2018: Thank You, Next

I’d love to say that I’m welcoming 2019 with open arms…but I’m a little timid. I’ve put a lot of pressure on the new year and I don’t feel ready for it to start. I hate to be cliché but when I heard Ariana Grande’s song “thank u, next” I thought it perfectly described how I felt about this year. Pretty humorous that a song about failed relationships makes me think about my year, but it is what it is, haha.

2018 taught me love
2018 taught me patience
And 2018 taught me pain

It wasn’t my worst year but it wasn’t my best either. It taught me a lot but I’m over it.

Thank You, 2018

At the end of each year I enjoy looking at my analytics and seeing what my readers liked and how my blog has grown. So, let’s take a look at 2018!

This post contains affiliate links and I may receive a commission if you click and/or make a purchase.

Highest Number of Blog Views: October

Most Viewed Blog Post: Drugstore Mascaras You Need to Try

Most Liked Instagram Post: here

Personal Favorite Post: What I’ve Learned Being a Girlfriend

Favorite New Hair Product: Aquage Finishing Spray

Favorite New Beauty Product: Anastasia Beverly Hills Norvina Palette

Favorite Addition to my Makeup Bag: Morphe Buffer Brush

Product That Impressed Me: Tarte Shape Tape (concealer and foundation)

Brand That Impressed Me: Ulta Beauty Collection

Product Category Viewed Most by Readers: Mascara (ladies after my own heart!!)

Product Viewed Most by Readers: L’Oreal Voluminous (you get me!!)

Brand Viewed Most by Readers: Maybelline

Blogging Big Events:

Switched to a new host = less issues!

Created an “Instagram Links” page to help connect Instagram followers with my blog

Celebrated 3 years of CC in June

Updated several areas of the site including the menu bar, shop page and bio page

Life Big Events:

The bank I was working at sold and we went through months of change into a conversion with the new bank

Paid off my car!

Paid off a student loan!

Moved into my own apartment!

Started a new job, in a new office on a new floor

My boyfriend moved to a different city

Celebrated 2 years with my boyfriend

Went back to my college for homecoming

For 2019

2015 and 2016 were a bit of a mess. 2017 was better…2018? All over the place. The shrugging girl emoji was my emoji for the year because so much was happening and it was hard to keep up. Resolutions seem to have a bad connotation but I do like to set goals that will help me make positive lifestyle changes. I wasn’t going to pick a word for the year but after reading the post I wrote last year and seeing many other people share theirs, I decided I wanted to.

So, my word for 2019 is steady.

There are a few words that I considered, including momentum and persistence. But, I wanted to choose something a little different. The definitions I found for steady are: regular, even, and continuous in development, frequency, or intensity; calm; steadfast or unwavering; resolute. FYI, resolute means set in purpose or opinion or characterized by determination.

The last 2 years I focused on development. I did pretty well but after the big changes this year I feel like I’ve gone backwards with my mindset and wellness. I chose steady because that’s how I want to feel at the end of the day. Regular, determined, purposeful and confident. I don’t want to feel overwhelmed by it all like I do now. I want to feel in control of my emotions.

Oh boy, I feel like I have so much to work on with myself! But, I’ll never feel good about it if I’m too hard on myself. So, that’s my biggest goal. I also want to keep budgeting and achieve more financial goals. I want to celebrate big things and small things and overall feel at peace with where I am in life. 

As for my professional life? Consistent growth and development. I hope to continue a good work/life balance.

AND I want to make my blog a high priority again. In 2018 I made the choice to focus on quality of content and not pressure myself to get posts out if I didn’t feel like they were ready. But, that caused me to over think a lot and I ended up putting  CC.com on the back-burner more often that I would’ve liked. Learning to write and edit more quickly will help a lot. I spend so much time revising and changing what I wrote that it takes days to complete one post. This is a passion project for me – I want to enjoy the whole process! I’ve come up with a few idea on how I can re-focus my love of the beauty world and continue to share my mental health and wellness journey with those that need it. 

I hope you enjoyed this review of the year as much as I did.

I’m so grateful for 2018. But, I’m exhausted, too. Thank you, next!

THANK YOU so much for your support in 2018. Here’s to new opportunities in 2019!