Mid-year Check-in

 

Mid-year check-in blog post.

I haven’t done this in a while, mainly because life was happening for me and I needed to prioritize. Between school, work and the blog my plate was life and I couldn’t commit to everything at once. Getting my degree is my number one priority and I had to put all my energy towards that. It is the semester break and I couldn’t wait to get back into blogging. I missed this part of my life.

 

Today’s blog post is a mid-year check in. Like most people, I sat down and worked on my vision board at the beginning of the year. I had short, medium and long term goals on there. Creating a vision board is all fun but that’s not where the work stops. We actually need to have systems in place to help us achieve these goals. Right before I sat down to pen this blog post, I went through my vision board to see how far I have come regarding my goals in the first 6 months of the year and to be honest, I am happy with my overall progress. I broke down my vision board into three main parts of my life, namely; Varsity, Blog & Personal.

As I mentioned, getting my degree is top two and not two. The main goal under varsity is to pass all my modules. I haven’t received my results but I did really well throughout the two terms, I poured myself into my work and I hope and pray it pays off. Academia is stressful, it requires a lot and it takes away a lot. Love and light to anyone pursuing higher education, it is not easy but hang in there.

I had quite a few goals under Blog because I am a very ambitious queen and this blog means everything to me. The first one was to launch #ADBWMERCH and I did just that! That was my first win for the year and I couldn’t be happier with the turnout. It turned out exactly how I wanted it to turnout. Thank you to everyone that has supported by buying, sharing and liking etc. I truly appreciate the support, ndiyabulela. The 2^nd goal was to monetize my blog but Google has other plans, we will keep trying nonetheless. The 3^rd goal was to work with a brand that aligns with my work in the women and activism space. This has not happened mainly because I am scared. I have written and deleted multiple proposals I have lost count. I pray that I can acquire enough courage to finally write and sent it through. I have nothing to lose by putting my blog out there. Someone said “You lose 100% of the shots you don’t take” and I should take that motivation to the finish line. 

My 4^th goal is coming to life in the 2^nd half of the year and I am beaming with excitement. I will be starting an Instagram series called ‘Conversations Are Realities’. Please be on the lookout for more information on our social media pages. My 5^th and last blog goal is to reach 1000 followers on both Instagram and Facebook at the end of the year. This has very little chances of happening because I am not consistent in posting and therefore the algorithm does not favour me. At this point, I will settle for half of that. Please like & follow us on Instagram and Facebook and tell your friends and family to do the same.

On the personal side of things, I am happy with my progress, I am moving in the right direction. Top of the list is to be Happy. Happiness is what we all long for and for the most part I have been happy. Being a person that lives with anxiety, I bask in every bit of happiness I can find because more often than, anxiety snatches it from my hands. As a Christian, my relationship with God is of utmost importance. Especially because we are in a new normal and do not come together to praise and worship. Consciously taking time out to be with God is a need. I also implemented ‘Worship Wednesday’ where I listen to worship music before bed and ‘Sermon Saturday’ where I open up a sermon and meditate on it. 

My third personal goal is to make money. I was able to successfully do this through #ADBWMERCH sales and I got a job during this panorama which I am extremely grateful to God for. I am however on the hunt for a job that aligns with my work as a blogger which will not only be a much more pleasant work experience for me, it will also give me a chance to put my blog on the map. Once you start making money, the onus is on you to save money. That is my 2^nd last goal, saving money. This is not my strongest suit, I think mainly because I haven’t found a saving system that makes sense and would work for me. Maybe this is terrible mentality but putting my money in a bank and it only accumulating 5% or less whereas the bank makes 5x more from my money sounds like day-light robbery. With all that being said, I really need a saving plan that makes sense and actually benefits me.

I am grateful to be alive, studying towards a degree I actually love, having a job during this panorama, being happy, working on my passions and being a badass black woman!

That’s it for my mid-year check in. It was very therapeutic and allowed me to look back and assess my progress. This is an encouragement to you, to do your mid-year check-in. Life passes by really fast and it becomes very easy to forget the initial goal/plan. Going back to assess your wins, losses & shortfalls allows for growth. It is the last 6 months of the year; let us make the best of it. In our determination to accomplish our goals, let us not forget to rest. Rest is not a luxury, it is a need!

 

As usual, please feel free to comment down below if this blog has inspired you to do your mid-year check-in or you can do it in the comment section and we hype each other up. Please continue sharing blog information with your friends and family and let us grow our family.

 

Love,

A Determined Black Woman.