7 Things I Want To Achieve In 2017

No, your eyes aren't deceiving you, the title of this post probably makes you think you're back in January. But we're in March which means we're way past the traditional time to make new years resolutions but in January I didn't find myself writing that many because there wasn't too much at the time that I thought that I wanted to achieve. And that's the great thing about setting goals for yourself there are no time limits and you can make changes in your life whenever you feel like it. Now we're a few months into the year I think I've finally found settled on what I really want to achieve in 2017.

TAKE TIME OFF WITHOUT FEELING GUILTY

I'm not sure what it is about taking time off that makes me feel riddled with guilt. And I think it's generally a self-employed thing because I always hear others say how bad they feel for it and like it's not something that they deserve because they love what they do and they feel the pressure from onlookers because they don't have a traditional job they constantly need to prove themselves. But the thing is we all need time off, no matter how much you love your job and how hard you work everyone needs a rest from time to time to prevent being burnt out and generally to enjoy ourselves too. Feeling bad for taking time off to relax and enjoying all the other wonderful things life has to offer is so silly and not something any of us should feel guilty for. 

CHANGE UP MY WORKOUT ROUTINE 

I made the effort to regularly exercise a few years ago and it's been such a huge positive change in my life and I can't see myself not having some sort of fitness routine now. But I really want to switch up what I'm doing and possibly try a few new classes as well as continue my mission to be stronger [I wrote about that here]. It's so easy to get stuck in rut with your workout routine and just do what feels easy and that's when I find I lose the urge to exercise even though it does my mind wonders. So I'd love to know what you guys love to do in your fitness routine, please leave me any suggestions below.

HAVE ONE HOUR A DAY TO DO WHATEVER I WANT

Whilst I still have the time to do whatever I want in my free time I want to make the most of it instead of making myself feel guilty that I should be doing something else. So having one hour a day to do whatever I please is something I'm going to try to do and it's not something I'm going to plan it either I'm just going to do whatever I fancy at the time. So maybe one day this will be doing a face mask and painting my nails or one night it might be reading for an hour. During work time I rarely stray from my to-do list but I think it's something that might do my brain wonders.

STICK TO MY EARLY NIGHTS

Over Christmas, due to some health issues flaring up I started having really early nights [even earlier than usual] and my body clock has got used to them. Now there are some nights that I go to bed far too early because my body has woke me up at 4.30am [it's not ideal]. But going to sleep before 10 pm is something I want to strive for from now. It stops me wasting away my evening's scrolling and I usually get a solid 8 hours in which means I'm able to function better the next day. It makes me feel like a total Grandma and it drives my boyfriend slightly crazy when he's home that we don't get a tonne of time together after I've finished work for the evening but prioritising my sleep has been a positive change for me and something that is totally underrated even though we all know how important sleep is.

GET OUT MY COMFORT ZONE WITH WORK

I'm a massive scaredy cat when it comes to certain things and I allow my irrational fears to hold me back so much which is so pointless. I know my fears are completely irrational but I let them take over and convince myself that I'm not good enough to do certain things. But if I never do them then I will never know and nor will I progress. Getting stuck in a comfy work routine is all too easy and there is something really satisfying about that comforting feeling. But feeling a little scared can make huge changes in the long run and then you get to feel proud of yourself for challenging yourself too which is awesome. 

SPEND TIME WITH MY FAMILY

I spend quite a bit of time with my family anyway but something I'm really conscious of is spending more time with them. As it's only the 3 of us and my dad's a widow it's something that's incredibly important to me and whilst I can I want to make the most out of it. So many people think hanging out with your parents or siblings is boring and tedious and I can never quite understand that thinking. Getting out on a family walk or visiting somewhere together whether it might be a National Trust property or a garden centre once or twice a week is something I've been trying to do more. It's morbid but I know that people aren't around forever so it's important to make the most out of them whilst they're still around to do so.

LEARN MORE

After spending such a long time in education I was definitely ready for a little break from constantly cramming my brain with knowledge. But now I really miss learning and I don't think making the conscious effort to learn something new is that easy when you're an adult with a lot of other responsibilities. And I'm not quite sure how I'm going to do it but I want to set myself small little challenges to at least try to learn one new thing each month. As well trying something new I also want to broaden the content that I consume so things like reading articles I wouldn't usually gravitate towards, watching obscure documentaries or listening to new podcasts are all ways that I think will help me do this.

What do you want to achieve this year?