2017 a year in review….

Every year we set new years resolutions and reflect on the year that has passed. I told myself this time last year that 2017 would be my year and to my surprise, it was! I now see that every decision I have made until this point has lead me to where I am now.

Career: I left a job that I liked and enjoyed to pursue a new career opportunity. Change is always scary, especially when you’re comfortable at the company you’re at. I was an account director, working on an FMCG account. I had a great team, chilled working hours and I was happy. I was approached by my current company, they wanted me to work on the account I currently work on now, it’s a company that plays in the personal care space. I was excited to make this move, as I had previously worked in this space before and had thoroughly enjoyed it. I had also done my final year marketing dissertation on ‘Does marketing affect the way women perceive beauty, with a focus on the Dove campaign for real beauty’. So, when I found out which account I would be working on, it was as though the stars had aligned. I left my cushy job to pursue that unknown and I haven’t looked back, this was a great opportunity for me in terms of personal growth and development.

I was concerned about having job hopping on my CV, I had been at one company for 5 years doing consumer PR although I loved it I wondered if I may enjoy doing another genre of PR more (I didn’t), I spent 9 months doing marketing PR, 3 months doing digital PR and then I spent a year doing FMCG PR.  I have no regrets though, every time I’ve changed companies I’ve grown my salary, skillset, confidence, and leadership abilities so I embrace change. I thought about it and realised that I was young enough to bounce back from this job hopping on my CV and you know what, you spend more time at your place of employment than you do at home and with your family and friends. So, I decided to take the leap and make a change, I’m now earning more money, feeling more fulfilled and doing work that I love and that sets my soul on fire. I also believe I am working for one of the best agencies out there. KEY LEARNING: Never be afraid to make a move, do what is right for you! It’s the only way to learn and grow. Being comfortable is a very scary place to be in. Worry more about being happy at work, than what your CV will look like. Life is short, make your happiness a priority.

Moving to a new house: So, I’m not really a morning person. The benefit of renting is that you can move to a new house once a year if you want to and that is kind of what I’ve been doing for the past few years. Since my new offices were now in Randburg (we’ve however just recently moved to Hyde Park) I relocated from Fourways to Bryanston to help beat the traffic. My sister was moving in with her boyfriend and I wanted to move somewhere more central, so this was another great move I made in 2017.  Bryanston is super central and I’m so happy here. My goal for 2018 is to stay put though, moving to a new house is super stressful and I land up throwing away half of my belongings every time I do it, so I’ll try do the spring clean without the big move this year.

The student life: After putting myself through tertiary education and studying two diplomas’ in business management and marketing management, my degree in marketing and my honours in marketing, I am done living the student life for a bit! I am so looking forward to having my life back!! I’m seriously done studying for a while now, bar the few short courses I may attend from time to time.

Single in the city: Just as I had given up on ever finding love and was about to start a blog called ‘Single in the City’ focusing on all my bad dating stories, restaurants for first dates, small talk idea as well as make up and fashion suggestions for first dates…. bae slid into my DM. I was sitting in my dentists’ office replying to a Facebook DM from a med student that was 3 years my junior and who looked young, my dentist Dr Smile sat down next to me and asked who the guy was. I replied, ‘oh no, just this guy he’s much younger than me so I’m not really interested’. He asked if he could have a look at his profile and then he said to me ‘he’s a med student so he must have some brains, it’s not all about age, it’s about what’s up here (brain), give him a chance. Go on a date and if you don’t like him you don’t have to see him again’. I thought about it and thought what’s the worst that could happen? I agreed to the date. Dyllan (who is 25 years old Eeek!) and I spoke on the phone every day for two months before we met, when we first met I felt super comfortable with him like I had known him for ages. After 3 years of being single I had finally met someone that I could talk too and that I had a great connection with. I drove him mad for the first 6 months of our relationship, wanting to be in a relationship, not wanting to be in a relationship, breaking up with him, what I didn’t put this poor guy through, shame. He’s taught me how selfless love is, patience and respect. He always sees the best in me and I wish I saw myself through his eyes. We’ve been together for a year now and are planning to move in together so after all our trials and tribulations things are going well. I still think I should write a few posts on those shocking first date experiences though. 2017 turned out to be the year of bae, that’s an accomplishment for me!

Mental and emotional wellbeing: 2017 saw me grow up a lot. I started doing things for me, caring less about what others thought and doing things that genuinely made me happier. I’m in a much better space now than I’ve ever been in.

It’s a Sher thing: On 21 November 2017 I finally decided to start my blog it’s a Sher thing. This is my beauty, lifestyle, and food blog. It’s not the dating blog I had originally envisioned starting, this vision has metamorphized into something else and I was more excited than ever to be doing something that was my own. I could write about what I wanted to write about and work on my writing skills as I’ve always considered this to be one of my weaker points. What I didn’t expect was that it would be so expensive to start my blog from scratch, I hired a web developer, graphic designer, photographer, bought a professional camera etc. I’m an A type personality and I thought if I am going to start something I’m going to do the best I can, especially if it includes my last name in it. I never expected to receive the kind of support that I have received right off that bat though and for that I am truly grateful. After being live for a month, I have worked with some of the biggest names in the beauty, lifestyle, and food industries. Thank you so much for believing in me and helping to make my vision and my brand not only a reality but a thriving success so far. I am truly blessed to have the kind of support that I do.

Here are my Facebook, Twitter and Instagram links should you wish to follow me and show some love!

https://www.facebook.com/ItsASherThing/

https://twitter.com/TamrynSher

https://www.instagram.com/tamryn_sher

What I envision 2018 to bring: Onwards and upwards career wise, I plan to grow and develop at the agency I’m at and take advantage of some of the amazing opportunities they offer. I plan to take a few short courses and continue to study. I also plan to stay in Bryanston for another year at least LOL and I hope to go into 2018 with the same guy I met and started dating in 2017. I hope that my passion project it’s a Sher thing grows to be even bigger and better than expected and that we write gorgeous content that people will enjoy reading. I also hope to grow my Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram page this year so that will be a focus area for me. I hope to become fitter and more fabulous, become a better cook and remain as happy and grateful as I am. 2018 will be about allowing myself to thrive, 2017 was my year, I hope 2018 will be the evolution of the greatness that was 2017. Happy New Year All, remember this is your year to sparkle xx