Last year, my new year’s goals and intentions were quite different than anything I’d set to accomplish in the past. You see, I used to make cliché empty promises to lose weight! Take better care of myself! Stop being late for things! Save money! And not surprisingly, without any sort of action plan, things never worked out for me. At the end of each year, I’d be 5 lbs heavier, still late for everything, have an apartment full of unorganized papers/crippling clutter, and be in even more debt. Then, I’d feel bad about myself for not changing any of these things and carry over the resolutions into the next year. It was a vicious cycle that lasted for pretty much all of my twenties.
In November of 2015, I’d hit a wall. I had finally pushed myself to a place where change wasn’t a question, it was a necessity. Burnt out completely, the weight of all these ignored promises compounded into the need for me to go back to the basics. My goal for 2016 was to completely reinvent myself, to strip my life down to the fundamentals and build it back up. Which compared to what I used to say each January, seemed like a very tall order. It took the entire year (and is always a work in progress), but you guys…I did it!
I don’t want to be annoyingly vague, but this past year I completely simplified my life. It wasn’t easy and wasn’t always exciting, but I feel in control of things again. I’ve been thinking about sharing what exactly I went through over the past year in more detail. It’d be really transparent, but if any of it could help you, I’m more than willing to share what worked for me and what I plan to implement going forward.
And if you thought 2016’s reinvention was crazy, then you’ll be just as shocked by what I plan for myself in 2017. This year, my goal is to come alive. I feel like I spent all of last year laying the foundation, and now it’s time to really kick things into high gear. More about this on the blog soon!
Photos by To Vogue Or Bust
Knit Scarf from ASOS – and on SALE!
Long Green Cardigan c/o Gentle Fawn – similar here
Distressed Black Denim c/o Mavi
Black Boots from Steve Madden
Grey and Rose Gold Watch c/o Cluse
That is amazing – I can totally relate to making big resolutions and then not meeting them. I am probably where you were in your “before” phase, and would LOVE to hear what worked for you! I love your blog, by the way 🙂
Thank you so much, Holly! Will definitely be sharing details on how I simplified things last year. Thanks for taking the time to leave a note, hope 2017 is off to a wonderful start for you xoxo
Congrats on a successful 2016! I’d love to hear about how you did it!
Thanks so much, Zahr! Hope you had a great year too and that 2017 is off to a nice start. Will definitely be sharing more soon xo
Great article, love your sharing so much, thank you!
Thanks!
I would love to hear about how you successfully simplified! I recently moved and had to make conscious decisions about what was coming with me, so I FEEL like my life should be more ~streamlined, but somehow… at any rate, congratulations!