Elevate. Your. Life.

Marathon Training! 7 Mile Run, Santa Monica, November 2019.

As we come to a close in 2019, I have been thinking about what a positive year I have had.

People talk about having a mantra for their year, their month, their week. Without even intentionally setting one I realized thinking back that  I created my own internal and subconscious one-word mantra for the year without even knowing it. That word was Elevate.

I remember I got the phrase from one of the girls that I work with during a conversation we were having at the start of 2019. My coworker Brea is this beautiful and talented young girl with already a lot going on for herself. She was talking about something ridiculous and far-fetched like being Drake's girlfriend or something of this nature. Yes, Drake. I just remember there was some ridiculous story about how he was dating this random girl that was a "nobody" who just graduated from college (Brea's age) and was a normal, smart girl. Brea was floored. These are the kind of Meghan Markle-like stories you hear of and think suddenly, huh! I have a chance! She continued to talk to me about how she just wanted to dream bigger and that she too could date Drake. She said, "I don't know Emily, it is just time to elevate my life. I need to elevate my life."

It totally struck a chord with me. YES! Elevate. my. life. In every possible way. I thought, if I can focus on this, and believe in this, it can happen for me too. I was already coming out of my "breakup year" of 2018 feeling stronger and more empowered and it was just that final spark that pushed me forward. I even remember changing my password to Elevate2019! to help me focus my intention in the beginning of the year. It was the positive shift and dream that edged me on.

Here are some of the major areas I was able to ELEVATE this year:

1. Where I Live.

I started 2019 living in a dark, dungeon of an apartment with no where to walk to and no real sense of culture in my surroundings. The only places I had nearby was a Starbucks and a sad Vons Pavilions with a lot of homeless people out front. I lived happily with one of my best friends but unhappily feeling stuck in my sterile surroundings. It took me a while to get the energy to move because I kept telling myself I wouldn't be able to afford living on my own, and it would be too costly to try and do it. Now, here I am today in my cute little cottage studio in happy Santa Monica where I can walk to anything, enjoy the wonderful little community of people in my surroundings, and most importantly bathe in the beautiful light and sunshine of my tiny little place.

2. Who I'm With.

I also started the year off single, not knowing what really was out there and who I would end up with. I was "swiping" quite a bit, talking to some losers and also talking to some people I just had no real chance with. Whether it was my French boyfriend that I spent my one-week vacation with in Paris, or my Oklahoma man that I met at a summer wedding, continued to plan hopeless visits with, and I'm pretty sure was 6 years younger than me. (Still not sure to this day). All were going no where.

But now, I think about the best present this year has given me. My boyfriend Alex. A guy so smart that I never even thought I could hang out with someone like this. He's weird, he's different, and he's got all the things that I've always wanted: driven, funny, kind, and actually really cute! Who would have thought I could be with someone like this? Definitely not my former self.  But it was that commitment I changed about myself in elevating my life. I believed I could find someone better out there, better than anyone I had previously dated. I pictured it and manifested it.

3. What I Surround Myself With.

I feel very passionate about this and think this might merit a completely separate post. But I do believe that what you surround yourself with, is what you will become. This year I became completely obsessed with self-development everything - books, podcasts, blogs, instagram, err-thang seriously. And while at times I think it might have driven me crazy because it spiraled me into these stages of wonder and questioning what I was doing with my life, I do believe it ultimately led to my shift in goal-setting and following my path to what really sparks my creativity. Ahem, this blog for example.

I do believe that with the absence of a TV in my new place I have been able to learn and grow this year so much more than I ever dreamed possible. I am finishing this year with the completion of my 2019 resolution - 24 books read. Most had to do with self-improvement, some had to do with personal finance, and others were just for shits and giggles. But they all most certainly brought inspiration, knowledge and curiosity - all things I would have never gotten from a new Netflix series or Youtube video.

I'm ending this year feeling stronger (currently training for my first marathon), creatively inspired (finally have had the courage to commit to a blog), and overall at peace.

I can't wait to continue to find ways to elevate my life even further in the coming year. I'm obsessed with this topic - please, if anyone is out there, tell me the ways you plan to elevate your life!!