’t something that I plan to incorporate into my normal routine.
Academic Goals:
Finish both Gretchen Rubin courses - DONE. I signed up at the beginning of the year for Gretchen Rubin’s Happiness Project Experience course and the Four Tendencies Course. I finished both and really enjoyed them. As someone who has consumed pretty much all of the material she has ever put out, there wasn’t too much new or surprising about them, but I did enjoy the compilations of information. But the one thing that drove me crazy about both of them was that there was no way to track your progress or the videos you’d already watched. That’s something I appreciate in online courses, so I can seamlessly pick up where I left off. Anyway, if you love Gretchen Rubin, you’ll enjoy these courses.
Read 100 books - DONE. If you have followed along on my reading journey this year, you know that I finished 100 books pretty early in the year. So I decided to add the additional reading goals of - reading Les Miserables and spending December re-reading my favorite books. I did read Les Miserables, but as I approached December, I realized that I was very close to having finished 200 books this year. So I decided to hit that goal, and then spend the rest of the month re-reading some of my favorite books - so that’s what I did. I not only hit this 100 book goal - but I doubled it. And if you want to read about the best of these books, check out my Best Books of 2019 post.
Launch a blog - DONE (obviously). Since you’re reading this, I would say this got done. This was something I decided to do for myself at the end of 2018, just for fun and possibly to use as a launching pad in the future. I’m glad I launched it in January, even though I wasn’t fully ready… and now here we are.
Material Goals:
Do a no-spend month - DONE. If you want to hear the full report of this, you can read all about in The Happiness Project Experience - August post. It was something that I was super glad that I did, and may repeat in the future. It felt good to stretch myself, make do with what I had and try some new recipes instead of eating out.
Make an emergency kit for my car - DONE. This is something that has been on my back burner to-do list fo years. I don’t know quite why, but I had a lot of resistance to just doing it and getting it done. Finally, I decided it didn’t have to be perfect, it just needed to get done and I needed to pull one together. So I purchased a couple of items, got the stuff together that I already had, and put it in the back of my car. It doesn’t have everything I could possibly need, but it has what I am most likely to use, and I can add to it in the future if I decide to.
Get my Gal Meets Glam dresses altered - DONE. I had bought some dresses from one of my favorite dress brands, Gal Meets Glam, at the end of last year. They didn’t fit me quite right though, so I need to get them altered. I got it done and was able to wear both of them on a trip to my aunt’s wedding in May.
Get comfortable with my credit card - DONE. This is another thing I wrote about in The Happiness Project Experience - August post. I wouldn’t say I am very good about consistently using my credit card, but I do always remember to pay it off on time and in full - which is what really matters. And it no longer sits in my purse totally unused.
Social Goal:
See my niece 12 times (at least once a month) - DONE. Luckily, my niece only lives about an hour and a half away, so it isn’t too much of a difficulty to get to see her. We pretty naturally visit her about once a month but having this as my goal did make sure that I saw her even on months that we wouldn’t necessarily have planned a visit. She’s growing up so fast, and I don’t want to miss any of it.
Spiritual Goal:
Read 6 spiritual books - DONE. The reviews for these are scattered throughout the month. But the spiritual books that I read were Uninvited: Living Loved When You Feel Less Than, Left Out, and Lonely, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People, Present Over Perfect: Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, More Soulful Way of Living, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day: How to Survive and Thrive When Opportunity Roars, The Sacred Enneagram: Finding Your Unique Path to Spiritual Growth, and You Are the Girl for the Job: Daring to Believe the God Who Calls You. There were certainly other books with spiritual themes that I read, but these were the ones that I enjoyed the most and that you would likely find in the spiritual/religious section of bookstores.
Emotional Goals:
Start therapy - DONE. I started going to see my therapist in January. I only go once a month, but it has been a really good way to start off on the right foot. I have loved having someone to share with, someone to challenge me, and to see myself start to become a more emotionally strong, vulnerable, and resilient person. Unfortunately, my therapist had a family emergency, so I haven’t been able to meet with her lately, but I am hoping to resume in 2020.
Read more on anxiety/depression/happiness - DONE. This is another goal that has been on my list for years. I definitely read books around these themes this year, but again, they are all spread out throughout the months. I am a little surprised that I didn’t read more about these topics, but I have decided that either I haven’t found the right books, or I just don’t need to focus on this topic at the moment. My brain and my reading choices are clearly pulling me in other directions. So I will consider this goal to be done and completed.
Business Goals:
Get new headshots - DONE. Thanks to Mason Joel Photography, I have headshots that I love and we have also done several lifestyle shoots. Some of the photos from which you will be seeing in early 2020!
Email Gretchen Rubin - DONE. I had a question that I wanted to ask Gretchen, the answer to which I thought might help to direct some projects and work that I do in the future. She did answer, and although it wasn’t quite what I was expecting, it did ultimately help. And now, several months later, I am heading in the direction of those projects.
Get my first real organizing client - DONE. Since I started my organizing business at the end of 2018, I had yet to get my first real client. I’m so proud that I not only checked off that goal but was able to meet my dream income number for 2019.
Finish the Inspired Organizer course - DONE. Not only did I finish this course that I signed up for as I was launching my business, but I also joined and completed another one. I am still part of the mastermind portion of both groups, but I have successfully completed the course portion of both.
So on the whole, I’m quite proud of myself, where I am, how far I’ve come, and all that I got done in 2019.
Here’s to 2020, and all the growth yet to come.
Until next time,