Birthday Resolutions: Act Like You Care

Celebrate with vodka (or your drink of choice)! photo from Flickr

One week from today I celebrate my birthday! You can send all gifts to...just kidding, but cheers to all the fellow Virgos out there! 

For a few years now, I've planned birthday resolutions to kick my "new year" off right. Similar to the popular New Year's resolutions or vision boards, the birthday resolutions are meant to create a change that will last longer than your temporary gym membership. 

What's the point of birthday resolutions, you ask? If you're anything like me, you get stuck in ruts. You have lofty ideas of the kind of life you would like to live and the types of things you would like to do and then you wake up and a year has gone by, two years, a decade, you get the picture. 

When Sally laments about turning 40, I am of the same age to feel the same way. (Go to 1:49 of the clip to hear her exasperation)




Honestly though, I am not that worried about getting older. That "oh shit" feeling has yet to hit me and hopefully it never will. I actively pursue ways to lead the kind of life I want. I don't just say, "Welp, too old to do that. Oh, well." 

Birthday resolutions give you a chance to make changes, big or small, that will bring your more adventure, and ultimately, happiness and sense of accomplishment to your life.

It's not something to set you up for failure, but rather to keep you on track for future goals, so that you don't let them slip away. 

I haven't created my full list, but I know this year I will attempt to once more to finish a novel (or at least a collection of short stories) within 30 days for NaNoMo. 

International travel, exploring new cities, more consistent creative writing (rather than just writing for work) are all also on the list. I have already taken active steps to make sure that these resolutions come to fruition.

Don't act like you have reached a point in your life where this is always how it's going to be. Don't just accept a way of living because you don't want to make an effort to change or improve or take a different path than someone else (including your old self) has set out for you.

Give yourself the proper attention you deserve. Take care of business. Have this year be a little better than last. Celebrate.

Do you make birthday resolutions? Care to share?

A Swaller and a Holler for Nashville

Earlier this month I had the chance to visit Nashville! I am going to go ahead and admit something knowing full well that I may be labeled an idiot, but...I didn't know that Tennessee was so far south. As in, it touches Georgia. I imagined it to be where Northern Kentucky is. Geography has never been my strong suit.

Anyway, they do love their sweet tea (the best!) and man do they every enjoy their fried pickles, which is a good thing because so do I!

Fried pickles became an addiction.

I drank a lot of beer. My friend and I were there as part of Yelp Elite Spring Break, so there were events already scheduled included the Nashville Brew Bus which was oh-so fun, and highly recommended. They seem to love their craft beer in Nashville almost as much as they do in San Diego.

Just one tray of the many beers I consumed.

And then there was honky tonk a.k.a country music...

 

There is an ease about Nashville that makes you feel welcome, but the heat and humidity will definitely kick your ass. If you're planning a weekend getaway, it's always best do some research first.

Use that thing called Google and get advice from friends so that when you get to where you're going, you at least have an idea of things you want to see. That's not to say make every hour appear on your itinerary; you always have to leave room for fun surprises, but if you don't plan a little bit you could end up wasting money and a lot of energy.

When I started thinking about my travel plans this year, I didn't anticipate that I would already have been to San Antonio, Chicago, and now Nashville even before the year was half over. 

It makes me think, do I simply work so I can afford to travel?

The pictures and blogs don't do enough to capture the actual adventure of travel. It makes my heart and soul happy to experience as much as I can as often as I can. 

My next travel adventure is this week back to Kansas to meet my new baby niece. Then, plans for a summer trip to NYC is already in the works.

Working my way across the U.S. and hope to include some international travel soon.

For a more in-depth guide of where I went, what I saw, and the things I ate (and drank) visit my Nashville City Guide here. 

April, I'm Over You

April seemed like the longest month, but oddly, also went by fast. There were some bumps in the career road but also real boosts. Do you ever feel like sometimes you are trying to swim faster than the wave that will most likely overtake you and hold you under? Surely I'm not the only one that thinks in such dramatic terms. 

April felt like a month that it was more important than ever to be five steps ahead of every situation and now I have safely made it into May and let me just say, it's off to a good start!

Last month ended on a high note with a trip to Chicago that I've recorded on my travel guide in three different posts. I love to travel and explore; it's one of my favorite parts of life. Earlier this year I had a fabulous girls weekend in San Antonio and then promptly scheduled three trips that all now are happening in a matter of months.

Carefree in Chicago!

I will be updating the travel guide with every city I visit with tips and fun places to go, and I am thinking of doing short videos as well. For my upcoming trip to Nashville, my friend and I have a long layover in Denver, a perfect time to give it a whirl. Nothing fancy or too edited, just an on-the-go look to pair with my blog.

I've also been collaborating with some amazing creative women who are proving invaluable to helping me reach my goals. Surrounding yourself with positive, ambitious people can really do wonders for your psyche, aspirations, and overall sanity.

So, it's off to Nashville this week, but you'll hear from again soon. Hope your May is starting out just as great as mine! I'd love to hear from you and what you're most looking forward to this month. Comment below or send me a tweet at: @mscourtneybeth. 

Do You Have a Website? Why Yes, Yes I Do - www.courtneyhartmann.com

I thought it'd be helpful to have a website to at least have a central online presence for the times when someone asks, "Do you have a website?" 

For a long time, I just had the domain, but no site. Then, I changed the website to what I thought was a simple, chic, gray and white format. I am a writer, not a designer. I wasn't going to overwhelm with a lot of banner design and CSS business that frankly, I know nothing about.

I wanted a website that sums up who I am, what I do and how you can contact me. I don't like to be segmented into one box, as you might remember, so I didn't want a cold price list of my services and how much they cost. Each project is different.

HOWEVER, despite my modern and simplistic original web design, I had more than one person claim my website to be "too blah." Two people said this, in fact, in not so many words. After scoffing at this criticism, I did have to ask myself, do I want my creativity to be represented all in gray? I am not sophisticate extraordinaire. I am not gray and white silk pantsuit chic.

I am an adventurous explorer and I wanted to be reflected online as such. May I present the brand new: www.courtneyhartmann.com!

As a perfectionist, the website will always be a work in progress but the basics are there and most importantly, I love it. So, I'm going to have this moment.

I think it's important to realize that you can have both sides of the writing coin. Yes, you can have a perfectly professional work ethic that meets the goals your clients have in mind. 

You can also embrace your creative side that ignites everything you do whether it is writing copy for a business, networking at an event, or just jotting down some notes on a sticky pad to be referenced later and potentially turned into something great. 

No one can tell you what kind of writer you're going to be. For me, I just want to be a memorable one. A great one. The best.

I want my writing to help people achieve their goals and I want it to lead me to new stories, exotic travels, a fantastically wild life. 

Your 90-Day Trial Period Is O-V-E-R

Here's hoping...

I've officially made it through my 90-day trial period of being self-employed and I currently am still able to pay my rent. Success!

That, of course, does not come with a few bumps along the way. Being self-employed kind of feels like outpacing everyone by a few steps. One day a steady client could no longer need your services for a reason that has nothing to do with you (as just happened to me!) which causes panic to quickly take over your body and unsteady breathing to occur. Then, the next day a new client can hire you (as just happened to me, as well!) and balance is restored. You have to be ready to take the hits by always, quite simply, working your ass off.

The next thing I'm about to say is so horribly cliche, but I have to say it: 

Everything. Happens. For. A. Reason.

If you can't take a loss and look at the bigger picture of what that might mean in terms of new possibilities, then you might as well wave the white flag right now. Don't be fooled by my Instagram photos of coffee shop work days and sunshine breaks by the bay. 

It's a GRIND. 

In the past 90 days I have made more valuable work connections than I have in the past year or even the year before that. I have worked longer hours with a new set of challenges every day.

I have recently started contributing to Stilettos on the Glass Ceiling which is all about positivity, empowerment, and carries a palpable sense of forward movement. Their launch event will be in San Diego on June 5th and you can read my contributions every other week by clicking here.

I feel like I need a star chart so that for every setback there is, I can look at my star chart and remember what good has happened, too. There's simply no time for this kind of (slightly self-absorbed) reflection. During the rough times, it's more like a feeling of survival. Do what needs to be done to earn another day.

Susan Miller is the astrologer for Elle Magazine and I believe her horoscopes. I mean as much as you believe horoscopes. She has a website - www.astrologyzone.com - which I check religiously every month to see what she has forecast for me. For April, she said that "if self-employed, you will be able to find new clients." 

You wouldn't lie to me, would you, Susan Miller?!

My 90-day trial period is over and I am full fledged committed to this. This writing life...

I coulda gave up then but then again I couldn't have 'cause I've traveled all this way for something. - On Top of the World, Imagine Dragons