My year end recap 2018

2018 comes to its bitter end in approximately 14 hours. Based on the memes and social media in general,  2018 was not a kind year to most. It left the general population with a bad taste in their collective mouths.

The question in my mind is, What were they expecting? Why was 2018 such a let down? Did they expect wealth, love,  good health? I'm not sure what happened to us that made this, "The worst year ever" 

I think we have to go back to the beginning. First of all, what goals to did you set for the year? Did you even create a vision board? What did you do differently this year? Remember, if you expect change, you have to start with your own behavior. At what point did you realize that it was going to be a terrible year? What steps did you take at that moment to correct the direction your year was heading in? All obvious questions, now.

Now that we've got that squared away? Why did you really have a bad year? Did you die?  Did you get diagnosed with a terminal illness? Did you become homeless? Did you lose someone close to you? Did you lose your job? To me these are some life changing reasons to have a bad year. Some non-life changing reasons are as follows. You did not win the lottery again this year. You weren't able to afford your dream car. You hate your job. You hate your relationship. You broke up with you significant other. I have have bad luck. Nothing good ever happens to me. Why did so and so succeed and I didn't?

There is a lot to be said about negative energy. If you think you're doomed, guess what, you're gonna be doomed. Then you have to take into account effort. Did you try? What did you put your energy into other than feeling sorry for yourself? Did you help anyone this year. Karma also affects your daily life. Did you dish out any positive energy? How do you expect for the universe to look out for you if all you do is gripe and only think about yourself?
How much work did you do this year? I'm not talking about your job. I'm talking about the other 16 hours of the day. Did you do anything to create wealth? Did you volunteer? Did you practice any self care? Did you even take a minute to appreciate what you have and the people in your life, probably not.

I spend a considerable amount of my free time on social media. Mostly because I've created a persona that people follow and expect interaction with. It's also a platform for my passion, political views and just to interact with friends and family. On Instagram I follow mostly people like myself, that collect vinyl records, love music and aspire to create music. After that I follow food, fashion, and models. Out of all those groups, who do you think is most dedicated to their craft? Models. Yeah, I know. When you think about Instagram models, you think, a bunch of barely dressed, gold digging, aspiring reality show stars waiting to get knocked up my a ball player or a sound cloud rapper. At least that's what I used to think. Then I started paying attention. There are two groups. The ones that want attention and the ones that see it as a business.  They all have a hustle. Whether they do web cam, or premium snap. Then a handful are building a brand. I know a few that started a fashion line. Two design and sell swimwear for the bigger more voluptuous female. Others did the same with fashion lines. They sell cheap, easy to manufacture garments that women with real bodies can see on their page and buy. On the other side, they work. They're processing orders, packing orders, marketing,  making garments, in their homes. Sure they portray a lavish lifestyle, but they work hard for it. They are determined to succeed. Many have mouths to feed and bills to pay, just like us.

In the end it's all about drive. You have to be determined to do what it takes to succeed. It's funny, because the people that worked the hardest this year, have reached on how good 2018 had been to them. The best example of this is Cardi B. I've been watching her for years. she grew up in the hood. Then went from stripping to hosting to rapping. This year all that hard work paid off. She never let anyone's opinion of her stop her hustle. She may not be the best rapper, but she is a platinum selling artist. she's a real inspiration. The rest of us who didn't do anything but the same thing we did last few years, had a bad 2018.

I don't know what it's going to take to convince you, but first,  throw away all the excuses. I don't have time. Then make time. I don't have money. Then find the money. I don't know the first thing about. Then learn. Find the successful people. Pick their brains. Find a passion. What could you do that will make you happy and wealthy at the same time. Nothing is going to be easy or happen in a year. Stop thinking about success in years. Set milestones. Set small goals and reach them. Don't stop, ever. This how you begin not only to have a good year but you begin to shift your life in a positive,  non-dead end direction.

Now let me tell you about the year I had. First of all, it was a blur. Second of all, I made no forward movement. I actually made some backward movement. I worked, sat on my couch, bought a few records, slept, ate,  and waited. For 365 days. I waited for something good to happen. Nothing good ever happened.

I put no effort into strengthening my relationships this year. Personal or business. I could have been a better husband, father and son this year. I did the bare minimum at work and left my fate in the hands of people that didn't give a shit about me, my family or my future. I saved zero money. I made zero investments. I did nothing to improve my health or well being. Instead I developed osteoarthritis and sciatica in my hip at the same time. There came a point where I could not walk and barely stand. Then everything blew up in my face at work and I basically had no choice that to resign.

Today is December 31st 2018. My leg is feeling better. I'm not sure what job i'm going back to in a couple of weeks. I have a lot of work to do. I have to work on my relationship with my wife and our relationship with our daughter. We tend to take the people closest to us for granted when things aren't going well. I also need to work on my health. I'm not even 40 and I feel like an invalid some times. Them I have to go back to work and focus on rebuilding my confidence. At the same time I need to work on building financial independence for myself and my family.
It's true, my year could have been a lot worse, but if I survived everything I just described, I can do anything. I just have to want it and do the work

I want to dedicate my year end recap to the memory of Mrs Violy Pilotin.

You raised some outstanding men, some you birthed and and some you loved as if you had.

Thank you