So, over at Kayla Olson’s blog, Owl and Sparrow, she asked, “Where have you been? Where are you going?” and since I was able to really look at my life and acknowledge that I have come a long way since last year, I decided to repost my comment to her, so that I can be reminded of my progress (in terms of mindset and motivation…word counts, mmm, not so much, but I am moving in the right direction!).

My comment was:

It’s so much fun to list all the things that have happened over a significant amount of time…it always makes me thankful for all the things that I have been blessed with and encourages me to chase after more! (Stay hungry, stay foolish, as ole Steve Jobs said…)

Over this last year, I really had one “A-HA” moment, and that one moment allowed for a cascade of events that has led me to now.  (This is why I believe that mindset is so terribly important: thoughts lead to changing behaviors, which leads to results.)

1. I’ve been recognized as a top-performing manager in my company.  The recognition only made me realize that I was tops in a field that at the end of the day, I have no passion for.  The passion that I put in my work to make me one of the best is just my unending drive to “do my best” no matter where I am.  This led me to re-evaluate and prioritize my life around my true life goals.  Plus, I turned 30 in January, which really lit a match for me to “do something.”

2. Part of my “do something” involved regaining my fitness level that I neglected in my 29th year, again for a job that paid the bills but did nothing to nourish my true passions (imagine realizing that I could have “sacrificed my health” for basically nothing. That was truly eye-opening). From Dec-Feb, I achieved my body composition goals, and have since maintained (even improved upon) it.

3. And, of course, as part of my prioritization, I knew, KNEW, that this was the year to stop “dreaming” about writing, and truly live it.  Funny knowing that “waking up” meant that I got to live my dreams.

I know I’m still in the beginning stages, but I am truly motivated to get this done and start living the life that I want to live.

And this is why the blog world is cool: not only do I get to meet a lot of different people, but I also meet people who are doing this crazy writing thing like me, and am encouraged to keep going whether by encouraging others or even just reading through how they have overcome obstacles.  And, I get to write out my thoughts without much of an internal editor and write long sentences that start with “and,” and be OK with it.