My Goals for 2020
This has been a year.
So much has happened that I don’t think 2018 me would even recognize 2019 me.
Things I had always told myself I couldn’t do, I have blown right past and am tackling even bigger, scarier things. While I’m so grateful with how far I’ve come this year, a new friend said something that really resonated with me:
“GIVE YOUR PAST SELF GRACE - WHAT THEY ACCOMPLISHED BACK THEN WAS A BIG DEAL”
Does that not just make you think of your middle school self gathering up the courage to talk to someone new in class? Or your early-twenties self renting your first apartment? It is so easy to write those moments off as simple milestones, but those.were.big.deals. This is one of the first times in my life I’m looking back at my past self and feeling so grateful for her. She was shy and full of passion she didn’t know how to express, but she knew she’d figure it out someday. Oh and honey, I am so proud to say we’re making great strides.
MY CORE VALUES
One thing that has so, so helped me towards expressing my passion is taking the time to figure out my core values. I was invited along to photograph a yoga retreat in Costa Rica a few weeks back with Adventurher Travel, and it is no small thing for me to say it changed my life. Emily Rose of Mesic Movement lead this fascinating exercise of determining what your core values are. Now I’m normally not someone who would take the time to do this, but I think the mix of being in the jungle, surrounded by kind and quiet folk (aka, my people) just put me in a place where I could just sit and listen to myself. From this, I figured out my five core values. They’re simple, straightforward, and have already helped me determine what was wonderful about 2019, and what I’m going to be focusing on in 2020.
I wanted to share them with you here - They’re gonna to be great things to look out for as we dive headfirst into a new decade.
Creativity
My baby value - one I am always striving for, but never feel the need to force. For me, creativity comes when I give it space to be. One thing I’ve discovered in 2019 is that my creative juices flow whenever I work with other people, so working as a wedding photographer really does feed my creative soul. One of my favorite moments that was different from my usual work was working with my friend Gabby to create hilarious Christmas cards with her fur family. Every year I’m blown away with her vision, and every year I promise I do more of these fun projects on the regular.
For 2020, I’ll be prioritizing more of these ‘just because’ photoshoots. Specifically, I’ll be coordinating 3 for no other reason than I want to. I also have given myself a goal of taking a class in drawing this year. Not only will it help bring in new ideas to my photography work, but it will also be a way for me to recharge by doing something new. If anyone has recommendations for drawing classes they’ve taken, I’d love to hear them!
Humor
As the image here shows, it’s rare for me to take things seriously. My goal when I first meet anyone, including the people I photograph, is to figure out how to make them laugh. I’m full of dry humor and witty comments, but one thing I seriously lack is good jokes. My favorite one I heard that I finally could commit to memory is:
Me: “Ask me if I’m a racecar!”
Unsuspecting victim: “…are you a racecar?”
Excited me: “noooooOOOOOOOoooooo!!!”
After writing that out it’s probably better said out loud. Ask me to tell it sometime, my presentation is flawless.
My goal for 2020 is to keep collecting good jokes by starting a ‘humor jar.’ Every time I hear or experience something funny, I write it down on a piece of paper and place it in the jar. Next year on New Year’s Eve, I’ll open the jar and read back on all the ones I kept away. Who knows-maybe I’ll have some better jokes to share on here for next year.
Curiosity
If we’ve ever spent more than 5 minutes together, at some point you’ve heard me say: “I was listening to this book/podcast…” What drives my incessant consumption of the spoken word is plain old curiosity - anytime I find a podcast or book that shows me a new way of looking at things, I’m hooked. I especially love audiobooks and podcasts based on how much time I spend in the car, either commuting from my tiny little house in the woods to driving all over Vermont for weddings. Listening has really opened up the amount of time I can spend learning new things. I have a few new favorites from this year, including:
Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell - My one true author crush, and runs my favorite podcast of all time Revisionist History, his new book spoke to my anthropologist soul. It’s thoughtful, unassuming, and has the right amount of wit to stay engaging. A bonus with the audiobook is that there’s actual recordings of the interviews he conducts or references. Gladwell has brought his podcasting style to his audiobook, and it’s my favorite of the year.
Quiet by Susan Cain - This one was recommended by a fellow introvert, I listened to this in only a few sittings and I plan on listening again. For both self identified introverts and extroverts alike, it brings up great questions on why we value the loud over the quiet, and ways to reconsider those you meet and consider shy.
Dolly Parton’s America from WNYC Studios - Created from the minds behind Radiolab (another podcast favorite of mine), this one legit took me by surprise. I’m probably late to the Dolly Parton is a force of nature party, but holy crap. Dolly Parton is a force of nature. Listen to it even if you don’t like her music. Seriously.
The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman - Fantasy books are my favorite genre - the kind of escape they take you on is like no other, but allow to ask simple questions in such impactful ways. I grew up reading the His Dark Materials series (my favorite books of all time), and when I heard Pullman was writing a followup series I almost died. The second book was released this past fall and I loved it - the main character is all grown up and is struggling on becoming an adult, but it goes so much deeper than that. Grappling with the loss of imagination in adulthood, to the obsession we have with science as the only source of truth, I cannot rave about this book enough. My only question is WHEN IS THE NEXT ONE COMING OUT.
For 2020, my goal is to read/listen to 60 books. Yep, 60. It’s a big goal, and yet is somehow feels attainable. I’ll be tracking my progress on Goodreads, feel free to follow along if you want more details! I’ll also be sharing my favorites on the ‘scram, obvi.
Truth
For me, being truthful is so core to my nature, I can’t really describe it here. Suffice to say that whatever I put my mind to, being a new relationship or capturing a moment, I want to stay true to that. I also want to stay true to who I am, but as a Type 9 on the Enneagram, I easily get lost in other people’s personalities. One question I kept asking myself this year, without really thinking about it, was “who am I and what do I like doing?” It’s such a simple question, but weirdly, as I’ve gotten older it’s gotten harder to answer - falling into comfortable routines and repeating the same actions everyday, I never thought about if these were things I even liked to do. 2019 has been the year of shaking up what is true for me, getting myself out of my comfort zone, and I’m starting to get better at asking that question.
For 2020, my goal is to spend more time alone. Weird, I know, but to have no one around to influence what I do that day is crucial for me to reflect on what I need to do for myself and those around me. I don’t have an action plan on how I’ll do this quite yet, but I’ll start by giving myself time in the morning to sit, drink my coffee, and not rush out the door to start my day. It may stay at that, or might grow into something more. Either way, quiet time will be the focus.
Love
No lie, this value surprised me. But it’s by far my biggest one. Whenever I get stuck on something that seems too big to face, or I’m not sure what the right answer is, I’ve started asking the simple question: “what would happen if I chose to love this person?” This always brings an answer that I would not have found otherwise, and it’s always one that brings me peace. Even more simply, whenever I’m given a moment to photograph, I will always choose love as my focus. Weddings, elopements, and simple couples sessions are chalk full of these moments, and I am so blessed to call this my life’s work.
So to all of my couples who let me into their lives to capture your love, know that I am so, so grateful for you, and that I love you all very much. You rock my world and I would be nowhere near where I am today without you.
My goal for 2020 is to love myself. If 2018 me had heard this is the goal I was setting for myself, she would have barfed. Which really does go to show how much can change in a year. But simply put, I am worth loving without having to give something for it. I’ll be setting aside a day a week just to do something for me, whether it’s read a book, spend time with friends, or even cook myself something ridiculously complicated. These need to remain priorities as I grow my precious baby business, and will fuel the insane growth I can see coming just over the horizon.
If you made it this far, you’re officially one of my favorite people :-) Thank you for being here and supporting my journey. I cannot wait to see what 2020 has in store for us.
<3 Moriah
