Ongoing Blog Post: This is where I will be tracking my progress in 2023 and the goals I want to achieve. I thought this might be an exciting concept, hopefully, it is successful. In this post, I will highlight my objectives and every month I will add some steps or highlights about the month. Of course, they will be color coded to help distinguish which month I wrote what. I will also include the month that I am providing updates.
Finances and Budgeting
Staying Alive - January 2023
So far so good. January was planned to be my most expense-heavy month. I made sure I budgeted and knew where my money would come from. Toward the end of the month, I felt secure in my planning for the rest of the year. Now that doesn’t mean there won’t be an expense that completely throws me for a loop. When that comes around, I will just adjust and move on from there.
Moving Towards Brighter Months - February 2023
I had a very expensive February, it wasn't as bad as January. I still haven't started putting major money into my savings. My budget is still staying strong, but I can't wait to finish paying off a debt I owed a family member. After my first paycheck in March, I will be free to save more money.
Paid in Full- March 2023
I'm getting back on track. I paid off a debt that I owed to my family member. Now I am squared in terms of debt. Unfortunately or fortunately this is my Birthday Month and it is the month I always splurge on myself. That is exactly what I did. I had some extra cash and splurged. Back to the budgeting plan.
The Splurging Continues- April 2023
I thought I would save more this month, but I had a conference about four hours away from home. I spent money on food and gas. I also bought books and some lounge clothes while I was there. After my trip from the conference, my alternator decided to give up on me, adding a $300 car expense. On top of that, I paid for new glasses and a contact lens exam. Through my paycheck, I saved a couple of bucks. I won money from a scratch-off ticket, which allowed me to put more into my savings accounts. I spent a lot of money on medical bills and car repairs. Thanks to the money I won, it put me in the green.
More Expenses - May 2023
I decided to add more expenses. I joined a gym which increased my expenditure by $30, and I also subscribed to a fitness app for $30 a year ( Which isn't bad). I also spend some money on food. Towards the end of the month, I started saving money by meal prepping again. I tried to keep track of all my expenses, which got out of hand. Every time I turned around, I needed something else. Let's hope for a less expensive month in June.
Relationship
More Relationships - January 2023
I am making connections at my job and Networking at different events I go to for my job. Other than that I feel as if I could be doing more to meet people in my neighborhood. I don’t really have friends in the neighborhood and haven’t been dating for a while. One of my goals this year is to go on a date and make some new friends. In January, I didn’t do anything to achieve this goal. Here’s to February.
Connections - February 2023
I tried to make connections with people, but some of them didn't stick. A lot of the people in my department have decided to quit and now I am alone. While I was putting gas in my car, a guy asked me for my number and I gave it. Not five minutes later I remember why I don't give my number out. He texted me to come across the street for a quickie. I had to ghost him.
I also had a guy that was at least 40 try and convince me to give him a chance. He knew my dad and tried to use that connection to get to me. I think I might calm down a little in March.
Old Friends - March 2023
I met an old friend for dinner in March and it was great to meet up with her. This was my old friend from High school and we went to Red Robin. We caught up and afterward, we went to Target to shop, and it felt like old times.
Church Friends - April 2023
I connected with coworkers at the work conference. I talked with some people on the work trip about books and some of my hobbies. I also went to eat with some church friends at Millers.
An Ex Resurfaces - May 2023
In May, an ex tried to get back in touch with me through Instagram. I said, "I'd be okay talking with him but not getting into a relationship." He wanted a relationship, but I said no. Again I ghosted him. I could have handled it better, but I kept repeating myself in the conversation with him. I got flashbacks of our past relationship and quickly shut it down.
Brand
January 2023
January I planned for posting and created a structure that I could use to post more on the website and to create content in General. I planned on posting things this January, but I wasn’t able to follow through with that goal. My goals for 2023 in terms of my brand are to have a clear brand identity by Dec 2023 and to post regularly.
February 2023
I have been busy. After a needed break, I mapped out the different projects that I want to do and include in my brand. I even made a list of blog posts that I want to write about for the next month. The website is slowly coming together and each project will have its own page, once there is more content for the projects. After a much-needed break to calm down, I believe I have a system that will work. The next thing I am tackling is creating different pages for each project and starting to think about a social media and outreach plan.
March 2023
I've been working on the structure of the brand and creating pages and projects. I am still working to create a clear structure and the project that I will be working on this year. So far I have three projects already set up.
April 2023-May 2023
I have worked on the structure and I am getting ready to start putting more content on the website. I did have to play around with some organization systems for my content and my brainstorming process.
Learning
January 2023
I don’t know if I am completely lost, but I am a little lost. The struggle that I have right now is that I don’t know what the next thing I want to learn is. I got out of college about six months ago. Since then, I have been taking a break from learning, but now I really want to get back into learning something. I have a list which means I am not completely lost.
Barbara’s List of things she wants to Learn.
Coding
Spanish
Ux design
February 2023
My learning this month hasn’t been structured. I have done some research on things I want to include in my blog and learned about different apps to read. I know that this is a cop-out response, but I have taken a slow entire to learn new things.
March 2023
I actually learned new things this month. I started learning more things about graphic design and actually putting my creativity to paper and aligning with some graphic design rules.
Organization
January 2023
The goal of being organized is to stay organized. I can get my things organized, but staying organized is a little bit harder. I do a great job of getting organized and making sure things go to their rightful places, but I have a hard time keeping everything how organized them. It makes sense because f you are living in your space then you are moving things around and using things. What I want is to use something and put it back exactly where I found it.
February 2023
My room has stayed clean. It’s a miracle; I should say that for the most part, my room has stayed clean. Everything remains in the same location they usually are in, and aside from my bed, there is no massive clutter. I have been trying to place things back where I took them. For the most part, this method has been working.
The clutter in my brain is a lot being organized in my chosen organization books and software. I feel like some weight is being taken off my shoulders.
March 2023
My room is dirty again. Well it's full of so much stuff and I bought some stuff, so it looks clustered. I have started getting it back to a clean room. My brain has also felt more organized this month with the help of the BUJO.
April 2023 - May 2023
I have made the decision that having one physical organization book is best. I had a ring planner, a sketchbook, and a bullet journal. It was hectic trying to find notes and appointment information that I made. I've downsized to one Bullet journal as my calendar, to-do list, and brain dump. No more wasting time.
Living Situation
January 2023
I live with my parents and it's the best thing for me right now. In the next year, I hope to have my own place, but there is no hurry or pressure. I plan on saving and being able to put a down payment on a home. My goals month is to save at least 1,000 to get about 12,000 by the end of the year. It should be easy because I live with my parents and they aren’t charging rent. Also, My mother cooks most of my meals for free.
As I said January was a heavy expense month for me so I didn’t save the full 1,000 but I already have a plan to make it up by March 2023.
February 2023
This month, I got my tax refund back which helped make up for money that I didn’t save in January. I am slowly getting back on track. The goal of 12,000 dollars by the end of the year is still achievable. I started talking to an agent, but have since stopped talking because they pretty much told me it was impossible to buy a house anytime soon.
March 2023
More money was saved, but with the extra cash that I have it is becoming easier to spend money on random things that don't allow me to save for the house.
Entertainment
I had to add a new section starting in February because Entertainment has always been a big part of my life and will always be. In this section, I will be covering briefly songs, movies, tv shows, movies, and games that I have enjoyed for the month.
February 2023
TV Series and Movies
Murdoch Mysteries
911
911: Lone Stars
Abbott Elem.
Next Level Chef
Not Dead Yet
Survivor
The Company You Keep
The Rookie
Criminal Minds
FBI: Most Wanted
FBI
Fire Country
Raising Hope ( Finished Series)
Hogan’s Heros
Amazing Race
Sistas
Zatima
Games
Crowd Evolution ( mobile game)
Royal match (Mobile Game)
Fishdom (Mobile Game)
Candy Crush (Mobile Game)
March 2023
TV Series and Movies
Murdoch Mysteries
911: Lone Stars
The Rookie
Criminal Minds
Sistas
Zatima
Will Trent
The Good Wife
East New York
So Help me, Todd
Games
Solitaire
Sim City
Merged
8 Ball Pool
Subway Surf
April 2023 - May 2023
TV Series and Movies
Murdoch Mysteries
911
911: Lone Stars
The Good Doctor
The Rookie
Fire Country
Law and Order: SVU
Castle
So Help Me, Todd
Games
Solitaire
Monthly Conclusions
January - This month was essential to set up a template of how my months should go and what I should expect. Who knows I might just add new goals and new sections as the month goes on.
February- This month had some highs and lows. I started on a track for things that I can control, but there are certain things that I can’t control. I just have to try harder to achieve my goals even with the barriers ahead.
March - This was a great month, Maybe because it was my birthday. My boos surprised me with cupcakes and balloons for my birthday. I got organized and actually felt like I had control of most things in my life.
April and May - These months just flew by. I had some expenses and some good luck with winnings. I managed anything that came up and had fun when I wasn't working.
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