Goodbye 2016

 

"There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure"

     -General Colin Powell

 

I'm sure that I'm not alone when I say that I am happy to wave goodbye to the unforgiving year of 2016. It was probably one of the strangest and disappointing years that I've had in a long time. The majority of my disappointments were not my fault, but there were some that I have to take full responsibly for.

The awesome thing about going into a new year, although some may call cliché', is the sense of starting over fresh with a clean slate. I wont say that it will be a "New Year, New Me" type of situation, because I will still be the same Grace Lauren that everyone knows. I will say that I plan on being more courageous and actually executing my "Hashtag Goals" that I've longed for in 2016. I don't know what happened this year but somewhere along the way I got distracted, and lost motivation to get anything done. I became content with just existing and getting by. I spent countless hours (more than I'm willing to admit) watching others thrive and prosper on social media while I sat at home and hit "like", and equally spent as much time reading articles about racism, terrorism, and celebrity gossip. I would legit wake up, grab my phone, and see what I missed, which could turn into hours of mindless scrolling. 

I'm not saying that I completely wasted all of 2016. I did get a couple of major things done in the last 12 months that I had on my 2016 Goals List. I can honestly say that I could have done a whole lot more and ultimately got lazy and complacent. I know what I need to do to get back on track, and I owe it to myself to do so.

One of my biggest goals in 2017 is to get my Health and Wellness blog and YouTube launched. This project has been in the works for the past 6 months, but the one thing holding me back is fear. I look at all of my favorite bloggers and YouTube channels out there and immediately get intimidated to post anything. Most have been in the game for years and they produce excellent content. I have zero experience in web design, photography, video editing, or anything in media for that matter. I have a serious fear of outsiders reading and watching my content and thinking how terrible it is..... but I've come to the realization that I have to just put it out there, and learn as I go.

In the New Year I will step out on faith, and not hold back out of fear of failing. This not only goes for my Blogging and YouTube, but in all aspects of my life. I will hold myself accountable, and only go out to play if my work is done(something I failed miserably at  in 2016). I will spend less time admiring others on social media, and spend more time working on my content. I will invest less time in things, and more time on my mental, spiritual, and physical health, while inspiring others to do the same.

Look out 2017, I'm coming for you with my game face on and ready to work. I hope that on this day 365 days for now, I will be singing a different tune, and know that I did all I could to be my best self.  Lets get it!