It’s never too early to start thinking about New Year’s resolutions. Below are my 2013 problems and my proposed solutions for 2014. Side note: I probably need a therapist or a life coach. The Problem: I don’t want to be in Minneapolis anymore. The Solution: Move to Chicago, New York or Paris by the end of 2014. I don’t like living in the same place for too long. I get really antsy and I start resenting everyone and everything around me. I need a bigger city with more people, restaurants and things to do. I'm also starting to realize that I hate below freezing temperatures. Minneapolis is awesome, and I’m so glad I went to college here, but I need to move on. After working in Chicago this summer, I've decided that I need to live there again, and what better time than after graduation? I love the look and feel of the city, and Lake Michigan is an acceptable replacement for the Atlantic Ocean. New York also seems like a logical move. Unlike Chicago, I don’t really know anyone there, but I think it would be a perfect fit. And if I want to work in fashion (which I’m pretty sure I do), there is no better place than New York. I also want to live in Paris again for a year or two, but I’d settle for a vacation in the near future. The Problem: I spend all of my money on food and drinks. The Solution: Find something awesome to save up for. God, stop buying Starbucks every day. Is it really that hard to make coffee at home like a normal person? Stop buying Taco Bell every weekend. Stop buying beer. Just please stop spending all of your money on edible things. I used to be so good at saving money because I was saving for Europe. My entire life was focused on going to Europe, so it was pretty easy to not spend money if I knew I could buy a pair of shoes once I was in France. Now, I’m no longer in Europe, my life is meaningless, and I buy food to ease the pain (and I’m also just super lazy when it comes to cooking). I need something new to save up for. A trip to Paris? A pair of Christian Louboutins? A spa day? I don’t know what it should be, but I need to come up with something fast before I spend all of my money and gain 500 pounds. The Problem: I am about as healthy as Nick Miller from New Girl. The Solution: Do the opposite of everything I currently do. I really need to start kickboxing and eating paleo again. Kickboxing is good for my physical and mental health (I’ve watched Warrior too many times and now I just want to punch things — the air works just fine). Eating paleo makes me feel good. Carbs are the enemy. You know what? Let’s start with baby steps… Maybe try eating something that isn’t microwavable? Also, stop doing everything in your bed. I know it’s comfy, but pull it together, lady. You have a kitchen table and a desk for a reason. Eat and do your homework there. Beds are for sleeping, watching TV and blogging. The Problem: Hobbies include eating, sleeping and watching TV. The Solution: Figure out what real hobbies are and start one. I need to do something that is inexpensive and doesn't take very long. My attention span can be relatively short and I need something that I can do in 20 minute intervals. Maybe I’ll make jewelry? Start a style blog? Trade stocks? “Ugh but I hate doing things, hobbies are the worst.” –me, as I was writing this. Can complaining be my hobby? The Problem: I don’t blog regularly.
The Solution: Blog once a week. Blogging should be my hobby, but instead of trying to write something regularly, I usually just wait until “inspiration strikes” like I am some pretentious artist. I need to make an editorial calendar and try to write something once a week. Writing is fun and employers supposedly look at your blog before they hire you, so I really have no reason not to blog. **Hi future employers, please ignore everything I previously said about being lazy. I’m actually very motivated when it comes to work and building a successful career. Get excited, world! Everyone’s favorite couple, Taylor Swift and Harry Styles – also known as Haylor – is rumored to be getting back together. Naturally when I heard this news, I had to drop everything I was doing in order to investigate. According to the UK’s Mirror, Taylor Swift was spotted looking at houses in Regent's Park, a London neighborhood near Primrose Hill where Harry Styles owns a home. Sources say she wouldn’t be looking for a place in that area unless she was cool with running into her ex-boyfriend – which is obviously code for "they are getting back together." Other celebrity gossip sites are starting to claim that they have resumed communication after running into each other at the VMAs. While I am fully supportive of Haylor mending their beautiful relationship, I think it's a little too soon to jump to conclusions and say they are dating again. Even if the news is false, I am weirdly excited about the idea of a possible reconciliation. And I’m pretty sure I bet my sister that they would get back together, so I might even make some money off of this. And at the very least, it might inspire Taylor to write another song or two, which is good for the economy. Two years ago I remember telling my roommates about how I would be totally fine if I were to end up with professional success instead of personal success. I could tell by their facial expressions that they were shocked. Is it so wrong that I want to succeed on my own? I'm not saying that I don't want to get married, or that I don't want to have children, but I am willing to dedicate more time and effort into finding a fulfilling career rather than searching for a husband. Does this make me weird? Probably. It seems as though society has a problem with women who are ambitious.
According to Facebook's COO Sheryl Sandberg, "Professional ambition is expected of men but it's optional- or worse, sometimes even negative- for women. 'She is very ambitious' is not a compliment in our culture. Aggressive and hard-charging women violate unwritten rules about acceptable social conduct. Men are continually applauded for being ambitious and powerful and successful, but women who display these same characteristics often pay a social penalty." Even though it is 2013, society still seems to judge women who want to prioritize their careers. Wanting to be a powerful, successful CEO and a woman is almost taboo since these women aren't seen as nurturing, nice, or as feminine as their counterparts who have chosen to take a more traditional route, such as getting married and staying home with kids (not that there is anything wrong with that). When I was a freshman in college, my friends and I took a Myers-Briggs personality test. My classification was ENTJ (Extrovert, Intuition, Thinking, Judging) which was described as "the executive." As one of the rarest personality types, ENTJ is associated with CEOs such as Bill Gates. Naturally, I was rather excited about this news and proceeded to tell my male friend that I have the same personality classification as some of the greatest male CEOs. His response was "yeah, but you're a girl, so that makes you a bitch." Talk about an unfair stereotype. I'm not sure what the appropriate solution is for this problem- or if there even is a solution- but I think society needs to acknowledge that gender roles should be expanded to allow women to want the same things as men without being automatically written off as a power-hungry bitch. After all, why did we fight so hard to be considered equal to men if we are going to limit ourselves professionally in order to be seen as wife material? I am ambitious. I want to be successful. I want to build a career. I want to be a good role model for my sisters. And I am not going to let public opinion affect my goals. So let's all break the stereotype and make it positive. Let's be successful and sweet. Can I get an amen, ladies? |
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