Hello there. With the end of the year rushing towards us, it feels like it is time to start taking stock of the year that was and planning for the year to come. One of the exercises that works for me is to ask myself what success will look like at the end of the year. I am a firm believe in “doing the hard stuff because the time will pass anyway.”
My fifty-second birthday is in just over two weeks. (That number doesn’t look so daunting when you write it out. 😅). When I turned fifty, I said this would be my best decade yet, and I still believe it. This year, I stepped out of my shell in an attempt to set myself up for my future. Now, I need to make the most of the new skills and experiences that I have acquired. I also decided where I wanted to be by next April. I am so surprised to see that opportunities are popping up that can enable the materialisation of those goals. I shouldn’t be because I know that God has my back, but I can’t help it. It’s so amazing.
In his book Atomic Habits, James Clear advises, “Be the designer of your world and not merely the consumer of it.” At this point, I am grateful that I finally understand that I need to do this. I have been a consumer of my life for too long. I am also thankful that God has given me the courage and strength to keep moving towards my goals. He has also blessed me with the opportunities to grow into the person I need to be to achieve my desires and goals. There were so many times this year that I witnessed myself saying things and behaving in ways that I only dreamed of. I still have a long way to go, but I am taking a moment to thank myself for all the growing I did this year. I am very proud of myself.
Image created on Canva
2025’s words are “health and wellness” for me, and I am thrilled to have already started building some of the necessary habits I will need with my new mini-trampoline and stationary bike. It is going to be a good year. I am very excited. Financial wellness is also on the cards. This year was a financial disaster, so I also have much work to do there. I am looking forward to the challenge, even though sacrifices will have to be made to achieve my goal.
Well, that is from me for today. Thanks for popping by. Have you decided on your word for the year yet? Let me know in the comments.
Hello there. How was the start to your week? Mine was very peaceful. My long weekend has come to an end, and I didn’t get much done. I did rest, though, and I think that was the most important thing to get done.
One Thing I am Grateful For
I didn’t get to see my sister today as planned, so I gave her a call instead, and we chatted for over an hour. It was good to hear her voice. I am glad we took the time to catch up.
I have spent this weekend reviewing the year that was and thinking through my 2025 goals. As I have mentioned, my word for 2025 will be “Wellness”, so I have been unpacking what that means for me and what success will look like.
My word for 2024 is “Less”. I am quite excited that I have managed to get a lot of physical decluttering done. I will spend the last two weeks of the year improving my digital decluttering. I store so much stuff that I will probably never use, and I suspect it is because I am often unclear about what I want to do or write about, so I store loads of information “just in case”.
If you have not tried choosing a word for the year, I highly recommend it. I find that it helps me stay intentional about how I live my life throughout the year, as the word I choose always hangs around in the back of my mind and gives me a gentle prod when I deviate from my intention. Thus far, I have developed better digital systems for storing information at work because my 2022 intention was about productivity. I am still working on one for home, and I am excited because I have finally found one that I like and can make work. It always helps me feel like I can end the year feeling like I have made significant progress in at least one area of my life.
That’s it from me today. Thanks for popping by. Do you have a word for the year? How have you progressed towards achieving something towards it?
I know right! Where has the year gone? On the bright side, it means we still have 95 days left (at the time of writing this) to achieve the goals we set for 2024. It doesn’t sound like much, but it’s enough time to close off what you have started, at least.
I have been reviewing my year thus far and I have to say that it hasn’t been too bad of a year. 2024 is my year of Less. Most importantly for me, I needed to declutter my home. I am thrilled to say that I am about 70% of the way there. My kitchen countertops are clear. My dining room area is clear (most days at least. What is it about table tops that attracts life’s bits and bobs? 🤷🏽♀️) My lounge is looking neater and I finally figured out how to keep all the electrical cords out of site. I hate to say it but I do need to get rid of some of my books as I am never going to read them all. The sight of them overwhelms me sometimes. Next in line: my wardrobes.
Tough love is Tough!
Raising a teen is a challenge like no other. This past school term has been a push to get my son’s marks up. I think he forgot what he is capable of. I had to set strict boundaries to get him focused throughout the term. The hardest part of tough love is the toll it takes on the person giving it. I have always hated saying no to my son, but I also accepted that there were times when no was the only answer. This term was a term of an almost constant stream of “no”. It broke my heart to have to do it and to see the frustration and disappointment in his eyes. At the end of the day, it was all worth it, and even he couldn’t believe some of the marks he achieved. He was so thrilled that he couldn’t wait to get to the car with his report, so he called me and told me about his marks as he walked the few 100m to the car. I was so happy for him and very relieved that his hard work had paid off.
Working and Learning
At work, I have learned to look at things with a marketer’s eyes. Letting go of my technical mindset and methods for doing things has been tough. I am not there yet but I am grateful for the opportunity to grow in this manner. The one thing I have also had to learn is that, even though I am changing the way I look at things or articulate them, I must not doubt my instincts. It is so easy to doubt yourself when learning something new.
Tea is my New Best Friend
My health has been on a bit of a rollercoaster ride this year. I have finally lost most of the weight I had gained this year. My blood sugar is getting back to a good space. My cholesterol has been looking good, but my blood pressure has suddenly jumped up this year. Thankfully, it was almost back to normal this week, but I will keep monitoring it. I have reduced my caffeine intake as a start and am enjoying trying out new caffeine-free teas. Right now I am alternating between rooibos, rose petal and vanilla tea, chamomile tea and ginger tea. The rose tea and chamomile tea are definitely smoother, so I have them at night or when I feel stressed. The rooibos is more earthy in flavour and it seems to also curb my snacking habit. I need to monitor this a bit more to see if it really is helping. Ginger is supposed to aid digestion so I drink it after a meal.
6 Years into my New Reality – an Update
Lastly, this week, it was six years since my mum crossed over. Looking back, I am amazed at how much I have changed since it happened:
I am no longer drawn to articles and books on how to grow my confidence. I am a whole lot more confident in myself.
I am more aware of my strengths, and I spend my time trying to grow them. Right now I am drawn to mental models and strategic thinking.
I have clearer boundaries in most areas of my life.
My faith has grown stronger. I find it easier to let go of people and things that do not positively serve me or my son.
Most importantly, I know who I am.
I still struggle with committing to/focusing on one thing, but I am aware of it which is a step in the right direction. As Dr Phil says, “you can’t change what you don’t acknowledge”. I will continue to chip away at this block until it is no more.
Cheers to the end of another successful quarter! Photograph: Author’s own
So, it’s 88 days to Christmas. I must admit that I have started eyeing new Christmas ornaments in the stores even though I know I have too many already. Note to self, though: It is your year of less. Walk away from the ornaments!😅
How is your 2024 going? What are you most proud of? Do you still have goals that you want to achieve before this year is through? Let me know in the comments. I would love to hear from you.
Grounded African 