Your 2017 Is Not Your 2018
Your 2017 is not your 2018.
2018 is a new year. Regardless of whether you had a great or “life trying” 2017, know that your 2017 is not your 2018. What I mean by this is you have the power to make 2018 whatever it is you want it to be. If it was great, what are you doing to ensure 2018 is even better? If it wasn’t, what can you put in place this year to ensure 2018 meets your expectations?
First, as we all do, go ahead and take a look back and reflect on the following:
-What did I accomplish this year?
-What people contributed to the type of year I’ve had?
-What can I do differently next year versus this year?
I’ll be the first to admit that I only accomplished 30% of the goals I set for myself this year. While I was disappointed at first, I had to remember and acknowledge all the things I DID do this year. To name a few, I:
- Made a major life-changing purchase of something I had been wanting to buy for 5+ years
- Paid off all my credit cards
- Moved to a new apartment
- Received a promotion
- Launched my blog
- Had a skype book proposal consult with Nicole Richie
While I only accomplished a few of my goals, I can honestly say that this year was the best year of my life. Why? My mindset shifted from, “that’s not possible” to “here’s what I’m going to do to make this happen”. You are your biggest advocate.
For example, earlier this year, 5 days after the 2017 new year to be exact, I sat down on my couch and opened up two excel documents. At the time, I had been in New York for a little over a year and knew I needed to get my credit card under control. I spent two hours putting together a financial game plan to have it paid off by the end of June. I calculated how much money I would put towards my balance a month. I identified what expenses I could eliminate to put towards my balance. I even decided to use my entire bonus and tax return and apply it to my balance. After many nights of declining invites, abandoning items in my online shopping cart, and saving, I paid off my total balance by the middle of April.
In the words of Big Sean, “Stick to the plan.”
Millennials have this mindset that they must do everything now and at the same pace as their peers. This is just not the case. My mother always tells me, “If you spend your entire life comparing yourself to others, you will never be happy.” She’s right.*
While I’d love to be at the point in my life where I can buy a house like many people I know my age, I realized that’s just not the life I chose. I made the decision to live in New York where 40% of my salary goes to taxes and to pay rent that is more than most people’s mortgages. I accept that. We’ve all made decisions in our life that make certain goals in life easily achievable, unachievable, or challenging achievable.
I’ve always been (and still am) one of those people whom set both short term of long term goals.
I want to live in New York until X.
I want to make X amount of money by X.
I want to be X title by X
I want to be married by X.
I want to buy a house by X.
While God laughs when we make our own plans, I like having some type of framework for where I want my life to be in the near and far future. If I’m not on track to achieve something by a certain time, it’s not the end of the world. I adjust. I’ve learned and am still learning to become flexible.
One additional thing I like to do each year is assign a motto or catch phrase that I want to live by or remind myself throughout the year. For me, 2017 was The Comeback Year.
I just recently came up with my motto for 2018 while on a recent vacation. I was sitting on an Arubian beach with a stranger turned friend. During conversation, she said “My old type is not my new type”. Her statement stuck with me. It reminded me that what I’ve endured in my past, what I failed at yesterday, whom I dated, friends I no longer talk to, and the jobs that drove me to insanity, do not define my tomorrow.
What’s your motto for 2018?
-B
*For more insightful insight from my mother, visit www.mastertrainertmr.com*