Happy New Year! While I’m not one for resolutions, I always see the fresh start of the new year as a prime opportunity to reflect on the year passed and reset for the year ahead. I spent quite a bit of time over the holiday break thinking about what a crazy year 2017 was, what I’ve learned from the year, and what I want to change over the next 12 months.

I think the idea of change can get a bad reputation, like it’s a bad thing to change, that change is to be feared, that change is always tied to disruption and discomfort. Personally, I find change to be thrilling – it’s an opportunity to shake shit up and step outside of your comfort zone. So bring it on, 2018.

While we’re on the topic of the new year, I wanted to share a little peek into some priorities I’ve outlined for the year ahead, both within my personal life and here on the blog and I’d love to hear about some of your goals. It’s always so inspiring to hear what others are focusing on, so let’s help motivate each other and leave a comment with a few of your own plans for 2018!

Personal

1. Prioritize travel
   2017 was a really big travel year for me – I ushered in the new year in Copenhagen on my first ever solo trip and then traveled to 8 new countries throughout the year (with two other solo trips as well). I’ve found that travel really helps me reset and recharge; after trips I always feel a new sense of energy and inspiration and feel so grateful to have been fortunate enough to have gained the new experiences I’ve gotten from travel. I plan on continuing to make travel a big priority for this year and already have one trip booked (Mexico City) and am actively tracking flights for many others to keep the travel momentum going throughout the year.
2. Less ‘stuff’
   I’ve been feeling very weighed down by having so much stuff. From the physical aspect of it when I look in my closets and overflowing dresser drawers, to mentally realizing that things aren’t really what brings me joy. I’m working on being more conscious of unnecessary purchases and stuff and will be doing a big purge to sell/donate/trash items currently in my apartment that I don’t need to declutter my life and free up some extra space in an effort to live a more minimalist lifestyle in 2018.
3. Slow down
   Balancing a busy full time career + blogging over the past seven years has really worn me down and gotten me hooked on the feeling of being busy at all times. I’ve realized that while having a day to day life that’s completely ruled by to do lists can be very productive, it’s also totally exhausting and not sustainable. I’m actively working on slowing down a bit, to not feel guilty about relaxing and leaving more room in my life for the unplanned and unexpected.

For the Blog

1. Fewer, better
   On the topic of burnout… I’ve decided to scale back a bit on the blog, which unofficially happened toward the end of 2017. I had been publishing 5-6 posts per week for YEARS which meant there was a blog post on my to do list every. single. day. and I realized it’s pretty unnecessary. In an effort to slow down a bit, I’ll be focusing my blog content more this year and publishing 3 blog posts per week, with an additional post with a round up of links shared on Saturdays for some weekend reading. Expect to be given more opportunities to weigh in on what kind of content you want to see so I can focus on sharing content that’s truly valuable to you.
2. Feel excited about writing again
   After 7 years of blogging, writing has started to feel really routine to me and while I still have a passion for writing and sharing new content, I want to make sure that’s coming through on here more regularly. This year I want to make a big effort to step away from the comparison trap that’s so easy to fall into within the blogging space and write more content that I really enjoy, rather than what I think I should be publishing. I’m excited to show some more personality and write about more of my unique perspectives, from my career side of things, to solo living and travel and even the wild world of dating.
3. Build a stronger community
   Community is truly what I value above all else when it comes to blogging – I still get such a rush from a reader email, absolutely love chatting with you guys via Instagram Stories and DMs, and have been so lucky to have met so many new people in real life from this little blog of mine. As the blogging industry has grown, it’s been really sad to see that strong sense of community get diluted as blogs have shifted from solely being creative outlets to full fledged businesses (which is amazing!) and I want to make an effort to build a stronger community around the blog and a deeper connection with my readers.

I’ve been feeling really inspired after coming back from holiday break and my trip to Portugal and have already started to put some of these ideas into action (along with plenty of others I’ve been brainstorming over the past few weeks). Thank you as always for following along and being such a huge part of my story, I’m excited for all that’s ahead in 2018 and have a feeling this year will be one of my best yet.

What are some of your 2018 goals and plans?