Hi, friends! Happy 2020! Wow, it’s officially a new decade!
When I was younger, it seemed like 2020 was so far away. I always thought that by the time we reached 2020, we would have flying cars and be living in space. Well, that didn’t pan out as my imagination had hoped, but it was still one hell of a decade!
I can’t quite remember why I didn’t do a New Year’s post on the blog last year, but I wanted to make sure I wrote one to kick off 2020! One of my blog goals for this year is to try and get back in the swing of posting twice a week, so no better time to start than now!
This past year was A F*CKIN’ YEAR! It had its ups and downs, it had its lessons learned, and it had its new experiences. Needless to say, I learned more about myself over the past year than I thought possible in twelve short months. I feel like that’s something I say every year, but reflecting on this past year feels different.
I wanted to share some of the biggest lessons I learned over the past year as a way to show you that you’re never alone in your quest to find yourself. Life is full of little lightbulb moments, not one big TA-DA moment, ya know?
I guess what I’m trying to say is that sometimes shit works out for you, and then the next year it’s a clusterf*ck. But the important thing is that you learn + grow from the good and the bad.
Lesson No. 1: When one door closes, another door can open instantaneously.
My career took a lot of unexpected twists and turns this year. I was working remotely, I was freelancing, I was ghostwriting a book — a lot of random things that all started when I closed one door of my career. I’m not kidding when I say that the door opened the same day my two-weeks’ notice was made official. How bananas is that?!
The universe has a funny way of working that way. You know how people say that when you’re not looking, you’ll find what you’re looking for? Yeah, that actually does happen, you just have to be open to the idea of it. Was I looking for the opportunities that presented themselves this year? Nope, not particularly. But, I ran straight through the opened door and I haven’t looked back. Don’t hesitate when things like that happen. You just have to go for it!
Lesson No. 2: Listen to yourself, no matter what.
The quarter-life crisis was a very real thing for me over the past year. It was something I struggled with for the better half of 2019. I was feeling really lost in a lot of the facets of my life. But, before I figured out why I was feeling the way I was feeling, I thought it would just get better over time. I didn’t necessarily think I needed to change at all in order for it to get better. I was very wrong. I needed a change of scenery. I needed a change of pace. I needed to start doing things that filled my glass.
So I quit my job, started a new job, moved to my own place, and put myself out there. Although a part of me wishes I would have come to those realizations earlier in 2019, I think I needed those experiences to get to where I am now, which is glass half full.
Lesson No. 3: Don’t waste your time with people who don’t make you feel like the best version of yourself.
I don’t really talk about dating much on here because honestly, it was never really eventful enough to talk about until now. But this year, I started to put myself out there to see what came my way. I went on a lot of boring dates and a couple good dates. I talked to some great people, and wasted my time talking to some not-so-great people. But ya know what? Those moments led me to the great guy that I’m with now, and I couldn’t be happier about that.
When it comes down to it, you should be investing your time into people who make you feel good. It’s as simple as that.
Lesson No. 4: Sometimes people just don’t like you, and that’s fine.
As a Libra and a pretty typical people pleaser, I care when people don’t like me. I don’t know why and I know that I shouldn’t, but I do. This is something I’ve been working on over the past few years and I think it really came full circle this year.
Maybe it was me maturing into adulthood, or maybe it’s because I have more pressing things to worry about, but I really don’t care if people like me. I’m not going to change a single thing about myself in hopes that it makes one more person like me. It’s not worth my time.
Sometimes people will dislike your opinions, or the way you talk, or your entire personality, and ya know what, that’s great for them. Keep living your life to the fullest, and they’ll keep doing whatever it is they do, and everyone will go on their merry way!
Lesson No. 5: Be open to change. Be open to constructive criticism. Be open to growth.
Without all of the above lessons, I don’t think I would have made it to this lesson. I’ve always thought of myself as being adaptable to change, but when it came down to it, I think I was getting too comfortable in my ways. This then led me to quit my job, move again, and find myself in a relationship, all within a two-month period. Did I expect everything to change all at once? Absolutely not. But I welcomed those changes with open arms.
For a while, I think I was searching for something that I wasn’t even sure I would find. That never-ending search was what led to my constant boredom with the circumstances I found myself in. But there’s something about the alignment of everything now. I’m content.
I’m not searching for the next best thing. I’m not plotting my next big move. I’m just enjoying the ride, and that’s what 2020 is about for me. Accepting where I am at and being present to enjoy life and all it has to offer. Cheesy, I know, but it’s true!
I wish you all lots of good vibes in 2020! I am forever grateful for your support of this blog and I can’t wait to continue creating content in the new year.
Cheers!
Until next time!
Alicia