New Years Resolutions and Goal-Setting

New Years resolution — does anyone even use that phrase anymore? I think it’s more common now to look at the new year as an opportunity for goal-setting and I’m 100% down with that idea. The new year is one of my favorite holidays. The fresh start invigorates me and I take the opportunity to reflect on my life and what I want to achieve or change. By setting out achievable goals each new year, I’m always striving for my dreams and living a life of purpose and direction. This blog started as a New Years goal and I’m so thankful for that! It’s become a true passion and labor of love for me as I continue to be shaped through learning and inspired by the blogging community around me. We’re six days into the new year so I figured it’s time I get my 2018 goals written down.

This year I made two types of goals: those for personal growth, and those for professional/creative growth (i.e. as it relates to the blog). I’m sharing my personal goals below and I’ll be sharing the professional/blog goals as they come into reality (I’m announcing one soon so stay tuned!).

Personal goal #1: Improve my vocabulary

I’ve shortened this to a three-word goal but what I really want to do by improving my vocabulary is communicate, write, and speak better. Being able to communicate ideas is essential for blogging and rewarding for life in general. I majored in Communication Studies in college! At the end of December I read this post: crutch words that can ruin a sentence. Since then I’ve been actively trying to keep them out of my writing in blogs, emails, social media captions, texts, you name it! I like the idea of getting rid of fluffy, extra words that don’t add value to a message. I also signed up for Dictionary.com’s word of the day email and I’ve loved learning obscure new words each day. I hope you see the benefit of this goal reflected in the stories I write on the blog!

Personal goal #2: Step out of my comfort zone more

Growth and great things happen when you leave your comfort zone! I’m going to step out of mine in 2018 and do things I normally shy away from. An example I’m working on is creating videos on my blog and social media. I’m usually camera-nervous but I know that I can only feel more natural by doing it more. Also, trying creative poses and compositions in photos. Speaking up in a group where I tend to be more quiet and observe. Networking more, planning get-togethers, reaching out, and making lifelong connections and memories. I’m excited to see what’s on the other side of my ‘comfort bubble’!

Personal goal #3: Listen to more music

I’ve read a bit on how music can affect our moods and can be a good tool for staying productive and generally pleasant. I have my go-to stations of jazz, reggae, and 80’s on Pandora but I’m on the hunt for some new tunes for dance-time sessions and fresh inspiration. Please send me any recommendations you have!

Personal goal #4: Lose the last of the baby weight

This one’s last because it’s not as much for personal growth but it’s important nonetheless! Getting back to my pre-baby weight is a benchmark for me to feel like I fully healed from the incredible process of growing and birthing a baby. It’s also extremely important for me to set a good example for my daughter of being healthy and appreciating our bodies as the only ones we get in this life. As of the writing of this post I’m 7.4 pounds away from this goal so I feel like it’s almost too easy.

I’m not spilling the beans on my blog goals ahead of time because I want to have some surprises up my sleeve, but I will share a little about the future and what you can expect from GLS. A question every blogger faces is what exactly they want their blog to be or the direction it will take. I’ve spent time meditating on this lately and truly feel happy with my direction for this blog. While I love sharing my style with you and will continue to, I have other interests I’ve always wanted to share with you!

I’ve been obsessed with natural beauty (i.e. no chemicals or toxic products) for seven years and almost exclusively use organic and naturally-made products and toiletries. You’ll see new categories of posts coming to the site as I share about specific products I use, at-home routines I follow, and DIY treatments I do regularly and love! You can also look forward to better photography and stories as we upgrade our ten year-old dslr camera and spend more time practicing and learning. I want to be a source of inspiration that sparks your desire to seek out adventure, to live naturally and with purpose, and to lead an inspired, joy-filled life!

I didn’t save much room for talking outfits, but this navy faux fur coat is a couple years old and I still love to wear it when it gets cold. The shirt, jeans, and sandals are all newer but aren’t all still available. I’ve linked similar pieces below!

Now your turn, spill the beans: have you made goals? If not, have I inspired you to reconsider? Scroll down and tell me!

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Shop the post:

 ANN TAYLOR FAUX FUR COAT-old (1, 2) | MADEWELL T-SHIRT-sold out (1, 2) | DESTROYED BOYFRIEND LEVIS-sold out (1, 2) | FRINGE SANDALS (also HERE and HERE)