#GOALS
Is it really January 8, 2020? Wow, 2020.
I know it's going to be a good year for all of us just from the way it looks on paper and sounds. I'm super excited to hear from many of you that self care and health are high on the priority list this year!
So, it seems like I have broken at least one New Year's resolution - too soon yet? I'm a little sad that this is the very first blog post in 2020; I thought as a 2020 #goal I would post at least once a week on our blog and definitely the first few days of the year since we're just coming out of the holidays and I wouldn't have much going on after New Years.
Okay, I was totally wrong. Here's the reality of life as an entrepreneur. On January 1st, it was my very first day as a student this semester. Even though I'm a business owner, I'm a big believer in furthering my education and learning constantly. While I got started on school work, I also had to respond to Tim and Matt from Charlotte is Creative (you may also know them from The Biscuit and Creating Mornings), who informed us that we were one of the 3 recipients of the HUG Micro-Grant!
Which then led me to answer the 50+ emails that have piled up since November and December because I was at pop up event almost every day. To everyone who is reading this and haven't heard from me yet, I apologize profusely - promise I'm NOT ignoring you and will get back to you soon. Not to mention the three to four plus hours I spent speaking with other people and researching about becoming foster parents and getting our licenses (a topic for another day).
Okay, you get the picture.
I've panicked the past few days feeling like I've already let y'all, this company, myself, and my husband down... My anxiety was so bad that I had a pretty full-blown panic attack in public this Tuesday. And it dawned on me today that I haven't let anyone or this company down, and that I haven't failed my New Years resolutions yet. The tone isn't set by the New Years "resolution" we jot down every year and most of us jokingly bet on how long these resolutions will actually last. Rather, it is set by achievable goals we set, both personally and professionally.
It's amazing to dream big. However goals that are set too high can really be overwhelming.
My vision of taking Roses and Azalea national this year and all the things I want to achieve with it including reducing waste and opening a manufacturing facility in Charlotte ended up feeling like the weight of the world came crashing down on my shoulders - I wanted to fix environmental issues we have with the heavy use of plastics, the waste production, toxins and pollutant exposures on a daily basis...
I stepped back and took a deep breath.
As a Mediator from the Myers Briggs Test (INFP-T), I am a true idealist who is always seeking for ways to make things better. The inner flame in me makes me extremely passionate. If I set my mind to something, I'll go after it. The dreamer in me makes me a fantastic visionary. Without setting concrete, achievable goals though, all of this can make everything overwhelming.
Anyone else feel the same way?
This year, instead of setting New Years resolutions and breaking them sometime throughout the year, why not make attainable goals so you can start (or continue) down a path of being happy with yourself.
For many of us, working toward goals can give a sense of purpose and reaching them boosts self-confidence. But the one major mistake many of us make is setting those unrealistic goals that we can't possibly achieve, or setting resolutions that aren't specific enough.
That can look like wanting to lose weight. You start exercising for at least an hour a day when you've never exercised before and cutting calories down to 1,000 or less. Hey no judgements here. Beginning of 2019, I decided to take up cross fit even after receiving the diagnosis of autoimmune caused hypothyroidism. I attempted to go to cross fit about 4-5 times a week. Let's just say that was way too intense for my body and I had to completely stop within the first month. Needless to say, it was NOT a good idea for me - yoga, meditation, and walking, even light weights, would have been better.
So some of you may be curious about how to better set goals. One method is to use a technique called SMART. If you haven't heard of this technique, go read up on it, like from this article.
Smart stands for:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Attainable
- Realistic
- Timely
You can set SMART goals for all aspects of your life - personal, work, spiritual, relationships.
I haven't been able to sit down to set my SMART goals yet. With January being #goals month, I am allowing myself to breathe and giving myself enough time to set these SMART goals so I can make the best of 2020.
Before then, what I do know is that I am working towards as the founder and owner of Roses and Azalea:
- Being more of the educator that I was setting myself to be for 2019. Last year being the first year, we ended up focusing more on educating those of you whom we met in person at the 40+ pop up markets. We recognize that we can't be in front of everyone, everywhere and 24/7. So most of this education will take place online in 2020.
- To follow that, I will be blogging on a more regular basis, and I do challenge you and other readers to come up with topics or questions you would love us to dive more deeply into or to answer. My goals of blogging isn't to bore you with details of our products or sell anything. I founded this company through my health journey. And that is exactly where my heart is. There is too much misinformation out there. For all of us who are on our own health journeys, Cory and I are here to provide you with helpful resources and information we have gathered along the way so YOU can form your own opinions for yourself and your body.
The blogs won't just be coming from us. Aside from topics like what ingredients to avoid in your cosmetics and which ingredients are nourishing, we will be going straight to the experts and interviewing them on certain topics. Really navigating the modern life and tips and tricks to really feeling your best.
- To truly embody the B Corp spirit. Our company strives to balance good with profit. That means being ethical and sustainable. That means doing what's right for people and the environment. That means protecting the planet. That also means social impact. We have received our newest certification from Leaping Bunny (thanks to the HUG Micro-Grant who supported us financially so we can pay for it), and we will be working with the B Lab to obtain our B Corp certification this year.
- Taking this company national. Once we rapidly expand, I know we will open a manufacturing facility right in Charlotte and provide employment opportunities. That will also mean that we have enough customers and funding to find more solutions to reduce waste and to working towards zero waste.
Being a business owner is only a part of who I am, the hats I wear all the time also include being a wife, a doggy mom, a friend, a volunteer, an advocate, a chaos coordinator, a supporter of other small businesses, a follower of God, and more. Setting goals around a healthier lifestyle, pursuing pure joy, solidifying relationships and marriage are all very important.
This year, I want to be a bit more vulnerable. I went through a lot in 2019 and did not share most of those struggles publicly. It is very scary to open up but like everyone else, I'm a human with a less-than-perfect life, always looking to better myself. I want to be able to share some of my health struggles, to ask for help so I can make a greater impact, to show you the personal side of me and my husband. (This means you'll be witnessing the progress of our mini food forest where we are planting fruiting trees and plants such as figs, persimmons, Golgi berries, elderberries, asparagus, and more!)
We hope you can be part of our journey in 2020 and be our accountability partners. And we hope we can be yours. Let us know what some of your 2020 goals are and how we can help! Spark some joy, make a few lifestyle changes to hit those health goals, become the best version of yourself.
Can't wait for the BEST year yet. Let's DO THIS!
