last year's lessons learned.

resolutions. what are they exactly? a way to start fresh or forget the past year's mistakes? but does anyone really ever start fresh? can you truly forget mistakes made in the previous year?

i'm not one to make resolutions because of these exact beliefs. i love who i am and i believe that everything (including last year's mistakes) have brought me to this point in my life. so when the clock strikes 12 midnight every January 1st, i believe it's a chance to review all that transpired and make lifestyle changes. mistakes are no longer that - they are life lessons. here's what i learned from 2012:

1. 'do what you truly love and love what you do.' to most of my friends it's no surprise that this is #1. after some crazy events and a health scare, i came to the conclusion that i wasn't listening to myself and following my own heart. so with a few changes (and a nervousness of the unknown), i made a decision to change my career path and i haven't looked back since. it's truly been a blessing.

2. 'it isn't who's know you've the longest, but who never left your side.' life is built around relationships. some are in your life for a reason, some for a season, and some for a lifetime. but it's when the going gets tough that you sometimes (very unfortunately) come to learn who will truly be there for you. who will completely accept you for who you are, faults and all. while this is a heartbreaking lesson to learn, it's one that i've been told everyone faces.

3. 'if you ever want to hear God laugh, tell him what you had planned.' i always had this vision in my head of what life would be like in my late-20s. i'd be married, have at least 2 kids, live in a large house, be a successful 9-to-5er, and genuinely love my life. flash forward to now: i am single, have an adorable dog, live in my own 2 bedroom condo, and am self-employed. but here's the kicker: i am still genuinely happy. my life plan may not have taken the road that i expected, but that doesn't mean it was the wrong road to take.

4. 'learn to live life outside of the box.' i love shopping, pulling outfits together, and accessorizing. if someone could have told me that i could make a career out of this, i would have laughed in their face. but once i made the decision to escape office life, i knew i needed something to cushion my real estate income. hello, Stella & Dot. my career as a stylist has brought me nothing but fun times with great women- and a weekly income that has helped my transition out of the corporate humdrum. my financial future has never looked so bright.

5. 'no regrets.' regret has such a negative connotation to it. it's like you're looking at yourself in the mirror and saying- 'you suck. what were you thinking?' here's the thing, even if you weren't thinking, have you ever come to the conclusion that you just needed to do that or be there or act like that so you never did again?! regrets don't do anything for your life. they just give you something to think about and cause you to think negatively about yourself. when was the last time that negative thoughts made a positive change? never. so look back at your year, learn some thing, and move on. you can't change the past, but you can mold the future.

i know, i know. this post has been super introspective. but over the past 2 weeks of my self-imposed blog vacation, i took some time to look around and take notice of all my life blessings. and i'd have to say- i've been blessed in ways that i never imagined. because of that, i'm looking forward to all the blessings 2013 has to offer.

xoxo Lauren