Every year, I’m surprised by how much has occurred in a mere 365 days. While I slept through the transition between 2015 and 2016, still struggling through the jet lag from an international trip, I was able to spend a little time reflecting on the past year before giving into sleep. 2015 was a crazy year, in an “ I have no idea what’s going to happen next” kind of way , personally and professionally. While every year is full of change and growth, 2015 was definitely unusually packed full of change.
I began the year only four months into my move to Dallas, and was still working to build a life and friendships there. I was playing lots of kickball, focusing on visiting as many National Parks as possible, and managing a sales territory for my former company. During the course of the year, I accepted a new job, briefly lived in DC, and moved to Germany.
I traveled—a lot. And I thought, what better way to kick of my first 2016 post than to recap the best travel of 2015?
2015 by the Numbers:
3 Cities lived in
2 Companies worked for
29 Trips Taken
4 Groups of out of town friends hosted
Travel Resolutions for the New Year:
I love to travel, and I enjoyed all of my travel experiences from 2015, but I definitely have some travel resolutions for the upcoming year to make my next trips even better.
Pack Lighter: I’ve gotten better ( I used to be really bad!) , but I definitely have a ways to go when it comes to over packing. For 2016, I’m adapting the #justabackpack or #justacarryon motto for all trips three days or less—and I mean those super skinny European carry-ons.
Minimize Unnecessary Travel Costs: I am the biggest believer of living within your means, but I also believe you should spend your money in a way that makes sense for your interests and desires. If you absolutely love food, spend a little more on eating out and maybe less on an amazing plush hotel. It’s all about balance, especially when it comes to travel. That being said, I’ve definitely eaten some unnecessary cost from travel this year because of lack of planning ( either by myself or the group I was traveling with), lack of research, or just waiting until the last minute to purchase something . Soooo….for 2015, I want to make sure I’m spending more money effectively and avoiding easily avoidable costs.
Elevate My Travel Preparation Game: In my previous job, I was managing a sales territory. I had to manage lots of customers and their needs, I spent a lot of time traveling, and I spent a lot of time planning and executing customer meetings. The only way I could do that and keep my sanity, was to make sure anything and everything that could be prepared in advance was. I made grab and go packets of information and supplies I typically needed for customer meetings and only had to make slight adjustments for the circumstances. I want to do the same for travel. I’ve already started creating grab and go toiletry bags, travel packs of useful travel tools, and travel makeups sets for different occasions (Post coming soon). I want to make the act of traveling as easy and effortless as possible so I can better enjoy the experience.
Consistently Blog on Wednesday! – In 2015 I launched this blog. I’m still pretty sure my readership basically consists of my mom and one of my sisters. Nevertheless, I want to make sure I consistently update the blog every Wednesday* in 2016. I did an okay job of that in 2015, but I want to make sure to do better in 2016. I enjoy the process of writing and it also gives me a chance to reflect of my experiences. Looking back at 2015, I took 29 trips, so content is not a problem. I’m looking forward to posting about my new adventures and sharing so of my 2015 adventures that didn’t yet make the blog.
That’s it for me for now. I’m just out here working, exploring , and learning German. Happy New Year from Heilbronn, and I hope you will continue to follow the adventures every Wednesday ( and I really mean it this time, EVERY Wednesday!)
* It definitely looks bad that I wrote a resolution to post every Wednesday and my first post it on a Thursday, but my blog definitely got hacked and I wasn’t able to log in yesterday! I think I’ve fixed the problem…Please cross all fingers and toes.