The next thing I knew, I was running a half marathon…

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2019 Recap

Well, my friends, I cannot believe that last year is over.

And somehow, I didn’t publish a blog post in nearly a year. I started last year with big goals. Just the other day, I was reviewing them, and it turns out that I didn’t actually check too many of those goals off, but that doesn’t mean that nothing happened.

2019 was quite a year. Looking back I did the following:

I started running.

After years of stopping and starting the C25K app without much-lasting success, I decided to try a different method and enrolled ina 5K running class through Not Your Average Runner.

Aubrey Shaw at the Woman's Club of Cayce 2019 Hot Flash 5K

The 5K class fed into a 10K class. And the 10K class fed into a half marathon class. And the next thing I knew, I was running a half marathon.

Aubrey Shaw at the Savannah 2019 Rock n Roll Half Marathon

I completed my first half marathon in Savannah on November 2, 2019. And I’ve already picked out two more to complete this year.

My business became debt-free.

2019 is the year we paid my insurance agency and. I wrote last year that taking out a loan through the Small Business Administration is a financial decision I would change if I had it to do again.

Aubrey Shaw, owner of LifeTime Insurance Agency in Cayce SC
October 2019

Paying this loan off has created a lot of breathing room in my business’s cash flow, and since then, I have paid off my car as well.

Want to get your business debt-free? I recommend reading & implementing Profit First by Mike Michalowicz.

Aubrey Shaw receiving the NAIFA-SC 2019 award for Young Advisor of the Year.

Last year, I was named as the 2019 Young Advisor of the Year by NAIFA South Carolina and was nominated for the national NAIFA Young Advisor of the Year award.

One final business win to share is that I had my first Open Enrollment season where I sold more than $1 million in insurance premiums.

Jujitsu travels took me all over the country.

Last year, I was lucky enough to travel to California, Florida, Chicago, and Atlanta for jujitsu and judo classes and events.

2019 AJJF National Judo Tournament in Atlanta
2019 AJJF National Judo Tournament

Our dojo judo team went to three tournaments. I chose to participate in the South Carolina State Judo tournament and the AJJF National Judo tournament; in each tournament, I brought home a silver medal in my division. I also tried my hand at the AJJF National Freestyle contest and placed third in my division.

I continue to find blessings in our martial arts school by helping teach the children’s judo classes. We now have more than 20 kids regularly attending class, which amazes me.

I hate that I didn’t find time to update this blog with last year’s adventures. This recap of the year doesn’t seem nearly complete enough, but I can say that 2019 was quite a year. Looking forward to the next decade (!!), I can’t wait to see where 2020 brings me.