2020: A Year in Reflection
I almost don’t have words to capture 2020 as a whole. I feel part grieving and part hopeful for the new year. And, maybe I’ll just leave it at that because everyone can pretty much agree it was one of the hardest and challenging years of our lives. I recently saw a list of questions as a way to reflect on the past year, so I thought I would respond to a few of these questions as a year-in-review blog post. I hope you enjoy, and I’ll tag the original post at the end.
What do I try to avoid?
I have been actively trying to avoid over-working and burnout. When I was working in corporate burnout was a normal part of the job - and one of the largest reasons why I wanted to start my own business. Although, after thinking through this question I think I'm going to reframe the question to What boundaries did I create? One of the things that I worked really hard on this year was creating healthy boundaries between my work and personal life while attempting to communicate those boundaries to clients, friends, and family. It's not that easy to communicate boundaries, and I had a difficult time navigating within that because I had to find a balance between being an advocate for myself in creating a healthy boundary and communicating honestly about these boundaries (which isn't always easy to do).
What did I learn about myself?
I learned that I can become flexible when needed. I can create small changes over time. One of my values is hardwork, and I've learned to really be disciplined and create a schedule for myself and figure out how my body responds to that (whether positive or negative).
What new relationships emerged?
This part is probably one of the more fun ones to answer because there are a lot of new entrepreneur friends that I've made online over the past year! I never would have imagined creating friendship like this, especially those entrepreneur friends who also have similar perspectives when it comes to business and where we are in our business. It’s been so fun to get to know them and grow with them during this past year.
Who supported me in my business?
Great question! I feel a lot of support in my business coming from the sub-contractors that I work. I definitely feel a lot of support coming from my boyfriend. My parents are probably the ones who share my posts on Facebook THE MOST. I also feel supported by the friendships from other online entrepreneurs, which has been really helpful.
What habits systems or activities supported my wellness, the wellness of my business?
I started tracking my screen time within the last couple months of the year. I felt like I was staring at a screen all the time and I wanted to get that in control. I know the light on our bodies is not healthy for us, but another reason was I did not want to be glued to my phone 24/7. I don't want the negative health effects of always being on my phone. So, I created a list of wellness activities that I can do outside of screentime. This is a more newer habit of mine, but I have been really focusing on doing a wellness activity each day.
What did I create?
Below is a pretty extensive list detailing out somethings that happened during a particular month. I wanted to take time to go through this for myself, to use as guideposts. It’s a great reflection exercise and I highly encourage you to do the same thing. Especially if you felt 2020 was rough, so you can see how far you have come within the past year. It’s time to celebrate our accomplishments this year!
JANUARY
Signed on 2 new clients
Disengaged with 1 client
FEBRUARY
IGTV Video collab: Healthy on A Budget with @laurenchanteofficial
New blog post: Top Frugal Valentine’s Day Date Ideas
MARCH
Hired a business coach
Signed on 2 new clients
Disengaged with 1 client
Paused services with a number of clients (lost track)
New YouTube video: FREE Debt Snowball Spreadsheet w/ Tutorial
APRIL
New blog post: What does the stimulus package have to do with me?
Started a virtual movie club with friends
New YouTube video (and most successful thus far!): TUTORIAL (2020) - QuickBooks Self Employed
MAY
Signed on 1 new client
New YouTube videos:
JUNE
New blog post: How to Reorganize Your Pantry
New YouTube video: Which Version Of Quickbooks Should I Use??
JULY
New blog posts:
AUGUST
Signed on 1 new client
New YouTube video: Quickbooks TUTORIAL - Run Business Financials
New YouTube Series: In Real Life with Edrina, view all 8 episodes at this link
SEPTEMBER
Developed a new service called Accountant For A Day
OCTOBER
New blog post: Mistakes Online Tutors Make When Organizing US Taxes
A Day In The Life Of An Accountant + Entrepreneur - Working From Home, Yoga, Cooking + more!
The Instagram account I had been building up for the past 3 years got taken down (by accident, they say)
NOVEMBER
Started a new instagram account, decided to post once a day through the end of the year.
New YouTube video:
DECEMBER
New YouTube videos:
Mastering a Monthly Budget for 2021 - PRINTABLE RESOURCE for YOU!
Tax Planning: 3 Ways To Ensure Maximum Benefits
New Year New Goals
This is one of my favorite posts to write every year because I am able to see the progression of my business over time. Overall, I really enjoyed responding to these prompts. I am glad I took the time to do this exercise. Here’s the post I found on Instagram, by Tara McMullin. Tara also has a podcast that I look forward to listening to each week.
Here’s to a new year full of new possibilities!
ICYMI:
Blog Post: 2019 A Year in Reflection
Blog Post: 2018 A Year in Reflection