This year has been a year full of learning for me. Twenty-eighteen has taught me more than any year I can recall, but it also allowed me to have fun. Here are some highlights and takeaways of my year…

I Got It Together

I think the biggest turning point for me was when I switched my major. I think this is because I decided to take the path that not only I enjoy, but the path in which I thrive. I remember sitting in my car a few weeks after switching majors and asking myself, “What is there to do besides teach?”. I wasn’t in the best of moods, and I ended up scrolling through Instagram. I saw that Glossier was hiring for their pop up in San Francisco and in that moment, I was wishing I could have applied. When I’m at school, i’m two hours outside of the city so working at the pop up was unrealistic. I was trying to understand why I was so enthralled with wanting to work in the beauty industry - and a light bulb went off. I didn’t just want to work in the beauty industry, I wanted to write in it. Therefore, I also decided what I wanted to be after graduating - a beauty editor.

I Went to Hawaii

I hadn’t been on a plane since I was like… six? I was so nervous at first since I knew I would be flying over water, but I couldn’t help but be more excited for the Piña Coladas and the thick, warm, tropical air. I fell in love with Hawaii, which I thought I wouldn’t - since I’m a sucker for the city. In fact, I loved my trip with my family so much, I’m considering doing an entire blog post on it.

I Did Good In School

I started my blog mid-semester and it made me nervous at first. I was scared I would focus too much attention on the blog out of concern that I needed to put out content left and right - I was scared it would distract me from school. Posting content regularly is a full time job, therefore, I didn’t feel bad posting on my own time and putting school and my job first. Thankfully this paid off, I ended the semester with three A’s and one B. I received an admissions letter from one of my top choices this December and I’m also very excited about that.

The Takeaway

The biggest thing that I’m taking away from this year is the same thing I said to myself every time something got rough. I know it’s easy to become discouraged when you haven’t reached a goal, or aren’t preforming well in a class or hobby that you are passionate about, so I started avoiding that. Every time something got me down this year I said to myself, “You can do it. Just keep trying. You can do it.” And as cheesy as it sounds, it has helped me to succeed in so many things this year. I started saying this to myself when I realized that if I didn’t believe in my abilities, nobody else would. I’m a small girl with a quiet external voice, so I needed to do this for myself - not only to be heard, but to be taken seriously.

Enough with the seriousness. 2018 Is coming to a close, and I hope you’ve all accomplished everything you wanted to throughout the year. If not, I hope 2019 is your year. Make it happen!

Love you all, xx. Thank you for reading!