The Divatude Challenge 2013: Graduate with a Purpose

Welcome to The Divatude Challenge 2013!

Throughout the year we will be following some awesome divas as they focus on taking their divatude to the next level in the personal and/or professional lives.

They have agreed to share their goals and progress with us as a way of staying accountable and inspiring others through their journey.

Today I'd like to introduce you all to our first brave diva, Britney. A recent college grad, her 2013 focus is continuing her education, a healthier lifestyle and learning how to manage her finances.

 My name is Britney and I am 23 years old. I recently graduated from the University of South Carolina in December of 2012. GO GAMECOCKS! I majored in Biological Sciences with a focus in pre-pharmacy. With such an important milestone behind me, any goals and plans that I set for myself seem more attainable. This year I plan on taking significant steps towards my career goal of becoming a licensed pharmacist, creating a healthier lifestyle and preparing a more efficient budget and savings plan. 

My first goal is to get accepted to the South Carolina College of Pharmacy- MUSC Campus (in descending order), Presbyterian College of Pharmacy or the Florida A&M University (FAMU) pharmacy program. In order for me to become a licensed pharmacist, I have to get accepted into a professional school program. I completed my application for the South Carolina College of Pharmacy (SCCP) last October and have been awarded an interview which will take place on January 18, 2013. My application for Presbyterian College (PC) will be turned in no later than January 18, 2013. And I am giving myself until January 31^st to complete all applications for FAMU. Once all of my applications are complete, I hope to be awarded interviews at those schools. After the interview process, it will just be a waiting game to see which one/ones I get accepted into. Classes will begin in August of this year and that is when my journey into the professional field of pharmacy will officially start.

Having limited funds in undergrad and being heavily involved in extracurricular activities was not conducive to a healthy lifestyle for me at all. I ate terribly and very seldom exercised. My goal for this year is to not diet but to allocate my calories appropriately for a healthier me. To do this I will prepare the majority of my meals at home and track my calories daily using the MyFitnessPal app on my smart phone. To be realistic I am making it a duty to exercise at least three times a week for at least 30 minutes a day. Whether it is walking, jogging or TaeBo, IT WILL GET DONE. As a measurement of my progress, my goal is decrease my weight by 10% by December of this year.  That's not a limit but a challenge to maintain a healthier weight by changing my dietary and exercise habits. 

Finally, l need to budget and create a savings plan. The first step in this plan is, of course, having a job...LOL. I’m applying to several places and revising my resume this month to secure a steady paycheck. A problem I have is that I only think about putting money in to my savings account when I get paid. However, once I see the money, I don’t see savings. Instead, I see financial freedom which always runs out on a rainy day. I want to work on becoming a more financially responsible adult. My goal is to secure a job by February 28^th and put away at least $40-50 each pay check. My goal is to have at least $500 saved before I begin classes late August. Similar to my fitness goals, my aim is to maintain the $500 in my saving account. I will not continue to pull from my saving account every time I need extra cash. I'm realizing I'll never have a true emergency fund if I continue to do that! In order to succeed at this I will need to create a working, reasonable budget that fits my income, bills and spending needs.

Those are three of my most important goals for the year and I am fully dedicated to accomplishing each one! Talk to you soon!

We will check in with Britney in April! By then she should know which school(s) she's been accepted to and be making progress with her health and financial goals.  $500 by August may seem daunting to many, but if she meets her employment goal by February - that will give her 6 months. If she sticks to her plan of saving $40 per paycheck she can attain that goal. My suggestion would be to get a savings account at a bank or credit union and do an automatic deduction from each paycheck directly into her account. That way she never sees the money and doesn't have to remember to do a transfer each paycheck.

I love that at such a young age, she's taking the steps to create a healthier lifestyle! Eliminating/Limiting fast foods and exercising regularly are great habits to start at an early age!

Can't wait to see what the next few months bring for Britney! We'll introduce you to our next participant later this week!

What advice do you have to offer Britney to help her with her goals?