2018
From the above pictures, you’re probably thinking just throw on a bomb outfit and strut like your life depends on it. While that is one mandatory step into the year, there’s a bit more to it than that.
“It’s one thing to be optimistic, it’s another to be in denial.”
As I reflected on 2017, I realized pressuring myself into doing more than what I could handle played a major factor in not achieving the goals I initially set for myself. While attending school, working part time, managing a blog, and maintaining a social life was all fun, I had a tendency to set unrealistic goals for myself to the point where my blog ended up being hurt the most.
Now that school is becoming less strenuous with my graduation around the corner, I have more control over my free time to plan/create at a pace that fits my lifestyle, no extra pressure. Everyone's journey is different -- and it's about time I start traveling my own.
Nevertheless, I’m sharing some of my more reachable goals for 2018. See them below:
1. Creativity, consistency & discipline.
I'm constantly inspired by creatives on social media that are able to build a brand by sharing their unique personalities and interests with the world. I am proud to be apart of that community and hope to reach the heights that many pioneers in the industry have reached, if not surpassed. In observing some of these popular individuals, they all had one thing in common: They had a niche and owned it. Being able to stand out in an over-saturated digital world, can be difficult. Since I'm learning to appreciate my journey, I strongly feel I'm honing in on my own niche everyday. My content is an extension of myself and although creativity plays a huge role in that, consistency and discipline is what gives it structure and purpose. Looking forward, I'd like to take my blog and social platforms more seriously and have fun while doing it. This means more Youtube videos, more content, more me. There's so much to do, but this is just the beginning.
2. Travel.
In 2015, I traveled to Los Angeles and Miami for the first time.
In 2016, I returned to my parent's home country, Jamaica, for the 5th time.
In 2017, I rarely traveled because I wanted to focus more on school, relaunching/reorganizing my blog and financials.
This year, I'm taking things to a whole new level by traveling to places outside my comfort zone for the first time.
After searching through countless flights, I finally mustered the courage to book a trip to Paris solo this June. I plan on doing a Paris/London trip and if I have enough time, a day trip elsewhere in the vicinity (perhaps Amsterdam?). It's no secret the idea of leaving by myself to a place I have no familiarities with is a as scary as it sounds. Sure, I know a few people that live in the area, but it's not the same as being accompanied by someone during the entire trip.
In my experiences growing up, I've come to realize that I can't depend on people to enjoy my time. My time is what I make of it. If anyone decides to tag along last minute, that's perfectly fine, but I have given myself enough time to prepare for the trip whether solo or with a friend.
In addition to my travels, I'll also be visiting Miami (Feb), Los Angeles (Oct), and somewhere in the tropics (Aug), as I haven't decided where yet. If you have any recommendations for places to visit, let me know in the comments below!
3. Staying active.
A post shared by Nkenge [Nick-en-gee] (@itsnkenge) on Nov 10, 2017 at 2:07pm PST
When I was a kid, I danced in a salsa/merengue class and performed at parades for a few years. In middle school and high school, I was apart of two dance teams. I also used to attend classes at Broadway Dance Center in NYC on a weekly basis. Ever since I started college, I stopped.
Maybe it was the thought of not knowing what career I wanted to pursue post-college? Regardless, I haven't returned to a dance class for quite sometime. When I got into blogging and Instagram, things started picking back up again when I posted a couple of short dances. To my surprise, there was a lot of engagement, and even requests for more dance videos. It was a breath of fresh air knowing something I was so invested in as a child and teen, would be such a hit now in my mid 20s.
For 2018 and onward, I'm going to get back into dancing and exercising as a whole. It's an important part of maintaining my health, something I've definitely taken for granted for a while now.
And if you're wondering, you'll be seeing more dances on Instagram this year, don't you worry. :)
4. Supporting businesses who value diversity.
In addition to the blogging industry being so saturated, as a black blogger, I've also observed a major diversity flaw in the fashion industry. I'm finding it more difficult to grow in result of it because I personally feel most community accounts feature you based on race first before your particular style. When I visit an Instagram account such as @OOTDMagazine or @Revolve, I rarely, if not at all, see any black women on their page. It's sad really; we continue to live in an age where black people are feeling forced to create pages particularly for black people (i.e @OOTDblackgirls and @Makeupforblackwomen) because there's not enough representation on the accounts that many of us admire today.
Moving forward, I'm going to support and invest in businesses that value diversity.
I'm appreciating companies like Topshop and Asos more now than ever before, because they value diversity as apart of their brand. They'll place models of different races in their store windows and/or on their website's homepage without hesitation. And I'm not just talking about one black model out of every 50, I'm talking one black model out of every 5 or less.
Representation is a huge controversy when it comes to black culture, if it's not performed, and performed correctly, many black people would feel discouraged and not see the worth in moving forward with their dreams, like I have plenty of times in my blogging journey.
This is why it's important to support brands who do value diversity, so those of us feeling discouraged can see that there are fruits to our labour. We can pick ourselves up when we're down and never give up.
And with that, this concludes my 2018 resolutions! Happy 2018 guys! Stay tuned for more content. :D
What I'm Wearing
Dress: Forever 21 (size S)
Coat: Asos (size 2)
Boots: Chinese Laundry (size 9, True to size)
Bag: Gucci
Until next time,
xx Nkenge