Day 7 of 31: Morning Routine

A couple of weeks ago I was reading a personal finance book and I came across a section that really spoke volumes to me. I can’t remember what it said verbatim, but it discussed how we start our day and the effect that it can have on us. It gave an excellent example of how getting up earlier, would eliminate buying coffee at a coffee shop and thus save you $100 a month/$1000 yearly. 

With a full time job, full time grad program, internship that is like a part time job and 2 blogs; I need to find time to do it all and create some sort of social life (hell I want a man… LOL).

I have come to the conclusion that if I can get my day started in the right direction, not only will it help financially, but also mentally, spiritually and physically. Now that I know there is a problem, it’s time to come up with a formula to garner a solution.  After reading several blog posts and articles about the effects of developing a morning routine, I thought....hmmmm this is exactly what I need for my problem.  

Current morning routine:

I go to bed at midnight or later.  I am SUPPOSE TO wake up at 5/5:30, but I hit the snooze button (or turn it off) until my 6am alarm goes off.  I jump up, get dress, grab items needed and run out the door to head to work (no breakfast).  Luckily I am only 10 mins from my place of employment, but trying to get to at 6:30 ALWAYS feel like l am in a high speed car chase.  Thus throughout the day I am hungry, cranky and plain ole exhausted.

For the rest of the month I plan to do the following in order to develop a better morning  routine:

1. No internet after 10pm!
2. Prepare the night before and go to bed at a decent time (aim to get 7-8 hrs of sleep).
3. For the rest of the month I aim to wake up 30 minutes earlier.
4. DO NOT HIT THE SNOOZE BUTTON!
5. Take 3-5 minutes to meditate, pray and/or to read an entry of a daily devotional/bible.
6. Do 15 minutes of Yoga or Stretch from the Daily Burn.
7. Eat Breakfast.
8. Shower and get dress.
9. Plan out my day.
10. Leave 10 minutes earlier than I usually would. 

Being that I am not a morning person, this will be a difficult habit to develop, but I am positive that I can accomplish it by the end of the month!  I will be back in September with an update. 

Day 4 of the 30 day blog challenge: Dream Job

I sat and thought about this for awhile and I couldn't pinpoint one particular career path. 

Being that there are SEVERAL things I want to do, I know one thing I do not, and that is work NINE TO FIVE.  I am currently living that life and it is not for me.  I don’t know if I could take another 10 years of living for the weekend.  What kind of life is that?  One that I do not want!  Below is a picture that I look at that keeps me focus on the ultimate goals:

Business Entrepreneur.  

Ever since I was little I knew that I would eventually own some sort of business.  My maternal grandmother owned her own nightclub.  She drilled in me two things: 1) Have my own money and 2) Purchase property.  That has stuck in me.  Now I have no plans to own a club, but in the next 3-5 years I do plan to have some sort of business venture as well as invest in real estate with the plan of using the property as rental income. Do I know what type of business I want to have?  Umm… Sort of, still toying with several ideas. 

Clinical Social Worker/Therapist.  

I feel that I resisted going down this path since the end of my freshman year of college.  Nevertheless I felt that I needed to go through and experience all that I did in order to be a sufficient counselor.  While determining what my purpose in life is and the positive experiences I am having (in counseling), in some way I feel the need to pay it forward.  While pursuing my previous career path, I now know that there was no “passion” for it.  Merely that it “looked” good and I like feeling that I wouldn't be average.  Smh….. I look back on that time and view it as my body having a negative reaction to the path that I was going on.  The side effects of it were depression and weight gain.  Now that I have an idea of what I want and to know that I have a passion for it, everything is clearer now.

Professor. 

My reason for being a professor is somewhat similar to wanting to be a counselor/therapist.  One is that I can do both at the same time and they have flexible hours.  Next I love the idea of being paid to think, write and discuss an area that I have a passion in.  Being that I love anything reading, writing, researching and can tie all that in to social issues is wonderful.  However most importantly, just like with being a therapist, I like the idea of nurturing clients/students and watching them take hold of their confidence and grow with it. I see myself as MelissaHarris Perry without the TV show (have no desire to be on television).

Writer.  

When I was little I use to create my own books and magazines.  I would sit there and “create” articles that interest me and make my mom and grandmother read them.  As I got older I put the dream aside because like everything else, there were no writers around me so I believed that it was something that “other” people do; not some girl from “some town” Louisiana.  Being that I never told anyone of my love of writing and never pursued or worked on it, I told myself that I should give up on it because, “you are no good at it anyway” (see how the mind works and play tricks on you??). Now that I am actively working on it, I would love to one day be an author of fiction as well as nonfiction.  

What about you? Do you have a dream job?

TOMORROW: How important you think education is....

Bucket List: FUN

Throughout this month I dedicated my blog to my bucket list.  Being that I have such a large bucket list, I have decided to break them down into categories.  I have already discussed my family, fitness financial, career, personal and travel goals.  Today I will discuss:

FUN

• Go to a shooting range.
• Go see Alvin Ailey performance 
• Take a culinary class
• Stay at a spa for an entire weekend
• Go wine tasting
• See at least FIVE Broadway plays in my lifetime
• Grow a functional garden
• Take a photography course
• Learn how to use a sewing machine
• Attend a NFL Super Bowl game
• Attend a NBA Final game
• Attend at least one professional sport event a year.
• Attend at least one concert a year

Now that I have identified my goals, the next steps are monitoring and adjusting my efforts in order to achieve my goals.  

WARNING: This list will be ever growing and ever changing of things I want to experience and accomplish in my life.  Please feel free to gain ideas for yourself!

The purpose of my bucket list is to challenge myself (and maybe others).  I wanted to start celebrating the here and now by spending time making experiences in life instead of actual things.  My wish is for you guys to join me in establishing your own experiences and in conversation about this journey that I am partaking in!
 

I even plan to document it through scrap-booking!!!  LOL....

Bucket List: TRAVEL

This month I am dedicating my blog to plans and goals.  Being that I have such a large bucket list, I have decided to break them down into categories.  I have already discussed my family, fitness, financial, career and personal goals.  Today I will discuss:

TRAVEL

• Take a solo weekend beach trip ONCE A YEAR!
• Go on a cruise
• Go on an European cruise
• Take a road trip across the US (from NY to CA) one summer
• Visit every state in the US
• Visit every continent 
• Spend a week in New York

Now that I have identified my travel goals, the next steps are monitoring and adjusting my efforts in order to achieve my goals.  

WARNING: This list will be ever growing and ever changing of things I want to experience and accomplish in my life.  Please feel free to gain ideas for yourself!

Thursday we will discuss my goals for......FUN!!!

Bucket List: PERSONAL

This month I am dedicating my blog to plans and goals.  Being that I have such a large bucket list, I have decided to break them down into categories.  I have already discussed my family, fitness, financial and career goals.  Today I will discuss:

PERSONAL

• Learn to meditate and incorporate it into my life. (see my post about Transcendental Meditation)
• Become spiritually stronger
• Read the Bible extensively from cover to cover (at least 3 different translations)
• Reach each holy book for all major religions
• Become a mentor
• Take a creative writing course
• Take a Toast Masters course
• Take a self defense class
• Take a graphic design and video editing course
• Become a publish author
• Enter a writing contest 
• Take at least one continuing education course every other year.  NEVER STOP LEARNING.
• Consistently write in my gratitude journal (@ least once a week) for a year.
• Become an early riser.

Now that I have identified my financial goals, the next steps are monitoring and adjusting my efforts in order to achieve my goals.  

WARNING: This list will be ever growing and ever changing of things I want to experience and accomplish in my life.  Please feel free to gain ideas for yourself!

Tuesday we will discuss my goals for......TRAVEL

Bucket List: CAREER

This month I am dedicating my blog to plans and goals.  Being that I have such a large bucket list, I have decided to break them down into categories.  I have already discussed my family, fitness and financial goals.  Today I will discuss:

CAREER

• GET A DAMN JOB.. A REAL ONE! (sorry, but I am really passionate about this one... LOL)
• Obtain my MSW, LCSW, and PHD
• Take courses in Grant Writing
• Obtain my real estate license in LA, MS and GA
• Create a non-profit organization
• Become fluent in Spanish
• Become conversational in Japanese
• Become a professor
• Become a franchise owner
• Earn the Microsoft Office 2007 Master Certification 

Now that I have identified my financial goals, the next steps are monitoring and adjusting my efforts in order to achieve my goals.  

WARNING: This list will be ever growing and ever changing of things I want to experience and accomplish in my life.  Please feel free to gain ideas for yourself!

Thursday we will discuss my goals for......PERSONAL!

Bucket List: FITNESS

This month I am dedicating my blog to plans and goals.  Being that I have such a large bucket list, I have decided to break them down into categories.  Last week we started with family and today:

FITNESS

• Complete Insanity
• Complete P90X
• Run a 5k, 10K, half marathon and marathon
• Learn how to swim
• Start cycling
• Compete in cycle and swim meets/events
• Complete a triathlon
• Compete in a crossfit event
• Start taking regular Yoga Classes (at least one every week or every other week for a year)
• Take tennis lessons.

Now that I have identified my fitness goals, the next steps are monitoring and adjusting my efforts in order to achieve my goals.

WARNING: This list will be ever growing and ever changing of things I want to experience and accomplish in my life.  Please feel free to gain ideas for yourself!

Thursday we will discuss...... FINANCES!

Bucket List: Family

This month I am dedicating my blog to plans for life and goals.  Tuesday I gave you a history of my life with lists and today we will discuss:

BUCKET LISTS

I have come to the conclusion that I needed to do a better job of keeping up with ALL the goals I set for myself.  Now that I will be entering into my thirties, I do not want to get to my fifties (and beyond) with any regrets!  So in order to not say, "I wish I had done such and such."  (like I have done with my twenties), I will create a bucket list (a.k.a "One day this will happen").

My goals have been broken down into different components below:

Fitness

Finances 

Career

Personal 

Travel

Fun

Family

Today we will focus on the FAMILY portion of my bucket list.  

• Spend time with my elderly relatives.
• Establish better relationships with my siblings.
• Do things with my nieces and nephews.
• Prepare for my "future" husband.

Now that I have identified my goals, the next steps are monitoring and adjusting my efforts in order to achieve my goals. 

WARNING: This list will be ever growing and ever changing of things I want to experience and accomplish in my life.  Please feel free to gain ideas for yourself!