The Year of the Snake (and shedding off all that doesn't serve you)

A year ago, when thinking about my upcoming 2025 new year’s resolutions, I focused on the 3 main areas of my life:

1. My relationship with God
2. My connection with my family
3. My overall health

This became three very specific resolutions:

1. Read the bible from beginning to end and dedicate time to pray every morning and evening
2. Initiate quality alone time with my husband and children 
3. Go to the gym on average 5 times a week and drink less

The results?

• I didn’t finish reading the bible yet, but I made a VERY big dent in it. I was dedicated to listening to the bible on my long commute to the office, and for 279 out of 365 days, I listened and I learned. 
• I prayed a lot... Actually way more than what I intended. Challenges came into my life that I couldn’t have predicted. My daily morning and evening prayer rituals couldn’t sustain the stress and indecision I was facing. Some days felt like a constant conversation with God (a very one sided cry for help, but a conversation nonetheless). 
• I had several opportunities to be present with my husband and children, especially later in the year. However, I found that the stress I was feeling at work sometimes carried over to my home time, creating an unwanted separation between me and my loved ones. This awareness raised a big red flag and caused me to start making different decisions.
• My gym experience that began in late 2024 turned into one of the biggest unexpected blessings of 2025. Even with a 9 am - 5 pm corporate career and an hour long commute each way, I kept my commitment to myself with early morning gym visits. It continues to be my favorite time of day.
• As for my drinking, the beginning of the year was better than the end. (But maybe I’m feeling that because I’m fresh off the holidays.) Regardless, because of the early morning gym visits, it was easy to say “no” to more than one glass of wine at dinner and there were many more sober days than non sober days. So that’s a win.

Looking back on my resolutions for 2025 and the actual way my year played out, I can’t help but to notice that there was no mention of my job or my career in my resolutions. That was not intentional; it just didn’t feel (at the time) like something I needed to “resolve” or focus on. I had built a successful career in corporate marketing and had been able to financially support my family for years. 

What I realize now is that the areas I had decided to devote my focus, would teach me something I didn’t even know I needed to learn. 

My career had become a stumbling block to achieving my life goals. I am admittedly a workaholic. I like to be good at what I do. And because I have serious imposter syndrome, when things became difficult, I dug in deeper. This caused a lot of stress in my life and ultimately affected the time I spent with my family, challenged my physical and mental health, and contradicted my overall goals. 

It was those conversations with God that kept me in alignment with my focus. Many nights I lay awake in bed praying - deep, soul jerking prayers. I was grateful for all my blessings - my career, my success, the money I made. I didn’t want to seem ungrateful for what God had already provided. 

But even so, my soul ached. 

For peace. 

For purpose. 

For something that didn’t make me feel like an imposter. 

For something I didn’t have to fight for. 

For something that felt GOOD. 

By summer I was dreaming of a new life, a new career, or anything I could do so that I didn’t have to drive into that office and work in that job even ONE more day. 

I would do anything. 

My husband and I discussed several options like - buying and opening a campground, buying and operating gites in France, and renting out rooms in our house. I even considered buying and renting out goats for lawn maintenance. And of course, there was the big dream - to open my own gym.   

By July, I earned my personal trainer certification and started coaching at the gym. This was something that I fell into (or so I thought). They needed a coach and I was interested in being certified. 

It wasn’t like I did it to get away from the my career. I had no intentions of doing what I did. It was as if God was creating an opportunity for me to see what He wanted me to do. But I was oblivious.

 

The night before I had the conversation with my boss, I prayed to God for hours to help me know how to approach the subject, to say the words. I was terrified of the response. In full disclosure, my husband told me not to. He thought my “transparency” would not be well received. He thought I’d bring on more issues and with that - more stress. But God not only protected me, He gave me a path forward.  

In September, I walked out of that building and I’ve never looked back. 

Today, I’m not only coaching, I’m now a franchise owner of a Fit Body Boot Camp. We are in the process of nailing down a lease and hiring a general contractor with a goal of opening our gym in Fairfax, VA in late spring. 

My dream is coming true. 

But again, it’s not because I “resolved” to change my career. 

No. It was because I resolved to improve my family life and my health. My corporate marketing career was no longer serving me. It was hurting me mentally, physically, and emotionally. It caused stress that affected my health and my relationships with my family. Two things that I felt were most important in my life.

Since leaving that world, I’ve been able to be with my daughter for the birth of her baby and spend weeks with them helping with childcare. 

I went to almost every one of my step daughter’s volleyball games.

My conversations with my husband are no longer all about my stress at work and instead we have a joint project that we are working on together. 

I am spending tons of time with my family now (because we know there won’t be as much time once the gym opens). 

My even earlier gym mornings have become a great addition to my routine, as well as providing another reason to say “no” to an alcoholic beverage. 

It's important to note that my number one resolution was to improve my relationship with God. In doing so, I have been guided to make very specific decisions. I have been given the ability to know and fulfill my purpose - my dream. And it is all because of that number resolution to improve my relationship with God. 

Going forward, this will always be my number one resolution. And next year, I'm going to need it as I continue to navigate all that comes with owning my own business. 

Happy New Year! I can't wait to see what happens in 2026.