A Good Year?

I had a really hectic week this week; I had appointments and general gubbins to attend to every day, as well as trying to get some actual work done – not to mention Christmas shopping, housework and other such duties. I was feeling overwrought and fed up. On top of this, I found myself looking to the year ahead and thinking, “next year has to be better.” I feel like I’ve spent most of this year chasing my tail, going from week to week and month to month, always surprised if I get there with a couple of pounds in my purse. I’ve been busy making plans to ensure next year is easier on the money front, and all round.

For the last three weeks, I’ve been that sort of steam-rollered tired where every morning you’re too tired to get out of bed, and every evening you’re ready to hit the hay by 6pm. It feels like never-ending exhaustion and stress.

Yesterday I caught a train to Swanwick to do some work. I fought sleep all the way there, but ended up nodding off several times on the train. When I met my friend at the other end we were talking and he said a friend of his had asked after me. I was surprised to hear he’d told her he thought I’d had a pretty good year actually, and that things were definitely heading in the right direction for me.

I was shocked… but actually, he’s right.

I spent a large chunk of this year living somewhere I absolutely hated. In fact, last Christmas was so bad that we spent New Year at a friend’s house on the other side of town, and half our summer was spent camping out at other people’s houses too. We’ve finally escaped from that horrible flat, and now live somewhere much quieter, safer and friendlier.

We have removed certain poisonous, interfering influences from our lives, and have managed to attract in replacement, some truly wonderful friends who have proved their magnificent worth.

I have had some amazing opportunities this year, including going on ITV’s This Morning to talk about my breakdown, a weekly slot on the south’s biggest radio station, not to mention working with some amazing clients  on fantastic blogs and copy for their sites.

I have some great plans for the new year, both for the blog and for my work, and I’m really keen to get started on all the planning and organising.

I started this year  earning most of my money from social media marketing and bookkeeping. I wanted to begin making more money from writing, but didn’t know where to start… now, at the end of the year, most of my money comes from writing and only a small percentage comes from social media marketing or bookkeeping.

It’s so easy to get bogged down in the day to day, to concentrate on the negative and feel like everything is crappy. Yes, I’m having a hard time at the moment, and yes it would be handy to have more money coming in. But actually, I’m in a much better position than this time last year, and things are definitely heading in the right direction. Onwards and upwards!