For anyone who is new here or hasn't read my previous blogs, 2020 was my first year as a full time entrepreneur. I had a total of four hot months to blissfully acquaint myself to this so-called life of working for yourself before the utter chaos of 2020 struck in early spring.
As weeks turned into months and the pandemic continued, I won't lie, I was f*cking terrified. Yea, I baked banana bread, Marie Kondo style organized every drawer and closet in my apartment, learned the Savage Tik Tok dance, sent my friends funny videos, and had zoom happy hours. I actually did all of the above twice. (Like 8x for the happy hours if I am being transparent here, but I digress...) I gained the quarantine fifteen which was extremely not ideal considering you're, like, supposed to be in your best shape the year of your wedding, right? I participated in all your run of the mill paper towel hoarding pandemic frenzies mostly all the while to distract myself from my real fear, what would happen to my business during a global pandemic?
Now I know what you're thinking, "She didn't binge watch Netflix?"
Of course I watched Tiger King, do you think I am a psychopath? I watched everything including Emily in Paris and guess what, I absolutely loved it...
I did anything and everything that would numb me from feeling the worry, the anxiety, and the fear of losing everything I have worked for in the past few years.
I was "waiting" for it to pass. For it to go back to normal, for everything to resume as it once was...
I think my biggest growth came the moment I realized this wasn't ending, passing, or returning to normal, any time soon, if at all. As a business owner and as a person, the second I started pouring energy into adapting rather than waiting, I experienced a turning point.
I learned more this year than I have learned in the past 10 years, easily. Granted, some of the lessons were not solicited and unwelcome, nonetheless I learned them. For example, I could have gone without learning the lesson of how to file a lawsuit against our wedding venue, for one. I think it's safe to say I would happily live a very fulfilled life not knowing how to sue anyone, but I am full on Elle Woods status equipped to represent myself and proud.
Then there was that time that I had to pack hundreds, maybe a thousand, orders with my fiancé because my employees needed to quarantine. That one was fun. I only cried twice that week. Another great moment was learning how to file for the PPP loan. Let's just say, I got a C- in accounting in college and my skills with such have since declined.
Nonetheless, I learned something valuable from even the unfavorable moments. I learned that (legal) knowledge is power, doing the small tasks keep you humble, and that I desperately needed a new accountant! I also learned to never say never. Before this pandemic I never could have imagined learning these lessons this way. I also could never imagine myself writing a blog on NYE and not being with my family and friends partying, yet here we are!
My favorite lessons were the ones I learned about the relationship I have with myself and with others. I learned how to prioritize myself, set boundaries that serve me, say no to things that don't & how to make my own homemade margaritas. All four of these things have me entering 2021 as the best version of myself. Something I also thought I would never say after an almost year long pandemic.
I didn't experience all this growth alone. I've done so with the guidance of our team health coach, Masha of The Sunday Self. To close out the year, we did a team exercise with Masha that forced us to reflect on 2020. She instructed each of us to scroll through our camera rolls, month by month, and document the highs and the lows we experienced throughout 2020.
I cried secretly on the zoom call when I scrolled past the photos of Gabrielle and I wedding & maid of honor dress shopping. I don't know why this evoked so much sadness for me, I have to guess it is because it's something that every "normal" bride gets to do, but now seems like such a luxury. I felt the same way when I passed a sweaty selfie of myself that I sent to my friend Bianca after a Tracy Anderson workout class. I guess what this really sent home for me was that we should really never take the little things for granted. Not a little shopping trip, not a little gym class, nothing. What is "normal" these days anyway? I don't think much. So if you have a good, fun, memorable, or positive experience... TRULY stop to relish in the moment. Although I miss the normalcy of those things, the girl who was doing them is different than the one writing to you today. She missed out on a lot of the little moments because she was always going, going, going.
She was also a shamer, a big huge shame monster. I spent a lot of time in the early parts of 2020 beating myself up for not doing enough to grow the business or to propel it. Obviously in hindsight, how could I? We were in survival mode and just worrying about staying afloat. I shamed myself so much for not doing enough, when in reality, I was really just working with what I had to stay in business and make ends meet.
In 2020, I learned to enjoy the little things, but more importantly, enjoy what I HAVE. I have a business that withstood an almost year long pandemic. I think that's something to be proud of.
Speaking of appreciating things I have, this scrolling exercise reminded me of something else that came out of 2020. We started this year with a team of two. We are leaving 2020 double the size. Hannah, who was a long time friend of Gabrielle's, joined our team full time. Sienna, a total stranger, completed our Island to East Side family. Now I know how a mom feels when they say they can't remember life before their babies. That's how I feel about Hannah and Sienna. We were great before they came into the picture, but life without them seems unimaginable now. We are blessed to have a place to work, while so many people have lost their livelihood this year. Not only do we have our work, we love it and enjoy every second of it.
Another thing I realized I have during this pandemic is a very loyal and supportive following and customer base. Thank you to every one of you who liked our photos, placed an order, and our favorite... sent us a DM with kind words or affirmations. I appreciate you more than you know and I am consistently impressed by your interest in us as people and our brand.
When I started officially working with Masha in May, my primary goal was to become the face of the brand. What I didn't realize, at least at first anyway, was that I had to work on pretty much everything else in my life before getting to my goal. I was making a lot of choices that were keeping me from being able to show up and connect with each of you in a more meaningful way. The girl in those earlier photos had no boundaries. She said yes to every plan, answered every call, always lended her resources, her help, her ear, and her love. All at the expense of herself and likely at the expense of achieving her personal goals.
My biggest take away from 2020 was that I need to choose myself more. Every day we make choices... what we eat, what we drink, what we watch on tv, who we follow on Instagram, what attitude we have, who we allow in our lives, who our inner circle consists of, how we live and how we remember things. I am choosing to take this year for what it was and to highlight both the good and the bad, but to remember it as a time of growth and evolution, a catalyst of sorts.
In 2021, I want to show the Island to East Side community more! More sides of me personally, our team, our struggles, our wins, and our journey getting there. I honestly don't know if the perfectionist in me would be saying that if it weren't for this completely imperfect year and everything imperfect that happened because of it.
Through all the shit that happened - difficult lessons, burnt banana breads, postponed weddings, and things I won't mention on my blog - I can honestly say I came out on the other end of this year WAY better than how I entered it. To me, that really doesn't sound so bad at all. In fact, it sounds like 2020 was a pretty important year for me.
Cheers to catapulting into a new year together. I want you along for the ride with me. I can't promise it will be perfect, but it sure as hell will be interesting.
Xo,
Christina
Albert Walker
Good day to all viewer online, my name is Albert Walker I am so overwhelmed sharing this great testimony on how i was checking for solution in the internet while miraculously i came across Dr Kachi who brought my ex Girlfriend back to me, This is the reason why i have taken it upon myself to thank this great spell caster called Dr Kachi, because through his help my life became more filled with love and i am happy to say that my ex Girlfriend who has been separated from me for the past 2years came back to me pleading for me to accept her back, This was a shocking to me my partner is very stable, faithful and closer to me than before, because before i contacted Dr Kachi i was the one begging my ex Girlfriend to come back to me but through the assistance of Dr Kachi, I now have my relationship restored. You can also have a better relationship only if you Contact Dr Kachi Website, https://drkachispellcast.wixsite.com/my-site OR Email: drkachispellcast@gmail.com You can reach him Call and Text Number:+1 (209) 893-8075
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Evelyn Dawson
I was reading through Facebook when I saw a post about the legit spell caster called Dr Kachi who has helped people in winning the lottery ticket. I’m a woman who’s addicted playing the lottery and always put all my faith in buying the ticket I lost all my money of all time and my effort trying to win my game, until I met my old friend who told me the Secret of her wealth that Dr Kachi who cast lottery spell winning number for her to play the Powerball ticket that change her life, it was she that directed me to Dr Kachi. i explained to him i want to win the Mega millions, Dr Kachi instructed me on what to do which i did and he told me to wait 24hours for him to cast the winning numbers, i went to buy my ticket and play the numbers which Dr Kachi gave to me and it was surprise when i find out i won the sum of ($109.9 Million Dollars Cash Value) for Friday night’s drawing Mega Million Jackpot and than the whole thing looks wonderful, That’s the most amazing thing i have ever experience with winning the lottery spell. i believed him and today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the power to help you win big amount in lottery game, because i am now happy with my life. words Ain’t enough to say thank you Sir. and from the deepest part of my heart, i will show my gratitude by sharing this testimony all over the world let people seek for your help to win the Lotto Game, and be happy like me today: Text Number and Call: +1 (209) 893-8075 Email: drkachispellcast@gmail.com his Website: https://drkachispellcast.wixsite.com/my-site
Dorothy Karl
My name is Dorothy Karl. Marital woes got me into a big mess which unfortunately led to divorcing my husband. I went through a whole lot for almost a year. I tried moving on and I couldn’t because I was left heart broken and shattered and had two kids to cater for all alone. In all this, I never stopped loving my ex husband and I kept trying to fix our union again till I found out about DR ISIKOLO who was widely known on the internet for helping people. I had to contact him and got to know he can help me as well which he did when I complied with him. He restored the bond between me and my husband and the divorce was annulled and we are happier together even more than I ever imagined. He is trusted and reliable and in just 2 days, the result of his work will manifest without doubts. email him via: isikolosolutionhome@gmail.com You can also WhatsApp him on +2348133261196.
Natasha Thompson
My name is Natasha Thompson from the USA/Texas.. Am so overwhelmed with gratitude to let the world know how Dr Kachi, the great spell caster changed my life for good. It all started when I lost my job and I was down financially and emotionally because I couldn’t be able provide for my two kids and staying home all day Jobless it’s not easy until I was checking on the internet when I saw a series of testimonies hearing people winning the Powerball lottery, I didn’t believed, but being poor no job you have no option. I gave it a try and I contacted Dr Kachi who told me what i have to do before I can become a big lottery winner and I accepted. He made special prayers for me in his temple and gave me the required numbers to play the lottery game and when I used the numbers to play it, I won a massive $344.6 million Powerball jackpot. I was so happy and I choose to review my winning in any platform, I would love other people to seek help from Dr Kachi through Text and Call: +1 (209) 893-8075 or email drkachispellcast@gmail.com by his website: https://drkachispellcast.wixsite.com/my-site