6 Ways to Focus on Personal Development in 2023

new year, new goals

I’m back indoors (thanks winter) and looking inward, to try and figure out what I want this next year to look like for me. It’s crazy to think and remind ourselves…we are in control of our lives and the moments we create for ourselves. Taking time to decide what I want to accomplish, experience, and achieve is so exciting and gets me pumped to start the new year strong!

With that being said, what I can tell you is that this year I’m going to continue to work on my personal development + health. The older I’ve gotten over the years, the more I realize we can’t take our mental and physical health for granted. I’m so grateful for the life I’ve lead up to this point and want to see many more days to come, so with that, I’m going to strength myself mentally, physically and developmentally.

You might be thinking…what does that even mean? Ultimately, I think it could mean different things for different people, but here is what it means for me!

1

Relationships

Last year my #1 goal was to focus on dating. I never prioritized it over work and I made a big shift to push myself into the uncomfortable, uncontrollable space of dating. And I’m very happy I did. I’ve been seeing someone for about 8 months, and am excited to see where it leads. With this transition in my personal life, this years focus is to truly prioritize finding balance between work and spending time with people. The relationships I have built over the past few years are some of the best of my life, and I want to nurture them. It gets more and more difficult as we get older and have more responsibility with friends, family, and kids, but with a little effort, anything is possible, so this will be my main focus for 2023!

2

MEDITATION + Fitness + Water intake

Creating a healthy morning routine helps start each day off on the right foot. To do this, I’m going to be better about incorporating meditation, 16 oz of water, and the gym into my mornings.

The brain is a muscle that we constantly use, but don’t always do the best job at training. Because of this, I’m making a effort to carve out time in my morning 3x a week to work on practicing the art of meditation. Calming the mind and learning different breathing techniques is fascinating and I’m very excited to see where it leads.

As for physical fitness and water intake, I am noticing that I am not moving my body enough. I wake up and go straight to work, quite often taking little to no water in the car with me. So instead, I am carving out time 5 days a week to fit in the gym (even if just for getting a walk in), to ensure I’m creating new healthy habits and routines. Wish me luck!

3

Coaching

Last year I began seeing a therapist to strengthen my understanding of myself, and truly reflect on where I wanted to grow internally as a person. It was one of the best investments I have made in myself and I would HIGHLY recommend everyone do it! To learn and understand your history, habits and patterns, helps strengthen your ability to communicate your needs and work with others.

In addition to continuing therapy in 2023, I would also like to add a coach. I have a Financial Advisor which has outlined financial goals for me over the next 10 years, but I would like to take that a step farther to develop both business and personal goals for myself. I am a big dreamer and would love to learn more tools on how to accomplish those dreams, while being held accountable, so what better way than getting a coach!

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4

to be magnetic

You will probably catch onto a theme here, but I’m always curious in learning. I wish I could just plug my brain into a computer and download any topic I wanted to learn within seconds. Unfortunately, that is not how it works, so instead, podcasts will continue to be a focus of mine again this year.

To Be Magnetic is a great podcast on manifesting, working through subconscious workshops, and so much more! I will be challenging myself to complete at least one workshop every 6 weeks, and hope to learn even more about myself through this journey. In addition, I will take up journaling as a part of the workshops. A lot of this work can be taxing and stir up old wounds, but once given the time and energy to heal, I know the benefit will exceed the effort!

5

Travel

I’m just going to come out and say it. I absolutely suck at balancing my work and personal life. I’m addicted to my job and enjoy what I do. Any time there is free time, I’m usually looking at houses online, thinking about my next renovation project, or searching the web for some new real estate financing opportunity that I can learn about. However, as I keep thinking about my future and what I want it to look like, I’ve been reflecting on needing to be better about relishing in the here and now, and capitalize on every memory I can make!

So….with that in mind, I am going to challenge myself to travel a minimum of 6 times this year! You might be thinking that’s a lot, and you’re not wrong! However, when I think back to 2022, I didn’t realize it but I unintentionally traveled 6 times without even knowing it. The big difference, this year I want to be more intentional about planning my travel to ensure I’m “filling my cup”. An example, back when I worked in Corporate America I would take 1-2 international trips per year. Since being in real estate I’ve taken zero. Instead of only booking work trips or last minute, much needed “burn out trips”, I’m going to proactively plan fun, relaxing vacations to pour back into me and what brings me joy. To say I’m excited is an understatement! (Maybe this year should be the year of a sabbatical….jk jk).

6

self care

Last but not least is probably my absolute favorite! One of my big focuses for this year is self-care! I’m going to treat myself to more pedicures, massages, face masks, baths, and facials! Since my professional career has me pouring a lot of energy into others, I thought it would be a great chance to RECEIVE some healing energy by giving myself these luxuries from time to time. To say I’m excited about this new and improved approach on life is an understatement.

That’s enough about me. I want to hear from you! What are your goals for the new year and how do you plan to stick to them? If you need any tips on how to hold yourself accountable, be sure to check out my Goal Setting and Accountability Tools blog post.

Wishing you all the best!

Jen

Real estate investor, landlord and DIYer, Realtor, Business consultant, Globe trotter & Converting vegan.

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