When it comes to aspirations, it’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen. What’s your next step?

In 2010, it was about dream making. In 2011, it was about sticking to my boundaries. In 2012, it was about being true. In 2013, it was about embracing fear. In 2014, it was sitting my butt down and writing. In 2016, it was about leading.

Interestingly, in 2017, I did make that effort to lead. It paid off, because I acted more like I knew what I was doing. Although there were a few moments where I expressed my own insecurity openly. But I kept going.

My next step is about persistence. I know my goals. In a short story from a few years ago, I wrote a character based on myself that simply declared to another that she always knew the right choice. She never was uncertain. She was deliberate of her choices that were based on evidence and data. And partly intuition.

What matters the most is pursuing those goals, because I know what I want. So I must persist despite rejection. Despite disappointment.

I will keep prevailing. In writing. In the job. In the home. Because setbacks shouldn’t matter. They are just stumbles along the way.