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    December Recap & January/2019 Goals

    Last month I started something new…I decided to share my goal-setting process as well as my monthly, weekly, and daily goals for the world to see. This was a little nerve-racking because it added a sense of pressure and accountability, but I'm so glad I did it!

     

    If you missed it, you can check it out HERE!

     

    I know January is the time that EVERYONE makes new goals, but I take mine seriously. (That's why I started sharing them last month instead of now!) This may be a post that no one even reads or cares about, but it's just as much for me as it is for anyone else. So here we go!

     

     

    December was a great month! I had lots of extra vacation time that I didn't realize I had, so I was able to take some time off and really rest and reset for 2019. That rest did wonders for me! I feel sharper than ever, and I was able to stick with my goals for the month very well. Here's a little recap:

     

    December Monthly Goals Review

    • Hit our monthly savings goal for the house. Check! Things were getting pretty tight, but we managed to stick with it and hit the goal. We aren't in the most comfortable spot right now, but things should level out this month.
    • Read 2 books. Check and check!! I'm excited about this one. As I mentioned last month, I've been TERRIBLE at reading. I really stepped up my game and finished two excellent books: Off the Clock by Laura Vanderkam and The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss. I highly recommend both to anyone wanting to take hold of their time and use it wisely!
    • Write 4 Blog Posts (outside of sessions). Check! Thank goodness for my time of rest, or else I'm not sure this one would have gotten done in the hustle and bustle of the holiday.
    • Go on a family adventure. Check! The adventure for this month that I cherish the most was when Daniel and I took Maddie to the park before Wednesday service one day. It was such a special time where we got to focus on playing with our girl. It was simple, but it makes me smile thinking about it.
    • Go on scheduled date nights. Check! So glad we made time for these!
    • Get the new client workflow going. Check! My 2019 clients will thank me.
    • Do an End-of-the-month Review/Prep Day. Check! (Most of this post is coming from the time I spent reviewing my month and looking towards the next month.)
    • Set 2019 Goals. Check! (Keep reading…I've listed these out below!)

     

     

    December Weekly Goals Review

    • Start a Weekly Reset/Planning Day. Check!
    • Batch work on Marketing Monday's. Check! (sort of…) It's about progress, not perfection. I was able to do this most of the weeks this month.
    • Keep up with Financial Friday's. I could use improvement with this one. I started off strong, but then didn't keep up as the month went on.

     

    December Daily Goals Review

    • Morning devotional time. Check!
    • Read 15 minutes. Eh, I could have done better. I figured out a way to get my 2 books read, but didn't do so well reading every single day.
    • Work on intentional rest. Check! Rest did me well!
    • Time with Maddie. Check!

     

     


     

    JANUARY GOALS

    This month will be the last month before we meet our baby boy! I feel like there's so much to be done, so I'll have to really be mindful of the way I use my time. I don't want to live out of a place of hustle, but out of rest.

     

    I thought long and hard about what I wanted my word for the month to be. I settled on SUPERCHARGED.

     

    I want to really invest into myself and preparing for February so I'm supercharged and ready to take time off and rest once Carson joins us. I'm going to need energy and logistics in place so I won't have to think about those things and can focus on my family during my maternity leave.

     

    Friends and family reading this, any donations of Starbucks Zebra Hot Chocolate will be welcomed with open arms by this busy preggie!

     

    Monthly Goals

    • Hit our monthly savings goal for the month. Yep, this one stays up from last month. Only a couple of months left to save!
    • Read 2 books. This month I'll be reading The One Thing by Gary Keller and Chasing Slow by Erin Loechner if you want to read along with me!
    • Write 4 Blog Posts (outside of sessions). This one stays, too. I'm ahead right now, so I'm hoping to stay ahead and prep for when Carson gets here so I won't have to be writing on my maternity leave.
    • Go on a family adventure. Probably the last one before Baby Carson joins us!
    • Go on a scheduled date night. Again, last hoorah before Carson!
    • Create 4 Opt-Ins. I'm working to grow my email list and serve my audience well. These freebies will help me do both of those things…just so time consuming to create!
    • Launch my new website! Yep, you read that correctly! SURPRISE! I'm in the process of building a brand new website and it is beautiful! I'm hoping to be done sometime this week or next.
    • Book Valentine's Minis. I can't believe it's time to think about Valentine's Day! These will be the last sessions I shoot before going on maternity leave.
    • START Business Course Prep. I've been planning on building a business course for moms wanting to go from “Mom-tographer” to professional photographer, but I have yet to start it! This month I just want to START! Even if I don't get very far, the act of starting will be progress!

     

     

    Weekly Goals

    • Continue with my Weekly Reset/Planning Day. Taking the time to prepare for my week at the beginning of each week worked very well! I want to continue to stay consistent with this.
    • Batch work on Marketing Monday's. Guess what I'll be working on? Blog posts and opt-ins!
    • Keep up with Financial Friday's. I'd love to do better than I did last month with this one.

     

     

    Daily Goals

    • Morning devotional time. There's no better way to start your day than with Jesus!
    • Read 15 minutes. As I said before, I know I can finish books easily if I set aside at least 15 minutes a day to read. I'll be trying to do this in the mornings before Maddie wakes up.
    • Intentional rest. Slowing down and setting time aside to simply rest is important to me. I'm the type of person that will go, go, go until I crash. Especially since I'm in my third trimester, I need the rest to get the things done that I need to get done.
    • Time with Maddie. I'll be soaking up these moments this month! We don't have much time left until her little brother joins us, so I want to get as much time with her as I can until then.

     


     

    2019 Goals

    Business:

    • Launch my Business Course
    • Host an in-person workshop for photographers/Mom-tographers
    • Learn and utilize Facebook Ads
    • Save up for the Creative @ Heart Conference

     

    Personal: 

    • Read at least 1 book a month
    • Read through the Chronological Bible
    • Pay off my car

     


     

    I'm excited for what 2019 holds! I know it's going to be a great year of growth with so many exciting things to look forward to! New house, new baby, new business ventures, new things in our youth ministry at the church…SO MANY NEW THINGS! Can't wait!

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