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It’s been quite a while since I’ve written a blog post. As with every year, Open Enrollment was nearly all-consuming. And in the interest of maintaining my mental health, I elected not to worry about updating the blog.

I’m happy to report that this year’s enrollment season was the most productive year-to-date; my agency sold nearly $1 million worth of annualized premium over the course of 8 weeks. And I did not get sick or burned out, which is ultimately more important than the level of production.

[Want to know how? Check out my post on maintaining energy levels during a busy season.]

After wrapping up the enrollment season, the Mister and I had a 10-day vacation through the holidays; we elected to stay home this year. Having a block of time dedicated to rest was exactly what I needed to recharge before the new year.

And here we are on New Year’s Eve. Like many of you, I’ve been reflecting on how 2018 went and what I want to change for 2019…

2018 in review

My 2018 word of the year was Clarify. I really wanted to cook my commitments down to just my essential priorities: improving relationships, growing my business, improving my health/fitness abilities, and improving our financial position. There were tied 4 major goals for the year:

• Hire an employee in the business — ACCOMPLISHED
• Pass my massage/healing exam — ACCOMPLISHED
• Hit my goal weight of 135 lbs. — UNFINISHED
• Pay off our credit card debt — UNFINISHED

What went right

• I let go of several board/committee positions that weren’t moving me toward my vision statement. This allowed more time to focus on growing the income of the business.
• The Mister and I started the year strong by completing the January Whole30 challenge, which helped me determine several dietary triggers that cause my body to drag.
• My 2-hour solution scheduling system has become way more streamlined to accommodate the massage classes, homework & studying.
• I stretched myself in fitness by participating in a national judo tournament as well assisting with teaching the children’s classes at the dojo.

What needs improvement

• We fell off our budgeting game mid-year and never quite got back on track. Between that and a hospital visit for food poisoning, our debt snowball hasn’t changed much since the start of 2018.
• I had set myself a significant income goal in the business that I didn’t come anywhere near meeting (mostly because I didn’t sell the amount of life insurance I intended to). Upon evaluation, I realized I have some imposter syndrome and fear to work through when it comes to making prospecting calls.
• When it comes to my goal weight, in the year that I decided to eliminate the goal to focus on my income goal and hiring an assistant. That said, in the last 3 months of the year, I could have done much better with eating at home and avoiding food triggers (and alcohol).
• Our church attendance this year was almost non-existent. The Mister and I have discussed how much we need fellowship in our lives. The biggest thing is just getting up in time to attend services so that we can be a part of the community that we value.

What I want to start in 2019

I have several intentions for next year, but the biggest is that I want this to be the year I get in the best “health” of my life — physically, mentally, spiritually and financially.

The Mister and I are ready to start a family. Since I’m already in my late 30s, improving my health is going to increase the chances of that without complications. And getting our financial house in order is one of the best ways that I can think to provide a stable, loving home for future children.

Looking at specifics, I want to establish the following habits/behaviors next year (though I recognize that I can’t try to start them all tomorrow):

• Daily time reading my Bible
• Journaling regularly if not daily
• Meditation as part of my morning and evening routines
• Always eat at the table (not in my car or at my desk)
• Starting my workweek with prospecting calls
• Go back to using cash envelopes for all retail budget categorie

I’d love to hear how your 2018 year-end review has gone. What did you learn? What do you want to change or start for next year?

Check back tomorrow for my 2019 Word of the Year and Goals.