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Hey all! I hope your 2020 has been going great! Firstly welcome to the new site and the first blog post of 2020! I know we are five months in, but I was self-quarantining before the quarantine. I was so ready for 2020, but 2019 taught me to sit down, reflect, and have patience, so I took the beginning of 2020 to do that and honestly y'all it has prepared me for so much. None of us had any idea that 2020 would start with a world wide pandemic, but oddly enough I was ready. Not ready in the sense of, I knew this was going to happen because I definitely did not. But, I was ready for this isolation, for this time to reflect, realign, and just slow down. I know this time is hard for many of us for varying reasons whether it be financially, mentally, or emotionally, but I can say that we will get through this. I have faith.
And let me tell you guys why I have faith, its because I know I needed this time. 2019 was a rough year for me and 2020, even though I was excited I was already feeling overwhelmed. I was struggling mentally, physically and emotionally. I was so drained I wasn't writing or really able to focus on building my business. I was trying but felt stuck and lost and like I was just keeping my head above water. I was so ready to crush 2020, but I was struggling to get through the first two weeks of January. I knew I had too much going on and really needed take some time. I prayed on it and God told me to wait.
So I did. I just literally put a hold on everything and re planned and purposed. But in my plan to do so, there was still a lot of anxiety. I felt I was too new a blogger, too new in my business, how could I take a break already? Had I earned a break? I didn't feel like it. So what was I thinking? I told myself a few weeks at most, just a quick break and planning session to better manage 2020. And that's what I did, except every time I attempted to blog or promote my business something happened, the site was down for no apparent reason, and business was definitely not booming or growing. At one point I just had to take a step back from my company. Then add to that this pandemic and my great grandmother, the love of my life passing. I was low. And I felt everything I was attempting was failing. I wasn't sure why everything i had planned for was not working out. So I stopped and prayed on it. I really listened and God was telling me to wait, to take my time, to trust the process and Him, no matter how much I wanted to do things my way. And that's what i did. I wrote out my plans, did a little something to accomplish them each day, prayed and waited. And God delivered. I get an email saying to work form home, which cut my commute time giving me more time to focus on my business and blog. I have people reaching out about joining my trading business and the host for my site had a 50% off sale! YALL! Everything started falling into place! But none of this would have happened had I not stopped and got it together.
Now let me be clear, my self quarantine was not just me sitting in my house. No I had a plan and have been so intentional with what I wanted to accomplish. I know time right now for many is tough, but I do urge all of you to use this time to focus on your goals as much as you can. I do think we should all come out of this with new goals met. And if you're struggling to do that, let me break down how I have been quarantining.
1.Prep
So preparation is KEY! Seriously. Take some time to decide what the top 5 things are that you would like to accomplish. It can be anything. Cleaning out your closet, working out daily, starting a business, etc. Then write out your S.M.A.R.T. Goals.
S-Specific. Be clear and precise on your goals. If your organizing your house say that specifically.
M-Measurable. Whatever your goal is, make sure you can track your progress, this will help you stay motivated. Maybe its one room a day in your home.
A-Attainable. Make sure you can do it! If your goal is to clean one room a day, don't start redecorating or painting. It maybe too much for you to attain in a day.
R-Relevant. Pick something relevant to your life. If you house has one book out of place it is not relevant for you to clean the whole house. Focus on another goal!
T-Time. Set a time to complete it by. and STICK TO IT! If your house has five rooms, one room a day. your goal is 5 days. No more. Stick to your timeline.
2. Focus
Whatever your goals are will require your focus. You will have to be intentional. I won't lie that is where I struggle. Sometimes I'm like I can accomplish that tomorrow. I can do this another day etc. I believe that is why God told me to slow down, I needed to learn to re-focus to move forward. When you focus on one thing at a time you accomplish so much. I'm not saying one thing a day but whatever your task is at that time give it your all.
3. Fun
So I know fun is limited right now, but there needs to be fun in your life. To ensure your mental health during this time do something fun. Have a nerf gun fight, go for a walk and enjoy the sun, or have your own dance party. Listen I have put on a live concert for my family. They got a live Beyonce concert performed by me! I was Beyonce! And it was great. We have also been doing themed dinner nights, we had a night in Italy, another in NOLA with homemade beignets and a seafood boil bag, and a night in Mexico with margaritas and shrimp tacos. We even had a dress up theme as well for each night. (See below for me as Selena). I know times are tough but get creative in how you can have fun and stay positive.
4. Rest
I cannot stress how important this is. On the seventh day even God rested. I started this year burned out, mentally, emotionally, and physically. I was pushing myself on fumes. If your quarantine goal is to rest, DO SO. We get so focused on accomplishing as much as we can as fast as we can because society tells us if we don't we are missing out. That's not true. You go further on a full tank than an empty one. Rest and rest well. I have gone so far to schedule out an hour a day devoted to resting. Just me, a book, or TV and wine. Nothing to bother me. It helps keep me charged and ready to attack the next day.
We put a lots of stress on people in our society to just keep pushing and that can be more damaging. Its OK to pause and re-evaluate and re-align. or to just take a break to breathe. Now I know that this is all easier said then done. But, now is the time, that we actually have time. No commutes, no extra distractions, free time to do the things we have been saying we will do. The things we have put off or felt like time was never on our side no matter how much we planned. You have been granted time, even if you feel you can't accomplish it all right now, plan for it anyway. Whether it's your home make over or your business plan, or something as simple as organizing your closet. PLAN IT OUT. I promise that will make accomplishing it 10x easier. And be patient with it and yourself. Whether you accomplish it today, in 10 days, or 10 years, you will get there and it will be GLORIOUS.