My goals for 2018 were fairly straightforward. I wanted to travel more, move more, focus on my happiness and get promoted to an Account Manager at work. I saw five countries in 2018, going on more trips than I ever have before. I ticked off bucket list restaurants and ate a considerable amount of fantastic food. I found happiness and contentment in myself by saying yes to things without hesitation with help from counselling. 2018 was a year of consolidation to some extent; consolidation of a more positive mindset and building on a wonderful relationship with Dan. And at the start of December I finally got my promotion, woo!
I think it’s important to make any goals achievable, so although these might not be groundbreaking, I hope that come 31st December 2019, I can look back and feel accomplished. So, here are my goals for the next 12 months and how I’m giong to attempt to achieve them.
Create a better relationship with social media
Over the Christmas period, I made a spontaneous decision to delete my Facebook, Instagram and Twitter apps from my phone. I don’t need a screen time app to tell me how much time I spend on my phone and social media – it’s definitely a few hours a day. I thought I was going to really struggle but shock horror, it was a lot easier than I thought. If I came off social media completely, I wouldn’t be able to carry on this blog and create opportunities for myself but I will definitely be doing more social media detoxes over weekends and holidays.
I believe that social media isn’t an intrinsically negative thing. It gets a lot of bad press but I think it’s worth bearing in mind that you can curate what you see. You choose who you follow and engage with. I have started to unfollow lots of accounts who don’t make me feel positive about myself in favour of creators I enjoy reading content from. I follow fewer people, but my feeds are now useful and don’t stir up negative feelings and make me compare myself.
Read more books
What am I going to do with all the extra time I am going to have from not scrolling through social media? Read of course! I did a degree in English Literature, so during my time at university, reading became more of a chore than something I did for fun and I have got completely out of the habit of reading before bed. So I’ve set myself a little challenge this year – to read 25 books! I have so many books on my ‘to-read’ list so 2019 is going to be the year I start to make my way through that list. If you fancy seeing what I’m reading, I’m going to be logging and reviewing everything on
Keep on blogging
A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about finding my why and what being a blogger means to me. I feel like over the last few months, I’ve found my groove with my blog once again. I want to carry on this renewed focus into 2019 and carry on generating content that appeases my love for writing and that other people enjoy too. I realise that blogging will always be the superior platform. I am a blogger, not an influencer. I know Instagram isn’t going to go anywhere any time soon, but I find so much more joy in creating long-form content. I would love to work with more brands in 2019 – I have a little list that I keep to myself of my dream collaborations – gotta keep the eyes on the prize!
Move more
This is pretty much always on my goals list. Last year, I joined the gym and made several changes to my lifestyle that had a really positive impact on my physical and mental health. It’s on my goals list so I have a renewed focus. Exercising is a kind of meditation for me. Regardless of whether I have had a bad day at work or feel like hitting the gym, I’ve not once regretted a workout (until post-leg day DOMS). This year, I’m going to aim to move in different ways, not just the gym. More walks, more hot yoga, more morning stretches and therefore more feeling good.
Spend less, save more
There’s a reason I’ll be travelling less this year – I’m saving for a house! I mean, I’ve always been saving for a house, however this year, Dan and I are hoping to buy one. A very big goal but the start of a very exciting adventure. I definitely live to my means, and probably spend more than I should but this year I have to buckle down and save as much as possible. I’ve got myself a Monzo card which I have found so useful for being more accountable for my spending and setting money aside into pots for different things. It means less eating out and less holidaying, so in the meantime you’ll find me scrolling Rightmove and pinning interior
So there we have it – my goals for 2019. I’m hoping that by writing them down and sharing them with the world I’ve now got even more of an excuse to try my best to achieve them all. Now, I’m off to wash off this wine hangover and embark on a much needed dry January…
May your January be bright and 2019 be a good one!
