Soar: My 2024 Theme, plus my 24 in ‘24 List

Happy New Year! In this episode, you'll learn why I've chosen "Soar!" as my theme for 2024. Plus I share what's made my "24 in '24" list, with tasks and goals for my business, fun, family, travel, and more.

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Transcript

Happy New Year! This is episode number 15, and I'm going to reveal my theme for 2024. Spoiler alert, it is “soar.” I'm also going to share my 24 in 24 list, or, you know, the list of stuff I'd really like to get done this year. 

I hope that you enjoy this episode and that you'll visit the show notes at GetYourselfTogetherChica.com/podcast for links to anything that I mention.

And as always, you can reach me with questions or ideas or stories at podcast@getyourselftogetherchica.com.

But before we dive into today's topic, I want to share what's bringing me joy right now. I just got back from a couple days in New York City

with my partner. We had decided we were going to give ourselves and give each other the gift of a little holiday getaway to New York. And going up there and just seeing all the lights and how festive everything was. It was such a delight.

Now for two North Carolinians, it was also quite cold, but the bonus was I actually found a fantastic jacket that was on sale at the Levi's store. So I had been on the hunt for one for a while, mine somehow completely vanished, my everyday winter jacket, and so that was a really nice little souvenir to bring back with us.

We had the most wonderful time. We went to Little Italy and grabbed some food. We went to Chinatown, just kind of did all of the typical tourist stuff although we did not go over to the Statue of Liberty. We just looked at it from Battery Park, but it was such a nice time and my partner hadn't been there in probably 15 years and it had been a few years for me too. So it was cool just to see what was the same and what was different.

And what's bringing me joy is actually looking at the pictures from our trip. You can just see the happiness kind of radiate on our faces. I'll post a couple of them in the show notes so that you can enjoy them too. 

We're thinking maybe we'll make this a tradition for us just to do a little festive getaway as a gift to each other right during the holidays.

The other thing that's bringing me joy is my son has been asking for the last two years: He really wanted to go back to Disney World, at least see some of the parks in Orlando. And I'll be honest, it's okay, but I kind of thought that was a one time thing I was doing as a parent when we went back in 2019. You know, it's pretty expensive. I think you can go to Europe for less than you can go to Disney parks it seems like.

But I had actually put it as one of my goals on my life map for 2023 that I wanted to get the kids back down there again. And as it turned out, my daughter had a trip with her marching band, so she got to go back to Orlando anyway and wasn't that keen on making a second trip. And my son really, really, really wanted to go. So we decided, you know what, my partner loves it. He loves it. Why don't we make this his big, his big Christmas present?

And so the two of them just jetted down there. They had two days in the park. They went to Epcot and they went to Hollywood studios and seeing the joy on his face in the photos that my partner was sending back to me. It was the right choice. This is his last childhood Christmas. He's going to be 18 next Christmas, I guess.

And so I just thought this is the year to do it. So that's what's bringing me joy right now.

All right, so let's jump in and talk about the theme I've chosen for 2024, "soar." Every year, I like to choose a theme just to kind of sum up what I want out of the year, what I want for myself, for my life, where I want to go, what I need to work on.

And so the thing that kept jumping out to me for 2024 was I thought, you know, last year was really a year of leaping and trusting that I knew enough to figure out how to fly.

And fly I did. I left my full time role. I started some really awesome businesses and this podcast and the program that I run for women.

And it was just a really wonderful confidence building year for me to, you know, take all of that on in the year that I turned 40 and just go after the things that I cared about.

The challenge I often have is that I have a tendency to approach myself and the world around me with a bit of a scarcity mindset, a belief that there's like a finite amount of opportunity available and I might not be able to get my share of the pie… rather than seeing that we actually all contribute to creating a bigger and bigger pie where there's abundance for everyone.

And so that's really what I wanted to focus on this year is trusting and believing that I can soar because I consistently underestimate myself. Other people can see, “hey, wow, of course you're going to be successful at that. Or, you know, you really have a lot of ability and passion and people are drawn to you, you know, in these areas.” But I'm slow to see it for myself.

And so this year I thought, let me build a list and let me build a mindset that makes the assumption that I can rise, that I can soar, that I can ascend to new heights. And just do the things I need to do and trust that the results will follow. 

So to that end, first on my 24 and 24 list is a big one: Exceed my W2 job salary, what I earned when I was working full time for another employer… while working a little bit less and enjoying it a lot more.

I really want to do the parts of the jobs that I've had in the past that I was great at, that I loved, that I got recognition and appreciation for. I want to make my business focused on those things. And I want to let go of kind of the corporate headaches and busy work and things that I just could do and often did step in to fill gaps, but that really weren't worth my time or attention if I'm being honest.

And I struggle to say that because it feels like it lacks humility, but I've come to realize that when you get to this stage of your career where you’re really at the peak of it, it's time to really acknowledge where your energy and time should be spent and where people get the most value from it. So I'm really looking at building my business around those things.

The second thing on my list is related. I want to generate more new business opportunities than I can fulfill alone.

Because that gives me the opportunity to build partnerships and really a freelancer talent bench of great people that I can create business with and for.

I think that's really the ultimate, the most inspiring thing to me about running my own consulting firm is being able to generate opportunities that other people benefit from too.

And that also takes the blinders and the limits off of my own thinking about, well, I shouldn't do any more business development right now because I have more work than I can handle.

That is actually a fantastic problem to have and I have had it before, and I've missed the opportunity in the past because of that scarcity mindset, I've missed the opportunity to actually extend what I do by working with other people.

So a rising tide lifts all boats and I want to be part of that.

Third up is about the program and the podcast. I want to host two Get Yourself Together Chica programs each season. That's two cohorts of up to 10 women each, and I want to release 52 podcast episodes, so one a week.

My goal there is I want to grow the Get Yourself Together Chica brand to the degree that I still love it, and it reaches as many women as possible, and I would love for it to put my kids through college without debt.

I do believe all of those goals are achievable and they kind of work together in my mind.

Numbers four, five and six on my list are all podcast related as well. I want to feature at least one guest per quarter on the podcast. I really, really enjoyed my first experience with that where I hosted Cole Baker Bagwell back in December, and I'm thinking that's a pretty optimistic but achievable goal to get one every quarter. Maybe I'll do more, we'll see.

I also want to get a thousand plus downloads on average per episode, and I have a long way between here and there, but I'm going to trust

that if I keep putting out great content and folks keep sharing it, that that number will go up.

Number six on the list is I want to introduce two new paid podcast sponsors without compromising my values. Now look, I fully understand that a girl's gotta eat, and I understand why podcast hosts and creators will sometimes allow sponsors that maybe they're not really on board with whatever it is this person is selling.

No judgment. But for me, this is not my primary income source or even close to it. So there's no reason to even be tempted to allow folks to pitch stuff on the show that I just don't agree with.

Number seven is a pretty big one for me and really important to me personally. I would like to by the end of 2024 have fully funded both of my kids’ college tuition and fees.

Now that's for in-state and I’m fortunate, here in North Carolina, that our college tuition is pretty affordable. The tuition and fees are about $10,000 a year on average and there's some pretty good programs actually in place to lock that once you start, once you get enrolled.

Currently, hopefully they don't change it. You actually get to pay the same tuition rate for all four years as long as your kid stays enrolled. So it's within the realm of achievability.

I am currently sitting at about halfway funded. So long way to go for two kids, but I feel like that is achievable to get there by the end of the year.

Okay, number eight is I want to meet with my muse, or touch my novel darned near daily.

That's really important to me because I really have had this lifelong goal of writing a fantastic novel that gets published. And you know, I've been working on my current novel for several years now, but staying in constant contact with that story, that's where inspiration comes from.

And so even if I just fix a few words or make an adjustment to the outline, I want to be touching that pretty darn near every day.

Number nine is "Finish Draft Number Two" of the novel. So I'm using the approach, well loosely modeled after what Matt Bell recommends in his book "Refuse to Be Done," which is to say that draft number two is a complete rewrite. You sit with your old draft and your new draft side by side and there's no copying, pasting allowed. You have to retype the parts that you want to keep, and you add and release what you don't.

So that's going to take me about a year to get through draft two, but I am okay with that. It's coming together a bit by bit.

Okay, quick pause on the list because I want to tell you what I've been reading lately. This is a book that a friend loaned me a while ago and it's called "The Overstory" by Richard Powers. It's a Pulitzer Prize-winning book and it's a really interesting construct. It's kind of stories within stories, and rather than centering humans in the storyline, like most books do, it tells their stories while centering different trees.

And so it's just very artistically and creatively put together, and my friend thought for somebody who's trying to write a story that's about stories within a story, this might be an interesting one for you to study from a creative perspective.

So it took me a while to start reading it because it's a little bit of homework, but now that I'm in reading just one short story at a time, I'm so captivated. And I think what's really compelling to me about the way that Richard Powers wrote this book is that with just the razor sharpest, tiniest little bits of detail, he manages to create compelling characters who you instantly understand and who stick in your mind.

To introduce so many characters within a arguably large book, but still a pretty, it's a book, that really takes a special skill to make you care about them and be interested and invested in them. And somehow he does it. So I've been enjoying the craft of the book and the experience of reading it.

Okay, back to the 24 in 24 list. Number 10 is become fluent again in Spanish.

My partner and I have been both talking about this for a while. I learned Spanish in high school and college, and even though my mother is from South America, I actually didn't grow up being able to speak it. I grew up in a home with my father and stepmother where Portuguese was spoken. So my Spanish is kind of more grammatically accurate. My Portuguese tends to be kind of like how a child would speak, but Portuguese comes more easily to me than Spanish.

And mostly I just mix up the two. Ultimately, I would love to become fluent in both, but Spanish in particular, my partner's been working on it for a while. And so we thought this would be a really fun goal to tackle this year.

And for me, it's mostly a matter of just re-immersing myself in it, listening to Spanish speakers, engaging as a Spanish speaker. I do this sometimes now. If I'm at a grocery store and somebody gets stuck and can't communicate with the cashier or vice versa, I'll jump in and translate. And with a little bit of makeshift sign language and my limited vocabulary, I can generally solve whatever the problem is between the two of them.

But I would love to get back to a place where I can speak very, very easily. And I've brushed up on it in Duolingo and gotten pretty fluent again, but it fades away quickly if I don't use it.

So that's why number 11, I haven't talked to my partner about this yet, so I might adjust the details, but it's along the lines with something he suggested. I think I'm going to make number 11 “Spanish Saturdays.”

So speak only Spanish with my partner on Saturdays. He had said, you know, one of the best ways for both of us to get better would be if we spoke Spanish to each other. And I thought: that is true.

And maybe I can get my kids in on it too because despite their Latina heritage, neither one has really learned much in the way of Spanish other than back in kindergarten. I think they both took a class.

So number 12 is I want to take two international trips with my partner and I want one of those to be to a Spanish-speaking location. I also want to do one international trip with my kids. Maybe we'll manage more. I did five last year. That was probably a little too much.

But I think three would be really nice. And I love being on the hunt at all times for a great flight deal. That's really inspiring to me. So we're flexible on where we go, and flexible on timing. And that allows us to get some really great deals.

Number 14 is I want to have a proper date night each month. We had a couple of times this past year where we went out and went to dinner somewhere really nice and different, or we went to a show.

And it was each time my partner and I were like, gosh, this was so nice. We should do this more often.

And this is one where my scarcity mindset kind of gets in the way. We both have financial goals that we want to reach and we're both quite frugal. And so it's easy for us to talk ourselves out of doing things like that.

But I think the key is to find the right frequency. So I want to try doing this once a month, go somewhere nice, have a good time, don't really worry about what it costs. And I want to see, is that the right frequency for us? And if it's not, then I can dial it up or dial it down for next time.

On a related note, number 15 is I want to see at least three shows during 2024. So real musicals, theater, opera, performances, things that feel cultured and fun.

We already have one on the calendar. I just saw that David Sedaris was coming to town again, and he's going to be in Raleigh this time, so we don't have to drive all the way to Durham.

So in April, we're going to hear him read his books, which we both love and find hilarious. But that means I need to do at least two more.

I took my kids to the opera last year. They needed kind of an emergency credit for their performing arts classes at school. So at the last minute, we were like, what is available this weekend? Let's go to the opera.

And we actually really enjoyed it. And I thought, why don't I do this more often?

And then my partner and I, when we were in New York, we went to go see a Broadway show. And again, we just had such a wonderful time. And in fact, he even went to see Hamilton when he was on a work trip to Chicago recently. And again, he was like, this was so moving. Why don't we do this more often?

So I thought, let's put it on the list.

Now, to be clear, I give myself credit for multiple list items even with one activity. So if we go see a musical, then that also potentially counts as our proper date night.

And the other thing I forgot to say about the date night is we often talk ourselves out of going out in the United States because we do travel quite a bit. And often we can get a better meal for less money, if we're overseas somewhere.

But when it's been a long time between trips, we really do enjoy the experience of going out together. So I might count some of those date nights during our travels, but I don't want our travels to displace date night entirely.

Number 16 was inspired by our travels to New York. And it is: learn to make a tomato sauce like a classic little Italy red sauce joint.

We are always amazed when you go into these old family Italian restaurants in New York or Chicago or Boston. How just their standard red marinara sauce is out of this world good.

And I've tried on and off over the years to search online and make recipes that claim to be like that, but they're never the same. I don't know what they do, but I am bound and determined this year. I am going to figure it out.

Number 17, this is a holdout from last year. So remember, if you caught my episode about my 23 and 23 list in Uwharrie National Forest and a few other places in North Carolina, there are for one month only blue fireflies. And I have always wanted to see them. It made my list last year, but I wasn't specific enough about how I would attack this goal.

And so this year, I'm going to get specific. I didn't actually do the research yet to say what that'll entail, but I'm going to rephrase this goal so that it is, you know, something like go camping during this specific month with the goal of seeing the fireflies, because I think we're going to need to be there for a couple days.

So I'll update that one later, but something about the blue fireflies, this is the year we're going to pursue it. Maybe we'll see them. Maybe we won't, but it'll be a fun little quest.

Number 18, related to the sore theme is I want to investigate and heal my wounded wing.

My left shoulder for the last year, something has been going on with it. I don't know exactly what, but when I'm in yoga, laying down especially, and I'm trying to extend my arms out to the side or make a T shape or a goal post shape or raise them up over my head, again, especially when I'm laying down. The mobility in that shoulder is just not what it was, and it sends pain down into my arm in different spots. I have been putting off dealing with this because I'm worried that the answer is either going to be, you need shoulder surgery… since I know tons of women who have had to have that done at about my age, or that the answer will be, it's frozen shoulder and there's nothing we can do.

So I did a little bit of googling, turns out actually, it's a good idea to go get that looked at if it is frozen shoulder because they can slow down the process.

And of course, if it's surgery, then it just needs to be done. But maybe it won't be any of those things either way. This is a space where I just need to have an abundance mindset and get out of my own way and go find out what is going on and work on healing it to the extent that it can be healed.

So I have made an appointment for January 2nd. I'm going to go to the doctor and spend the money because I have high deductible health insurance and figure out what is going on with my wing and how do we fix it? Fingers crossed that it's an easy answer.

Number 19 and number 20, both address holes in my wardrobe. You all know if you've listened to this podcast, I do not particularly enjoy clothing shopping. But from time to time, there is a hole in my wardrobe that I need to patch.

So number 19 is I want to buy a great, comfortable pair of black denim jeans. I need those for a lot of reasons, not least of which is the Jean jacket that I bought last year doesn't really go so well with blue denim jeans. So I need something else to wear it more often.

And number 20 is buy a gorgeous, comfortable pair of low boots or dressy shoes that I can walk a long distance in in cold weather. They have to look good with any pair of jeans in my own. They have to look good with a dress. Yeah, they have to basically satisfy all of my boot slash dress shoe needs. 

And if this one seems oddly specific, it's because I've bought a lot of boots and dress shoes that have not been worn because they are not suitable for those conditions. So I'm going to try to turn this one into a quest and let's see if I can do it.

And did I mention I have very difficult to fit feet? I don't know what's wrong with my feet, but dress shoes and women shoes are really, really hard to find a pair that don't get me blisters and don't get me problems. So anyway, I'm giving myself a whole year to solve this problem. Here's hoping.

Number 21 is a maintenance goal. I want to maintain my weekly coffee date and my hikes with my best friend. She is actually in Argentina for several weeks. So we've hit pause on that.

So this will be a good time of year to restart it when she gets back and to keep that going throughout the year. It's been a big source of joy to both of us, but life gets busy and it's hard.

And number 22 is also related to my best pal. I want to go out on at least two double dates, preferably with her and her partner, since we all get on well, but open to other folks too.

23 is I want to make every birthday, holiday, and milestone a joyous, meaningful celebration. It doesn't take much to make that happen, but it does take a little planning and foresight. And I don't want to just fill in with money. I want to use, I want to spend my money in a mindful way where I'm not, you know, approaching it with a scarcity mindset, but I am applying thoughtfulness and creativity. I want to get that balance right.

I think we did a really good job of that with Christmas this year, and I want to continue that into the future.

My last one is I want to text my sister throughout the year and really strengthen our connection. She is the sibling that as a child, I was probably closest to, have a lot of siblings and step siblings, but she and I were probably closest. She's my half-sister.

And still somehow, as we've gotten older, we've kind of grown apart. I think part of that is that many of our shared memories are difficult things. And so as each of us was kind of dealing with that and coming to terms with, okay, this is the things that we experienced and the life that we have and this is who we are, sometimes being in contact could be a little bit difficult, at least for me. I don't want to speak for her. 

But I approached her with that idea and she was open to it. And so we're going to try to be more texty with each other and just share little things that are going on in our lives.

So I'm excited about investing more in that relationship and seeing what comes of it.

Well, it is time to share what I've been cooking up in the kitchen this week. My daughter and I watched an episode of the Great British Bake Off where they had multiple cookies that were in the shape of a cheese board or a charcuterie board, one or the other.

And we were both like, "That looks really yummy."

And so being that we don't, or at least that I don't eat much in the way of animal products, I wanted to do a vegan cheese board.

So she and I made a bunch of vegan cheeses and we supplemented with a few of the rare good ones from the grocery store. We added fruit. We put some crackers on there, and just all kinds of delicious little odds and ends.

I'll drop a link in the show notes to the one cheese log that in particular we really like. It's made from cashews.

But she was so thrilled with it. And so was I. We both woke up the next day after we had that for dinner one night, and we were both like, "Oh, I can't wait to eat the leftover cheese."

So here's to a great vegan cheese, which does actually exist.