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How to Make All Your Dreams for Your Family Come True

  May 27

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dreams for your familyRaise your hand if you have big, amazing dreams for your family. (I mean, I think we all do, right?!)

We all want to have a safe home for our kids, enough money to give them a good childhood, and enough hours in the day to have a moment to ourselves to pursue some of our own personal dreams, whether it’s going back to school, reading for pleasure again, or getting back into shape.

I feel like we all spend a lot of time talking about dreams, but rarely do we talk about action.

It’s one thing to dream. It’s another thing to make the dream a reality.

My Journey to Fulfill My Dreams

If you’re new to my site today, welcome! I’m so glad you stopped by! To give a quick recap for all the new peeps out there, here’s a little bit about me:

I used to be a broke graduate student when I first started this blog six years ago.

And by broke I mean really really broke — like, get two cards declined in Wal-Mart and can’t pay for groceries broke.

It was bad and embarrassing and hard, but I’ve always had a good work ethic and so I was determined to find a way out of it. That’s what led me to find frugality and personal finance blogs and I started one of my own. My blog was my haven, my happy place, and it still is.

Turning A Blog into a Writing Business

My blog led to other opportunities, such as writing for other blogs. I used to be paid $10/post to write for other bloggers, and just this week I turned down an $850 post offer because the project was not right for me – ah!

For the record it feels super weird to say that, and I don’t write it to brag, only to show you that someone who was completely broke and without a solid career a few years ago can build a strong business from scratch.

After working hard on my blog, gaining new writing clients, and raising my rates, I was able to become self employed, and I’ve been that way for 2.5 years now.  About two years ago, I also gave birth to twins, and now I’m able to take care of them during the day and run my business at the same time. It’s a win/win situation that I didn’t even know was possible a few years ago!

My Writing Course

Over the years, I got so many questions from other writers who wanted to do what I did – stay home with their families, quit their jobs, and make a decent income all on their own – so I set out to make a course to tell them how. It took a long time to create the course, but it’s something I’m so extremely proud of!

My course, Get Paid to Write for Blogs, teaches you everything you need to know about starting a writing business online, whether you currently have a blog or not. It’s great for both newbies and experienced bloggers.

We have three different levels of the course to accomodate all budgets, and also new this year is an option to split up the payments of the master level into 10 payments so the cost is more affordable and accessible to everyone.

Back to You: How to Achieve Your Dreams

So, now that I’ve gone on and on about my dreams and my biz, let’s talk about YOU! I know you have dreams, dreams of paying off debt or working for yourself or making a better income or just being a better you.

Here is my advice for taking action on those dreams and making sure this is the year they come true:

1. Define Your Dreams

In order to reach your goals and fulfill your dreams for your family, you really need to define them. I would advise choosing just a few to work on this year. If you have 10 things you want to do better, you’re more likely than not going to fail at one of them. Just focus on two to three things, and work on them every single day.

2. Take Care of Yourself

I learned some pretty big lessons in 2015 about taking care of myself. I suffered from pretty severe – and for a long time, undiagnosed – postpartum depression. It made it hard for me to work, hard for me to do the smallest task like wash the dishes. I thought I was just overwhelmed from raising twins and running a business, but I realized a bit too late that it was much more than that.

I took some strong steps towards the end of 2015 to better my health, and I’m proud to say, I’m feeling better than I ever have! I realized my family suffers if I am not well. My work suffers if I am not well. And of course, I suffer – sometimes silently – if I’m not well.

I can’t accomplish my dreams or do anything well if I am not at 100% so if you are sitting there reading this with a ton of goals you want to accomplish, make sure you take care of you because I can tell you from experience, the better you feel the more you can accomplish.

3. Have an Accountability Partner

If you have a big, audacious goal like paying off a ton of debt, losing significant weight, or raising your income a huge amount, let someone know what you’re trying to do. I have a friend who is not married so she hired a budgeting coach to help keep her accountable with her finances. I have friends who are bloggers who treat their audience as a huge amount of accountability partners. I personally use my husband as my accountability partner especially when it comes to heath and finances.

Be vulnerable and tell someone what you want to achieve for you and your family! Shout it from the rooftops, baby! Or, post it on Facebook if you have to. 😉 It’s important to share your goals because you’re more likely to achieve them.

You can start by sharing your big, audacious goal in the comment section today and we’ll cheer you on! Let’s do this together and make all of our dreams for our families, and ourselves, come true.
How to Make All Your Dreams for Your Family Come True

P.S. Remember, if you are interested in working from home and building a writing business, consider signing up for my course, Get Paid to Write for Blogs, today. 🙂

34 responses to “How to Make All Your Dreams for Your Family Come True

  1. Im finding that having a blog is a huge motivator, so I agree with you about the accountability. My main focus is increasing my freelance income to $2,000 by December. Cheers to an awesome year!

  2. I am so sorry to hear about your depression. If you ever want to chat about it, you know I’m here. I’ve also dealt with some severe depression and anxiety issues this year. It was so hard to work or do anything and felt tough to get ahead. I am taking steps to be happier and less stressed as well. I also want to net $100k (which is a big goal!) and also build my site. Most of all though, I want to bring in a good income and learn to be happy and healthy.

  3. Cath, how long have you been paying your student loan? I just wish you good luck on those goals. You can do it and can make those dream come true! Happy New Year!

  4. I know someone who suffered through postpartum depression and was a difficult period. 2015 was a year of growth for me as well. I achieved what many consider big successes but weren’t financial windfalls. I know earlier last year I was living in scarcity and I didn’t notice how I was just existing. I worked a ton and made big progress but I felt being pulled a certain way. I made some tough chouces and I had to take a step back. 2015 will forever be the year I completely let go of all my expectations. I won’t let what seems to be professional success trump my life. 2016 is going to be quite a different year as I continue my path to mindfulness.

    1. I think 2016 is going to be a big year for a lot of us, both professionally and personally. I can’t wait to see what everyone accomplishes this year!

  5. Happy Anniversary to you both. You certainly have done well for yourself and I share in your excitement for the new year. I’ve followed you for many years and you have both been through so much but have come out with smiles on your faces. In the end you are both achieving your goals and making your dreams come true. Thanks for all the tips today. May 2016 be even brighter for you.

    1. Thanks! It’s been hard at times, I won’t sugar-coat it, but we have definitely come out on top. I am really excited to see what this year holds for us and for you too!

  6. Happy anniversary Cat! You’ve done a great job of inspiring others and I can’t wait to see how you grow your business in 2016.

  7. What a year Cat! I’m glad you are going to talk about your postpartum depression only because I think it’s probably more common than people realize and I’m sure it will help other women in that situation not feel so alone. I’m also glad you made/are making your health a priority! We always hear about the success of freelancers, but I do think there is a lot of sacrifice there, health/balance being one of them, and it’s gonna cost you more in the long run if you don’t address it. Peace love and happiness in the new year my friend!

    1. I agree. I think many more women suffer from postpartum depression than we realize. Sometimes they may not even realize it either – I didn’t for the longest time. I finally realized I needed to make my health a bigger priority so I can be successful with other areas of my life too.

  8. Thanks for being so honest, Cat! I think there’s still a huge stigma around Postpartum Depression, so I’m sure your story will inspire others to share theirs. My sister had it, and she, like so many others, felt embarrassed about it. The more open we are about talking about this (it’s more common than people think), the less stigma there will be around it.

    I have anxiety, so I know how debilitating mental health issues can be. It’s no fun, so I also plan on making 2016 a healthy year.

    I’m sure you have too many blogs to read, but if you ever get a chance, check my recent post about my resolutions. They focus more on health, happiness, etc. due to a recent passing in the family. The death has completely woken me up and changed my priorities.

    You and your blog are inspirations to many, so all the best in 2016!

    1. I’m sorry for your loss! Death really can put things into perspective and I’m glad that’s one thing you took away from that terrible experience.

  9. I had a big wake up call earlier this year that I got all my dreams at 25 (the big house, the 6-figure income, the car, the fiancé, the dog) – or so I thought.. I realized that we still had $50k+ in debt and that our achieved “dreams” were all financed and didn’t mean anything. Working on paying down the debt this year and focusing on becoming a healthier me. (I put work first last year so I definitely relate to wanting to focus on health and happiness in 2016).
    Good luck with your 2016 goals and thanks for sharing with readers!

  10. I can’t wait to see what the New Year holds for you and your family. You guys are going to have some huge changes this year and it’s going to be awesome! I’m still trying to figure out where I’m going with my business this year. My goal is to hire a business coach so I can find some direction with my business. As far as my personal goals, I want to pay off all of my CC debt this year and hopefully the debt to my parents as well.

  11. Hi Cat, I admire your honesty. I have gone through bouts of depression myself after childbirth and the loss of my father. I think so many people do but mental health is still a bit of a taboo topic. Thanks for starting a dialogue. I wish you the best of luck on your goals. I completely relate to keeping health and work balanced. It’s so easy to forget one over another. Happy new year. Wishing you balance. Ommmmm.

  12. I’m so happy and excited for you in 2016, Cat!!! And I hope you’re living closer to me 🙂 Personally, this year is going to be all about cutting my expenses, increasing my income, and paying down my student loan debt!

  13. Write more, thats mine!! I know I need to be more specific, but I miss writing on both my personal and professional topics. So I am starting small with one blog post a month, for each:)
    Thanks for your comment about your delayed diagnosis of post partum depression. I have 5 year old twins and now a baby who’s a little over a year… sometimes I wonder if maybe there is something else going on with me too. Thanks for the motivation to explore it more this month.

  14. Happy anniversary, Cat! Health is big on my priority list this year, too. 2016 is going to be all about working smarter rather than harder, so I have more time to do that yoga. 🙂 Looking forward to watching all that you accomplish!

  15. Girl I feel ya! my hubs has been in Law School since 2013 and in May, one month after your husband, he’ll be graduated and “hopefully” pass the California BAR exam and *hopefully* land a good job. I’m right there with you, this year needs to be a year of dreams coming true and goals being met! Good Luck Cat!

  16. Very inspiring, Cat! I appreciate that you not only are a successful business owner, but are willing to help others. I love that you are helping others pursue their dreams while also achieving yours.

  17. Good luck to all of us especially to you Cath. I know you’ll reach any dreams you have one after the other. and I heard that you’re doing great in your course.

  18. DEFINITELY. I made my way up the hard way in the traditional workplace to the point where I have the flexibility to spend time with my family and earn a living but I’d like more than that. I’d like this flexible telecommute arrangement to be the norm and not a concession or a “perk”. I’d like to build my own businesses to the point where we have the resources to grow our family as much as we’d like, and to be able to spend real quality time with them regularly. I don’t want to sacrifice my health to get there – it’s already precarious and there’s no real point in working so hard to build up assets while steadily losing your health, is there?

  19. Thanks for sharing! I have just started my blog and am interested in starting my own writing business. I recently got your course and am digging into it!

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