January days

Steem greetings to the Latino community from the motherland-Cameroon. It is another new day of 2025, and a fresh month to rethink and rebuild.

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That said, I will be sharing my ideas based on the guiding questions of the contest “January Days”

Was December as you expected?

It was the end of the year with lots of things to put together before the year ended. This month is usually one of the busiest months for me, especially at the workplace with meetings being held every week.

It is that time of the year that we round off our workload for the year and plan for the next year. Before going on holiday, we had to complete every task and send in all reports on time. I can say it was a hectic month due to much work to round off the year.

Notwithstanding, this December was a bit harsh for me and my family. We suffered healthwise due to the Harmattan cold. Other Decembers often witnessed a bit of rain which helped to wash away the harmattan dust did not happen this year.

January is reportedly a difficult month financially, do you believe in this or do you take steps to avoid these difficulties?

I used to have the same mentality that January was a difficult month financially until when I took a business management course for my master's degree. This course changed my perspective on savings and expenditure.

In this course, I learned that on no occasion should your expenditures exceed your savings. Since then, I have had to spend with caution.

Therefore, January is not a difficult month financially because I ensure my expenditures do not exceed my savings. I spent it with caution, knowing that rainy days come unannounced and I need to prepare by saving.

Are there any dates this month that are special to you?

1st of January is a special day for my family not because it is New Year's Day but because it is the day my family welcomed an additional soul to the family.

^{*Our January Queen birth on New Year Day.}

It is a special day for us because my niece was born on this day and also a remembrance day for us because even though she was born on this day, her father rejected her but my dad welcomed her with all he could be as a father to a child.

This girl is a special child in my family. She is intelligent and a record-breaker. She is in her final year in the university and all her courses passed with distinction.

Do you have expectations, goals, and plans outlined for this first month of the year to achieve?

I often start the year by setting goals to be achieved. As the saying goes “…failing to plan is planning to fail”. My goals are often long-term goals which will be realised in 6 months or a year.

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However, my first plan is to relocate to a safe environment for my kids to get a proper education. We have been living in a conflict environment for over 8 years now and it is affecting my kid's mental health. The trauma they go through during explosions and heavy gunshots is terrific. Their school days are frequently interrupted by imposed lockdowns by separatist fighters. I am planning to relocate immediately during the summer holidays.

What not-so-good habits do you need to let go of to move forward in this new year that is beginning?

The first habit I will let go of is my eating disorder habits. I often do not respect my eating routine because of my rush to catch up with work and house chores. At times I eat late and at times I even forget to eat and it's affecting me. I'm presently suffering from gastric.

The last thing I will prioritize is a good habit but because people have abused it a lot and cost me my mental health is over caring about others' well-being. I often think about others' well-being to my disadvantage to the extent that they mistook the privileges I gave them for rights. They turn to blackmail me which has affected my mental health. For this reason, I will prioritize myself first before others. I will put my self-interest first because I realised that human beings are naturally self-centred.

In sum, I have put in place plans to be realised in 6 months and I hope I achieve them. I will invite @fombae, @josepha and @simonnwigwe to participate in the contest.