2021 Year In Review

2021 was my first full year with Joelle Parks Events Co. and it was absolutely amazing. Starting a business is scary and vulnerable and I just had no idea how things were going to go. I’m so thankful to say that it was a very successful and fulfilling year!

I was really scared to make a list of goals for myself because I wasn’t sure what I could expect. I knew I needed to have something measurable to look back on so I shot for the moon on some of my goals and hoped for the best.

Photo by Fur and Lace Photography | Florals by Felicity Floral Design

Here’s a real, raw, and unfiltered list of the goals I created for Joelle Parks Events Co. in 2021 and how they went.

Book 24 weddings this year

This was my scariest goal but I’m so PROUD to say that I exceeded this goal and booked 31 weddings in 2021. There were some really slow months where I hated that I made this goal and thought I was so silly. But I continued to show up and put in the work and here we are one year later. Goal crushed!

Post on Instagram twice a week

Soooo ya girl started off strong here and then really tapered off. There were entire months where I didn’t post. Instagram isn’t my strong suit and after a day full of working with clients, I don’t often choose to use my time on social media. My 2021 word of the year in my personal and professional life is consistency. Here’s to hoping to see some improvement here in 2022!

Start a blog

Done! I did indeed start a blog. Andddd I stopped posting after April. When weddings really started to pick up for me, my blog (and instagram as you just read) went out the window. I do really enjoy blogging, but I don’t make the time for it. This is potentially an area I’ll outsource soon. 

Do two styled shoots

Exceeded! I had so much fun with styled shoots this year and ended up doing three of them. First up was a Modern Minimal Styled Shoot at The Barn at Reynolda Village in April. Next was the Sweet + Citrus collaborative styled shoot with Fur and Lace Photography at Overlook Barn. I ended my styled shoots in August at Appalachian View with a Something Borrowed, Something Blue styled shoot. These are so much fun for me and such a great way to flex my creative muscles. Maybe I should write blog posts for each of these styled shoots ;) 

I also made plenty of personal goals and wanted to share a few with you. Just like with my business goals, I had some wins and losses but at the end of the year, I was really proud of what I had achieved!

Read 24 Books

Man, I was so eager to crush this goal, but I ended up reading about 17 books. About 3 months in I realized that it was more realistic for me to read books via audiobook. The three months of us renovating our house I plowed through so many books! I’m happy to have ept reading as part of my weekly habits, regardless of the book count.

Exercise 208 Days

Crushed it! This averaged out to exercising 4 days a week. This year has been my most consistent with exercising. From Sydney Cummings workout videos in our sunroom to joining Orangethroty, fitness has been a big part of my days and my weeks!

Meatless Mondays

I started out the year wanting to make a conscious effort to reduce the amount of meat I was eating. Meatless Mondays were a great starting point. I have actually transitioned to eating a mostly plant-based diet. My husband and I really love it but we don’t take anything too seriously!

Read Through the Whole Bible

Almost! I actually only have one more book of the Bible to get through before finishing the Bible from cover to cover. I won’t have finished it in exactly 365 days, but I’d say reading it in 385 days isn’t so bad!

Also, I’m just going to go ahead and mention that buying and renovating a house was no where on the goals list, but it happened! My husband and I bought our first home in March 2021 and spent 3 months renovating it. It was one of the biggest adventures of the year!

In summary…

Like I mentioned before, I’m really happy with the things I’ve accomplished and the ways I’ve grown in 2021. As I look ahead to 2022, I’m taking a different approach. I want to umbrella all of my ambitions, dreams, and intentions under one word for the year. 

Consistency.

My one, big objective is to be consistent. Whatever it is I’m doing, I want to do it with consistency. So when it comes to reading, exercise, blog posts, booking weddings, etc. I just want to be consistent. 

Thanks for coming along on this journey with me. I couldn’t do it without you! Here’s to a very wonderful and consistent year ahead.

Cheers!