PS- I am still planning to finish up "The Blog-tember Challenge" even though I have missed the deadline by a long shot. Don't judge... It will be fun to finally finish!
How have you changed in the past year?
I have grown up a lot in the last year.
I suppose it's probably not the best admission-- to be 26 (almost 27) and growing up, but I have never really been one to do things as expected.
I look back to this time of the year last year and I was teaching full time, coaching two teams, going to grad school, and realizing that some people were not as I expected them to be. At this time last year, I realized how alone I really was on my current path in life and I didn't like the direction I was headed or the person I was becoming.
I made many different decisions last year. Some choices were definitely better than others, but I own up to every last thing I did. I tried some things outside of my comfort zone, I allowed myself to enjoy experiences I would have usually avoided, and I worked to live in the moment.
Now I am half a country and an entire ocean away from where I was last year. I still don't have life figured out, but I am more comfortable with the direction I am moving. I am still far from where I want to be or the person I want to become, but I am learning how to find a balance in life. I am still teaching full time and going to grad school, but I have taken a year off from coaching because I knew it would be healthy for me. I miss coaching so much, but I have pushed myself out of my comfort zone and refused to deny an opportunity placed before me. I am learning how to continually prioritize people over things and let work take the back seat. I am also learning how weak of a teacher I am and how much more growth I have to achieve in the classroom.
My honest prayer is that I will never again become complacent with where I am in life and that I will always push myself to grow and to change. I remember sitting on the school bus at 23, looking out at the night sky, and being so grateful that I had landed my dream job so early in life. I loved those years and my experiences, but I am grateful that God has pulled me out to something new. I hope that at this time next year, I am again in a completely different place than I am now because that means I have continued to become the best person I can be.
The Lord made me for his glory. May I always strive to meet my potential as He created me to be.
Instead of making resolutions for the entirety of 2015, I have decided to instead start making monthly goals. I have never been very good about following through on my resolutions and as I have watched a couple of my favorite bloggers (namely Erin and Shay) practice making monthly goals, I have decided to join in on the practice too.
I'm already scared just looking at the first five months of 2015, but bring. it. on. By the end of May, I will have finished my first year teaching at a new job, written my thesis and prepared for its defense, applied for graduate school (again!), and paid down 15% of my total remaining debt.
Here we go, 2015. Let's get this show on the road!
1. Update my Franklin every day. I have been so unproductive in my days because I haven't been listing and prioritizing my to-do list each day. #Nerdbomb #Colorcodedtoo
2. Implement a revised budget. I fell off the budget bandwagon when I moved last year and that needs to stop. I have been living in Thailand long enough that I have a decent understanding of what I need to do with my finances. Now I need to make it happen.
3. Clean and organize my email accounts for fifteen minutes each day. I have three different inboxes and now is the time to get them back to a manageable status. I never understood what people meant when they were "behind on email," but boy do I understand it now! My plan is to knock out my work email first, my personal email second, and my school email last.
4. Complete 50% of my thesis bibliography. I have almost officially hit panic mode. I have about two and a half months to write a thesis. I need to get a TON of reading done this month. Since my Works Cited page must include at least 40 resources, I will need to have read, notated, and filed at least 20 different resources this month. I also have to submit my thesis proposal and my topic proposal, but I get no choice in those matters. January is going to be very grad school heavy.
5. Finish 1/3 of my 3/30/90 workout goal. In the midst of everything else to do in the month, I need to remember to take care of myself. I saw this pin the other day and found myself very attracted to it. I'm committing to a better lifestyle practice and trusting the results will come. It's reasonable, it's attainable, and it's now mine.
Here we go, 2015. Meet you at the end!
