1 Year of No Shopping= My Best Year Yet 

Posted by Unknown at 10:51 AM
First, I'd like to start by thanking the lovely and brilliant founder of the Women CEO Project, Kristi Jackson for inspiring this post. She brought it to my attention that we (Medley) had a really good year...which just so happens to be the year that I haven't shopped- at all. The year that I decided that investing in my business, traveling, up cycling and improving my overall quality of life- was more important than clothes.

Who knew?

The success of the company this year, is a result of so much more than just my goal to not shop- but I'd be lying if I said it didn't enhance my world a bit.

And now I have no desire to shop or spend my money on frivolous things. A guilty pleasure, form of therapy, desire to spoil myself through retail- no longer exists. Now I've learned to be fulfilled. Simply fulfilled.

Here's a recap of how it went down and my lessons learned:

1. It all started as a result of an amazing collection of vintage pieces that once belonged to my great grandmother. I think she'd be pretty excited about her first appearance on a national TV show...watch here:


2. For the first time, I attended Mercedez Benz Fashion Week in New York, on behalf of Status Management Group with Kevin Jeffries. HE is everything and a major blessing....there are some people who promise to invest in your career and your future. And there are others who just do. He is the latter.
See how I stretched my wardrobe at MBFW here: UPDATE: Life as a Non-Consumer...Not Even During Fashion Week.

3. Overall, the challenge allowed me to awaken my sense of fashion....which I had no clue even existed. Here's an archive of my posts, documenting the journey and a photo collage of some of my favorite looks:

Archives:

December 2010- When Being a Compulsive Shopper Becomes a Drag...



My biggest take-aways from 2011 are...

1. Goal- setting is cool...especially when you stubbornly and aggressively pursue them.

2. Kindness always wins. Sometimes it's just not worth the battle, often times the kinder person wins.

3. Take yourself seriously. Or no one else will...this was my year of looking insecurity right in the eye. 

4. Manage expectations. This has pretty much been my mantra for the entire year. I learned to say "No," a lot more often, and I candidly advised others to, "Just tell me no," if they feel too pressured to commit.

5. Love and faith. The two things that I hope will never change as the years go by. When I look back at what counted most over the past year, it's being surrounded by love and having unwavering faith.

Thanks for reading friends! Know that there's always something to smile about, and that challenging yourself can open up entirely new chapters of your life. Until 2012....;)!