TAKING STOCK - 2021

“Knock knock?”

“Who’s there?”

“Taki…”

“Taki who?”

“Taking Stock, 2021. “

“…and may I ask who/what that is?”

“…mmm….that annual post you usually put up noting stuff you’re doing now and/or those you’ve done over the year that have made it to your ‘This was Key” Book in 2021? ”

“Ooh yes, you remembered!”

“…’course I did. I like reading those. So how’d we do this year?”

“Well, here’s something…”

MAKING a list of the sales deals I managed to close & leads identified yesterday. I’m having a virtual sales catch up meeting today with my supervisor & the sales team where we each explain our weekly achievements and collective contribution to the general monthly sales target. They are not my best kind of meetings but it’s part of the process, so let’s see how it goes. I’ve had to make so many changes in the year career-wise but I’m closing it while in my field - Marketing & Sales. I’m not entirely happy with how things stand right now but I am hopeful for better come next year.

EATING a lot. I mean, we’re just getting into the festive mood and it’s written in the ‘Xmas Survival Calendar’ that this is the period we temporarily take off the workout boots we’d been obsessed with. My eating habits over the year haven’t changed much. I still love food as much as I did when the year began, it’s actually become one of my top love languages .

WANTING a break from work, and I know it’s coming in few days. I have been up and about looking for deals over the last three months and I can’t wait to just sit and spend time with family catching up on series. Talking of Series, Money Heist Part 5 wasn’t aaaall that. They made us wait so long for it I got bored. I haven’t watched so many series this year as I’d typically do. Let’s see how we do next year.

READING nothing at the moment but soooo glad to have cleared my 6 books target of 2021. Ticking this resolution off my list felt great. I intend to keep with the flow next year as it’s a habit I want engrained in my subconscious😂.

PLAYING all things Maverick City Music. I love their approach to worship and praise so much, it’s crazy. Their music has carried me through 2021. Old Church Basement album is where it's all at. 

NOTICING that I’ve reduced my water intake over the last 3 months but I know why that’s the case. While I was doing a lot of office sit-down work, I always had my 1.5Ltr bottle on my desk, a glaring reminder to drink water but the moment I shifted to field sales work, I slowed down. I’ll have to find a way to get back on that bandwagon come 2022.

LIKING my progress with Kitenge World by Kangsy. It has been a good entrepreneurial year, it could be better. I’ve been consistent with my promotion techniques with it. My sales this year have toppled last years. Not only do I owe it to God but to my consistency efforts that have paid off a great deal. Quick advice to small business owners; don’t stop talking about your venture - someone somewhere notices even if they don’t say anything. Keep at it! Your breakthrough is coming.

PLANNING to take Stellar Girls Kenya to the next level and start active mentoring and empowerment for our girls. The girls are closing for Xmas holidays soon and will resume school immediately the new year commences. Plans are underway to kick off the sessions during and after their long holidays and KCSE & KCPE exams duration. Bringing this to life’s been my greatest achievement this year. I am so excited for its future. To know more about what we do, please read all about us HERE.

WISHING I could find a way to skillfully handle life’s battles. This year’s been quite challenging and most of its gotten me anxious yaani! My anxiety levels have been over the roof 85% of the time. Financial freedom and security is still a dream and I’m hoping to one day get there. I hate being broke, I really do. I’ve had a share of that severally this year and I struggled with it for a while. Jobs haven’t been easy to come by. My previous job closed shop and I had to survive without a salary for a while. I’m freelancing now, I love the freedom that comes with it but the monetary reward isn't as good. We locomote regardless, right?

LOVING my body & my health in general. This year I got into a motorcycle accident and injured my right foot. The metatarsal fracture took a while to heal. I’d started the year with so much energy to keep & maintain a healthy lifestyle and intensify my workouts but in March things went south real quick. I resumed my workouts in July and getting back wasn’t as easy. I managed to get back my groove though and I’m happy that I’m ending the year feeling my best. Other than my occasional morning runs, I added a daily 10 min morning workout that encompasses some stretching, oblique workouts and about a minimum 500 rope skips to boost my day. It’s been going great. I am quite sporty in nature and it’s something I don’t think I’ll be changing any time soon. So, to being more active next year, yes? Perhaps ran a marathon again?

HOPING to get back to hiking come next year. With the accident and life post recovery, I didn’t do much of it. To bring back the psyche, I bought some nice hiking boots last week in readiness for a few hikes in the first quarter of 2022. This year I managed to hike The Elephant Hills, Aberdare Ranges, an experience of a lifetime. I taped my hike and shared it HERE.

HAVING so much to be grateful for, starting with my relationship with God. At the end of 2019 I had to have a candid tete-a-tete with him. Our relationship for a while there had been a love/hate relationship. I was struggling to let him take charge of my life and most times when things went south (and boy did they go south!?), I would really blame him. I assumed he really didn’t care much about me and capitalized on that. Relationships they say, are a two way traffic. You open up to allow someone to know you and they do the same. In this particular relationship, God already knew the ins and outs of my life, I was the one who was holding back on knowing him on a deeper level. In our conversation I poured it all out and explained the voids I wanted him to fill and he’s been doing that since. 

ENJOYING the outcome of that relationship! 💖

MARVELING at the growth, communication, progress, friendship and love that’s been brewing in my life for a good minute now; romantically & platonically. In real sense it’s friendships that blossoms romantic relationships for me. Letting go of my traumas with regards relationships wasn’t an easy feat. But life’s a game of risks, so I took one. I took a risk of loving - loving without restrictions or filters, just loving and allowing myself to be loved. Sometimes we’re hard to love, we make it hard for people to know us deeply because the shell from past experiences have hardened our hearts. It’s good to take a leap of faith in these things sometimes though. It can go right, or wrong… either way, you live and learn.

A, being with you has been an opportunity of a lifetime! You’ve been so patient with me as I figure out the mystery that is life. You’ve been a great partner, confidant and friend over the years that I’ve known you. I’ve not had to change who I am to please you, you took the whole baggage I came with and decided to work with the assorted canvas that is Mercy. You’ve been everything you’d said you’d be, and more. I am excited about the things we’ve accomplished and those we’re yet to set our minds to. I am here to see you flourish and shine because that’s all you’re here to do - BE GREAT. I will be in the sidelines cheering you on and clapping so hard at your successes and will be here when things get tough too. I believe in you and I Love You my obnoxious ombwedede 😜.

THINKING about all the food I'm gonna eat over Christmas. My Nike Run App will think I changed bodies when I resume my running in January 😂😂😂.

PRAYING for happiness and peace of mind, through and through not just for me but for you too, my reader. I hope that you laugh & love out loud. I hope you find peace in knowing that tomorrow we wake up and try again, tomorrow we wake up and serve only Him, tomorrow we wake up and be great, tomorrow we wake up and choose peace, not vayolence.

WISHING you a Merry Christmas & a Prosperous 2022!