Welcome to the Year of Liz

Welcome to the Year of Liz!

One of my greatest passions in life is tackling personal and professional development. As nerdy as it is, my favorite hobby is to think about what areas of my life I can improve; sometimes the areas I need to focus on are beyond uncomfortable for me, sometimes they fit like an old pair of slippers. Whatever the case may be, something I wholeheartedly embrace is:

I love being a work in progress.

There are things everyone wants to change, add to our lives, or remove from our lives. Perhaps you want to lose weight, get that new job, travel the world, pay off credit card debt, start your own business, learn a new language, quit that bad habit, start that good habit – there is something for everyone.

I decided to begin my Year of Liz shortly after I turned 30. I reflected on my life at that point, and was I happy. At home and at work things were really good overall. But what if they could be great? Or dare I say, amazing?

My gut reaction was that to spend an entire year on trying to better myself when I have so much good going on in my life was selfish. I feel a little guilty even just writing about it now. But I know deep down I would tell any friend of mine to do it, so why shouldn’t I?

When it comes to goals, we are all starting in different places, and that’s ok. I sincerely hope anyone reading this who is setting out to achieve a new goal is coming from a place of love and respect for themselves, rather than feeling intimidated, guilty, or like you are currently less than in some way. Remember:

Goal setting should be about becoming the very best version of yourself – while learning to understand and appreciate who you are right now.

So with that in mind, here are some things you can expect from Year of Liz:

What you will see:

• Personal (sometimes downright embarrassing) stories accounting my many ups and downs as it relates to setting, achieving, and failing at my personal and professional goals.
• Tips, tricks, and tools I have learned from mentors, experts, and researchers along the way.
• Since goals are equal parts art and science, there will be something for everyone’s different styles and preferences.

What you can take away:

• Each post will contain a “thought experiment”, which is something for you to mentally stew on. If you want to take action you can, but just taking time to think through an idea may be plenty of action for one day!
• Tons of resources connecting you to other blogs, scientific research, books, and goal setting toolkits.
• Personal interaction with me, if you want! I’ll always do my best to respond to every comment and have conversations on the side.

I have often said the phrase, “I’m an open book”, and I guess this blog really solidifies that. Now my stories will be on the internet, written in permanent marker, for all to see. I am more than happy to share just about anything from my personal experiences, especially if it may help even just one person feel empowered to make a meaningful change in their life.

This may be my Year of Liz, but my hope is you will soon begin the Year of [your name here]!

So let’s venture forth together, starting with this first thought experiment:

If you could snap your fingers and make a change, what might that change be?