A very happy New Year to you, and I hope you’ve had a wonderful start to the new year! 🥳
2023 was a beautiful year that had an unfortunate ending (for me), which presented me with a mighty challenge. Yet, I choose to rise again and approach life with renewed hope 🙌🏾
Before delving into the intricate details of this unfortunate ending, let me first reflect on the intentions I had set out for last year, just as I did in Before I Conquer 2023… This is what I aimed to accomplish:
Commit to my morning & exercise routine
I’m a creature of habit, and my morning routine is an important ritual to ensure a great start to my day ☀️
My morning routine includes jogging, yoga, prayer, and breakfast. On my best days, I am able to tick off all these items, and on my worst, just praying is sufficient, and for that, I’m grateful 🙏🏾
Develop a self-care evening routine
This was a real challenge because, by the end of the day, I’m usually so tired that all I want to do is sleep 😴
My plan was to take a bath, do some readings, and say an evening prayer – but most nights, all I could manage was the prayer. This made me realize that activity-free evenings are what’s best for me, considering I hit the ground running in the morning and hardly rest during the day 💥
Nurture my spiritual, emotional & mental health
Last year marked the beginning of a deeper relationship with myself. Life experiences have elevated my self-awareness to a new level 🙌🏾
This realisation has shown me that there’s more to me, prompting the need to take better care of myself to enhance my life experience. Consequently, I’ve learned to be kinder to myself and treat myself with love and respect 🙏🏾
I’ve prioritised making time for attending church, joined a depression and anxiety support group, and fostered open lines of communication with my close circle ❤️🔥
Read & journal daily
I now keep a gratitude journal that I update during my morning routine. Blogging serves as an extension of my journaling, and I enjoy reading other blogs to compare notes and learn from other people’s experiences 🤓
I did want to get back to reading books but didn’t quite manage it. This is something I’m definitely picking up this year — my goal is to read ten books by the end of the year 📖
Launch podcast version of TBOAphsie
This has been in my heart for quite some time, but I was overwhelmed by the number of new podcasts that popped up, specifically last year 🥵
Postponing this activity has allowed me much-needed time to question my intentions for this platform and to develop the vision I have for it. I now have a better idea of what I want it to sound, look, and feel like, and soon you’ll know too 👀
Launch NGUNI SUITS collection
And so we did! June 2023 saw the debut of our NGUNI SUITS collection on our spanking new website – have you seen it yet? 🤗
We later showcased this collection at the Durban Fashion Fair and earned a nomination for Best Traditional Outfit 🏆
Build team for UP_PHELELE
It has taken me a long time, but I’ve finally realised that I can’t do it all on my own. The fact that I studied Fashion gave me the unshakable confidence that I was now equipped to wear all the hats needed when running a business 🤡
Lol, I’ve taken some time to participate in business mentorship and accelerator programs, and they’ve taught me otherwise. I now see the need for professional teammates to run a profitable and sustainable business. At the end of last year was my graduation from my third program, which marked the end of one journey and made way for a new one 🎓
I’m definitely carrying this intention into 2024 too and realize that as the primary member of my team, it’s vital that I build myself up before attracting suitable mates 💯
Start my vegetable & mama’s rose gardens
I’ve made gardening my afterwork destress activity, which also serves as a delicious workout 🏋🏿♀️
Our vegetable garden has been a project I’d been working on for a while and last year I actually did it – SEE HERE 🌱
A flower garden was next on my list and I wanted to include a rose bush in memory of my later mother, who loved roses. Unfortunately, I didn’t quite get to it and so I’m carrying this intention into 2024 🌹
Promote fertile ground for my relationships to thrive
Last but certainly not least – nurturing my relationships. One of the things I’ve learned so far is how important my relationships are to me 🥰
I’ve been putting in a sufficient amount of self-work and am now better equipped to keep the people whose presence is mutually beneficial. I constantly find ways to enhance our connection. This has been a fulfilling practice, and I intend to carry it into the rest of my life 🤌🏾
Yours – but mine first,
Aphsie ♡
P.S. Thanks for having a read & you’re MORE than welcome to share your thoughts on our comment section below – looking forward to hearing from you…
It sounds like you have some wonderful things to focus on throughout 2024; things that will really uplift and encourage. It’s great to have some goals to works towards—I will have to revisit what mine are too. I wish you well with all of these!
Thank you so much Molly & I look forward to reading yours next – bless you ♡