My Journey Into Personal Development

January 23, 2019.

That is the first time that I wrote down a vision board for myself. I took intentional time to myself and thought about what I wanted the next 10 years of my life to look like. What would it mean for me to call my shot and actually live the life that I really wanted? I had never done that before. I didn’t even know that you could do that. More importantly, I didn’t know that you should write down your hopes and dreams.

“You, and only you, are ultimately responsible for who you become and how happy you are.”

Rachel Hollis

Where Did My Personal Development Journey Begin?

How did this personal development journey even begin? From the bottom of course. Not rock bottom, but definitely dipping my toes in rock bottom.

• In 2016, my daughter was born. A miracle pregnancy that several doctors over the course of 7 years told my husband and I that we would never conceive.
• At the end of 2017, my person, my very best friend, passed away unexpectedly. I saw her on Thanksgiving, and the next day she had a brain aneurysm. My person that taught me what unconditional love was like in her mothering, and of course her friendship, was gone in a literal blink of an eye.
• In 2018, my husband took a salaried promotion an hour away from our house. He quickly was mentally spent by corporate manager life which of course never ends. It left most of the household and parenting duties to me, as I worked a full-time retail job. I was doing my best to still pump breastmilk for our growing baby, and was 1,000% devastated and heartbroken over the loss of my best friend for many, many months. It felt like Groundhog’s day. We would put our baby down to sleep, argue, cry, and hold on tight to each other praying for the pain to end, with no idea how it would.

I will never forget New Years Day of 2019. My husband and I had a second chance. He got offered a position back home, and he took it. At the time, we didn’t care about money, we cared about our family and our marriage. We both wanted our wholeness back. We wanted and needed something good to get back to us.

THE BOOK THAT CHANGED MY LIFE. Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis

Then, I got handed Girl, Wash Your Face (not an ad) from a very special friend I had made at work. I had worked with her a few years before, and then she got placed at my store right when I was really struggling. I remember thinking to myself, “I wonder if she got placed here for a reason.” And guess what, she most definitely was placed in my life at the exact time I needed a turning point. That, was no accident.

I am not a huge reader, and I had never even heard of personal development when I started reading this book. Intentionally making yourself a better person is so far off the path than where I come from. I thought you had to survive your life, I didn’t know that you could actually thrive in your life. I had no idea that you could be more than a wife and a working mom. I had no idea you should work through your trauma, create boundaries, and have dreams for yourself. I had no idea you could put yourself first. I really thought you just woke up one day, and all those things you wanted would just kinda happen.

Guess what. It doesn’t just happen. YOU have to do the work.

You Are Supposed To Have Goals

No one told me. I didn’t have an example or a leader that went first to show me what could be possible other than the daily grind of work, dinner, raise a baby, sleep, and repeat. I had no idea I was allowed to dream, that I was supposed to dream. I didn’t know how to go about a goal, how to even achieve a goal, and then to make even more goals? What?!

I had always thought something was wrong with me because I was so different than everyone else around me. I was always trying something, but I never could figure out why I wasn’t ok in my own skin just being. I never knew that I have always been on a personal growth journey. I made the decision to change my life in third grade. I had no idea how, but I knew I would, and for me in third grade, that meant going to college. That was my first goal.

I am different, because I was made for more. I am sorry Rachel Hollis, I am using your catch phrase. But is simply true. I, and you are made to do more than work, raise kids, and grow old. There are ideas in your mind, dreams in your heart, and you absolutely should start pursuing them, no matter how old you are.

I will never stop pursuing my dreams and encouraging you, to go do the same. Why? Because it is my personal responsibility to show up for others as the leader that I once wished for as a little girl, a young woman, and a new mom.

Love and light.

Hey! I love talking goals! Need some help? Comment below or email me! heygoalsister@gmail.com