It’s been a wild year. Actually, 2018 was pretty rough for me, with a lot of turmoil and uncertainty. But this last month, it feels like things have started to clarify in my life, and I’m hopeful for what 2019 will bring.
I’m going to break this post down by my three main categories–financial security, happiness, and health.
Financial Security
This was a good year for my finances! I paid off the last of my credit card debt in June, and I’ve made some good progress on my remaining student loans.
The big progress, that I didn’t even realize until I looked up the numbers to write this post, is that my net worth doubled. And that’s after it went down a bit this month with the market volatility.
I still have a long way to go to meet my financial goals, and it’s pretty easy to double numbers when you’re starting out at a small amount anyway, but it’s still a big deal! I’m still in the 5-digit range, but $100,000 feels achievable now. And then from there, it’s just a hop, skip, and a jump to $1 million 😉
I’m still hoping to move once I navigate my career transition. It’s hard to make progress on financial goals as a single woman living in such a high cost of living area. Especially since I have no desire to sign up for roommates again. On the job front, I’ll write a little more about what’s in the future in 2019!
Happiness
Job Searching
Overall, this year has been really stressful. Job uncertainty has meant that I’m dealing with a much higher baseline level of stress and anxiety. And when I’m dealing with a lot of anxiety, it seems to trigger my depression, which is obviously no fun.
Again, I’m hoping that as I get more clarity on next steps and where I’m going, this will naturally subside. On that front, it’s been so so helpful to talk to my therapist about my goals and fears because she knows me so well. I’ve made so much progress in my mental health over the last 5 years, and that has never been more obvious than this year.
SunCat
On the anxiety front, because when it rains, it pours, of course SunCat had major medical issues this year. She’s been doing so well now and is responding really well to the treatment the vet recommended, so I’m hopeful that we’re out of the woods. She’s gaining weight and ruling my apartment with a benevolent iron fist. At the moment, she’s surveying her territory from the heating pad I bought for her cat bed. She might be a little spoiled. But she does give pretty great financial advice, so she’s allowed to be.
Travel
I had some really fun adventures this year. I traveled to two new countries for work, and I went to South Korea in June (I’ve already been before, but it was great to spend more time there and eat ALL THE FOOD).
The traveling highlight of the year though was going to Peru with one of my best friends. This country has been at the top of my bucket list for ages, and it was so much fun to go with someone I love. We had an awesome time. We climbed a mountain and went to the rainforest, and, again, ate all the food. Are you sensing a theme here?
Health
This is probably the one area of my personal goals where I’ve dropped the ball. I was making good progress last year and the beginning of this year with eating healthier and exercising. But it became too overwhelming trying to be good on these things when I felt like the rest of my life was chaos.
I decided to prioritize being kind to myself over pushing to meet the goals I had created for myself. In the grand scheme of things, this felt like the better option–to protect my mental health, even if it meant putting progress on physical health on hold. This isn’t to say that I ate McDonald’s all year, but I’m definitely hoping that I can start 2019 strong and get back into some of those good habits that I let slide in the last 7 months.
2018 in Numbers
- 33 blog posts
- 753 Twitter followers
- 4 international trips (and 3 new countries!)
- 13 domestic trips
- 54 fiction books read
- 18 non-fiction books read
- 30 job interviews
- 1 new Etsy shop
- Countless new personal finance internet friends
That’s it for me in 2018. I’ve had a lovely week celebrating Christmas with my family, reflecting on the past year, and planning for the next one. I hope you’ve had a relaxing holiday season, and thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog this year. Whether one post or all of them, it means a lot. Best wishes from me, SunCat, StarCat, and StarDog. Happy New Year!