How I’m Choosing to Challenge my Limits

Today marks the end of the Mattie James  Consistency Challenge, that I’ve been participating in since July 6. During the challenge I successfully, wrote one blog post per weekday, for the entire month. While I met the requirements of the challenge, I have lost hair, eyebrows and edges, trying to keep up.

If you’ve never blogged before, then let me be the first to share with you, that it is not easy. Not only do you have to provide your readers with relevant content but there has to be visuals, in the form of photos you take or stock photos, proofreading, editing and promotion, so that people will actually read your work.

Prior to the challenge, I had fallen off from blogging because it really wasn’t what I expected when I started. I thought I would write, people would love it, I’d make lots of money, like other successful bloggers and I’d be an instant hit! Yeah, no. That’s not even close to how it went. I am still seeking out my audience, still trying to find my footing and still making zero dollars. What remains the same, is my love for writing and the aesthetic of my site.

I entered this challenge, soon after making my way back to blogging. When I read the rules, I thought to myself, I can’t do that, I was barely putting out one blog post per week, let alone five. However, the night before the challenge was to start, I thought to myself, why can’t I accomplish this? Especially since we’re not going anywhere these days and I took a voluntary, partially paid leave from my job. I literally asked myself, what is holding you back? The only thing I could think of, was that it wouldn’t be easy and that excuse wasn’t good enough.

There have been things in my life that weren’t easy to navigate through but those things that were the most difficult, brought the most joy in the end. Planning and executing a debt free wedding, building a home that had me working the most hours I’ve ever worked in my entire career, thirty hours of labor, giving birth to my child, were all things that tested my limits. Yet, the reward was well worth the difficulty.

This blogging competition was something that I did for myself. While there is a cash prize, win, lose or draw, I elevated my way of thinking about myself and my capabilities and no amount of money could compete with that. By not overthinking and just doing, I succeeded and that has set the tone for my next challenge, going back to school.

In August, I will begin my studies to earn my Masters Degree in Digital Marketing. At first, I didn’t even want to tell people that I’d be going to school, for fear of failure but the way in which God has opened doors to make this opportunity available to me, the paid time off from work, the available funding for me through my husband’s GI Bill, the mental clarity to know and feel that I can do this, how can I fail?

I’m glad I pushed myself and will continue to do so because I know that I am worthy of the goals and aspirations that I set forth. This blog is my time capsule. I want to look back in 5 years and remember, that this is where the drive started. As with many things, it always seems impossible until it’s done but you can go ahead and put a fork in this test, it’s good and done. Onto the next one!