It’s been a big month. I turned 30 in December, and we entered a new decade! Being completely transparent, I felt a little unsettled about turning 30. There’s not a legitimate reason for that feeling other than I think I had hoped to accomplish “more” professionally by the time I was 30.

I am realizing that while my business has many ways to grow, I have SO many things to be thankful for!

As I start a new decade of life, I am thinking about all the things I’ve learned in the last 10 years. I thought it might be fun to write some of them down. These aren’t things I presume to tell others to do, just what I have learned. If you find them helpful, great! If they just give ya a good chuckle, also great!

1. Find people who truly love you—those who WANT to be around you and know how you’re doing. People who will invite you to anything and everything. A friend who will leave a giant basket of goodies and a home cooked meal when your family has been sick for a month!

2. Drink lots of water. I was never great with this. When I went through infertility treatment, I had to drink so much water because of potential side effects from medication. I realized what a good habit it was to be consistently hydrated, and I have kept that up.

3. Put your phone down. Definitely still a work in progress, and I’ve only been more conscious about it the last few years. Take breaks, TALK to people face-to-face when you’re together. I realized how mindlessly looking at your phone can make the people you’re with feel like you’d rather be scrolling for something better than spending time with them.

4. Travel. Don’t put yourself in debt to do it, and you don’t have to go somewhere far or exotic, but get out of your regular routine and experience something new!

5. Take time for yourself. This applies to parents as well as those without children. I am a mother, and I learned that I need a night out with my friends. I need to be in a women’s Bible study. I need to have an evening where I’m by myself and can read or watch a movie. It doesn’t happen every week, but I am trying to take some time for myself.

6. Date night with your spouse. Another work in progress. It can be easy once you’re married or have kids to take date nights for granted. But dang, it is important to get out of the house, even to simply go sit in a coffee shop together.

7. Learn new things, like how to cook something new. Take a dance class. Study up on something historical that interests you. Never stop learning!

8. Actually sit and listen to people. It’s a similar point to putting your phone down. I’ve noticed that with the ever-present social media addiction, even when we are able to put our phones down, we might find ourselves dosing off while others are talking around us! Making eye contact and actually listening to others is a practice I’m trying to improve.

9. Clean out closets and purge regularly. I have a habit of hanging on to things. Some are important or sentimental, others are silly things I don’t need. When I’m able to de-clutter, my stress levels decrease significantly.

10. Don’t start your day out on your phone/social media. When I first broke this habit,  oh man it was hard. Now, I don’t even think twice. I get up, get ready, we get the girls up, have breakfast together before I even open social media! It’s wonderful! This one you should try!

11. Use Eye cream. I don’t use a bunch of different skincare items, but a few years ago I started using eye cream, and that has remained a constant in my skin care “regime.” It just feels better.

12. Patience is a virtue. That is one of those phrases I heard growing up, which I would often times return with an eye roll. I don’t know exactly when it sunk in, but there are so many areas in my life where I use or desperately need to use patience. I’m still trying to improve in this area, but I’m making the effort.

13. Get a manicure every so often. There’s obviously no profound reason for this other than it’s nice not to have to do it yourself every time.

14. Learn how to bake or cook one thing really well. I’m a terrible cook. I mean we survive, but I really am not great in the kitchen. I try not to let that stop me from trying new things. My goal is to excel at a few things, so that at least my kids can say, “She can’t cook, but she makes a mean baguette!”

15. Keep a budget. Another work in progress, but it’s a practice my dad taught me from a very young age. It was easy growing up, but now that I have a husband and kiddos, there’s obviously more to keep track of. We’re still working out the kinks, but it’s important to use one to keep track of our income.

16. Send snail mail. Don’t you love getting a card or letter in the mail? I have tried to keep sending little things to friends. I have a lot on my plate nowadays, so I set a reminder in my calendar to remember to send out snail mail.

17. Floss. I HATE tooth pain. It’s the worst! I’ve always taken care of my teeth and will continue to do so I don’t have to get horrible procedures done.

18. Back up your computer. I have had not one, but two computers crash on me. The first time I lost almost everything. The second was more of a bummer instead of devastation since I backed up most everything.

19. Find a good pair of slippers. Again, no real significance other than everyone needs a good, soft pair of slippers.

20. Spend time regularly in the Word and journaling. I could write pages on this, but I’ll keep it short—it’s so important to be focusing on what truly matters. Everything in the world is temporary, so it’s good to be reminded that you are loved and cherished by the one true Creator.

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There you have it– lessons I’ve learned from the last decade. Tell me in the comments what you’ve learned in the last decade!