2016 was the year of getting my ass out of the comfort zone
2017 is the year of stretching myself and stretch myself I did all through the year.
2017 has been a crazy, good and great year.
Instead of using the word "bad", I choose to use the word "Crazy", because to be honest, the year was not as bad as I expected.
I did some pretty stupid things, that I am even ashamed to talk about and then I went on to do great things I am proud of.
First up, I had my postgraduate degree graduation in January and my graduation gift to myself was the trip to South Africa and Kenya. I only showed up at the venue because my mum insisted on coming and wanted to take pictures with me. She was trying to make up for missing my undergraduate graduation. No form of studying happened this year and that was intentional.
Friendship: I am a sucker for friendship, people who know me well know how I go through the highs and lows for anyone I call a friend. Respect and loyalty are key for me. I got a rude awakening this year and had to define the relationship with most of the people I call friends. One key lesson is that you can only be friends with people who see you as their friends.
Don't go making an acquaintance a friend.
With friendship, I learned forgiveness. I relearned the value to beautiful friendships both old and new.
Travel took the focal point of the year. My first post of the year highlighted my 2017 travel goals. In the post, I mentioned plans to go on a West African adventure, visit some states in Nigeria and ring in the new year in the New York.
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| Lake Kivu, Rwanda |
I got to visit 5 out of all 11 destinations I listed.
I can't complain because even though I listed 11 destinations, I ended up visiting 19 destinations in total. If I count Ile-Ife and Nairobi which I visited twice within the same year then that sums up 21 destinations. Switched the West African adventure for the East African experience.
I got to explore 4 new countries (South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda) and visited 6 in total ( revisited Benin Republic and Togo). Locally I visited, Osun state (Ile-Ife, Osogbo), Ogun state (Abeokuta), Bauchi state (Bauchi, Yankari), Plateau state (Jos) and Kwara (Offa, Owa-Kajola (Owu Waterfall).
Away from Travel, I finally launched my travel and HR Consultancy businesses so I would say this year was the testing phase. The HR Consultancy suffered the most because at some point I was unable to find a balance between both opposing businesses and my 9-5. I joined an entrepreneurship support group and I would say that has been one of my best decisions in 2017. My biggest business shock was realizing the fact that some friends will not support the business or should I use the word patronize your business. They are used to having it for free and would rather pay someone else than pay you for the services.
Books: I did read quite a number of books but I, unfortunately, was unable to read as much as I wanted. I am currently in some sort of reading rut, I can't seem to pay enough attention to complete a book.
I was able to save enough money this year but I spent a lot of it on travel. I am not even sad about it nor regret spending money on any of the experience. I will be spending more next year.
December has been a pretty hectic month. I returned from my trip on the 19th of November and dived straight into work. Right now I am suffering the worst burnout ever in my life and I am physically and mentally exhausted.
I made the decision to spend the holiday with family. All I have been doing in the past days is sleep, eat and sleep again.
I didn't get the year that I planned but I got the best year life had to give me
Away from 2017 and on to what I want from 2018.
So the goal for 2018 is intentional and productive living.
There has been a lot of introspection and plannings.
I will be picking up the books and hopefully get my HR certifications. My certifications come at a cost so it will affect how much I will spend on travel.
I will cut back on personal international travels and do more of domestic travels. The plan is to visit at least 3 new countries.
My travel plans, for now, are Côte d'Ivoire (no fixed date) and Tanzania (April 24 to May 1, 2018) for my birthday.
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| Zanzibar |
Europe is also on my bucket list for the year. Belguim, France, Sweden and Lithuania are top on the list.
Locally, I plan to explore the Eastern part of the country starting from Enugu.
Arinta waterfall in Ekiti is top on my list for 2018. I also plan to visit my mum in Abuja. New York is also on my radar, this is majorly dependent on when I get the US Visa.
Where do you plan to visit in 2018?
What are your goals for 2018?
What are your goals for 2018?
♥Lara
