throughout this year i have discussed quite a bit with you in regards to goals and last week we furthered the topic by talking about how to be and stay productive. there is so much that could be said on these topics though and that is why we are going to continue discussing them. obviously goals are tough, and that is why we often struggle to achieve them, but what makes it even harder is all of the lies we tell ourselves; the lies that break us away from fulfilling our hearts desires. whether it’s telling yourself you simply don’t have the time or that you aren’t good enough in some way or another the lies need to stop. you do have the time and you are complete as you are. can you grow and improve yourself? always. will it be easy? no! but will it be worth it? yes, it will and i can just about guarantee that because i am living proof that when you push through those lies blessings are bound to come your way.

growing up i struggled with confidence. i was shy and only during the end of my junior year in high school was i able to slowly start breaking out of that shell. did i start by trying to talk to more peers in my class? not a chance, but i did decide to post a YouTube video and then another and another. they were absolutely awkward and to this day they are cringe worthy but they were me; raw, real, and silly. now i don’t expect everyone to go start a YouTube channel to help blossom into who they were meant to be, but we all are on a journey of finding ourselves, who we want to be, and the things that bring us pleasure and peace.

March 14, 2019 (exactly one year, one month, and one day i wrote this little blurb) :

“last night i cried. not sad or angry tears, but happy tears, because as i was looking at old photos something came over me. i do not know what it was or by how, but my guess is by the grace of god. it had to have been, and it was beautiful because for once i saw that despite my flaws there was so much strength in myself that i never really allowed myself to see. i saw the growth i have had in the past few years. i looked at the girl i was and now the women i am becoming. so much has happened in this past, almost four years. i’m hard on myself, in just about everything that i do and do not do, but i simply do not give myself credit for all i have accomplished. the other day i had a friend read my tarot cards, which were crazy accurate and they mentioned this aspect of my life. she suggested sitting down and writing out all of my accomplishments and so that is what i did.”

now i don’t know where i wrote this list of accomplishments but i decided that i am going to recreate a list of accomplishments and i think you should too. take a second, stop reading, grab a piece of paper, something to write with, and jot down some of your own accomplishments - big and small. if you want to share them in the comments i would love to celebrate with you in these milestones! okay here it goes…

a list of just some of my many accomplishments

i have built a stronger relationship with god and continue to pursue his love.
i have gone from being scared to go to the gym and someone who said she would never be a runner to someone who works out 5 times a week, who has gone on multiple 7 mile runs, and even one 10 mile run (it was brutal lol).
despite, not always feeling the smartest, i worked my booty off and graduated from my undergraduate courses with my bachelors in psychology, 2 minors, and in two honor societies. i have even looked into furthering my knowledge by researching masters courses.
i continue to pursue photography no matter how many times life seems to pull me away. in doing so i have had the privilege to connect with many people whom i would have otherwise not known by taking portraits, senior, graduation, couple, wedding, maturity, baby, and siblings photos as well as work with a couple companies to capture some product content.
and i have managed to build my own website which i have grown to consistently post on. 2 full years it took me to become more consistent, but look where we are now - so much farther from where we started that is for sure because i just went for it and continue to make time for it. is it perfect? no, but i am heading in the direction i want to be going with it.

the list goes on and so does yours even if you feel you have nothing to put. there are plenty of things you are not giving yourself the credit you deserve. remember though if it weren’t for him you wouldn’t have it, credit goes to the big guy upstairs (and i’m not talking about your landlord - i’m talking about the one who gave his only son for you)!

regardless, far too often do we beat ourselves down before we even give a go at things. we focus on the negatives and struggle with the idea of failure. i had dreams of building a website for years and while i have one now that has grown into something i am proud of i greatly struggled with getting to this point. before this website came into existence or even was a thought i actually had created a completely different one over on wix.com. i had a couple of blogs posted before launching, and i chickened out. i figured nobody would like it and that it was not worth sharing, but the idea of wanting to create a website never felt my mind. so i started over again, on a different platform and went with it, knowing there were going to be failures and that i would learn through them. january 2018 i launched this website; my baby! all fears were not lost though. there are still plenty of times i wonder to myself if what i am posting is even good enough for people to read, but do i let that stop me? not a chance. these goals we have are not supposed to be easy. we aren’t going to have it all figured out right away. we will fail, but we will also try and try and try again until we get it right. when we are determined and constant we will see success. first it starts with how we see ourselves. more self love baby more self love. not just bubble bath, spa night self love, but the way we talk about ourselves. you have so much potential and are so worthy of the things you want to accomplish. drop the excuses; they are only holding you back and you are meant for so much more.

keep working towards those dreams. keep pushing through those fears. you are doing just fine.