LIFESTYLE
Lets be honest, it feels like 2016 was a pretty crappy year in some aspects - I don't really want to remind you too much or get too political, as this is supposed to be a motivational, uplifting post, but let's just say that George Michael passing away on Christmas Day was the icing on the mountainous cake of horrible news stories we've heard this year.
For me personally, 2016 has had many great aspects - I've visited a few places I've never been to before, had loads of great memories with my friends and family, and taken a massive step forward by moving in with Dan. I feel really lucky that we were able to buy our own place and I'm so proud of all the work we've done and what we've achieved in a relatively short amount of time.
I feel like around this time of year I start to think about what the next year is going to bring and what my personal goals are. It's so easy to make unrealistic new years resolutions that are just made to be broken (going to the gym every day and never eating another take-away anyone?) so this year I've decided that rather than making pointless resolutions I'd just jot down some of my thoughts and aspirations, then in a years time I have something to look back on and see what I've achieved!
1 // Travel more. These last few months we've been really focused on the house and we didn't have a chance to go abroad, but this year I really want to make up for this and go somewhere amazing. I also want to visit more places in England - Brighton & Manchester are definitely on the list!
2 // Have career aspirations. I feel like I've definitely got myself stuck in a rut with my jobs and although I enjoy working in retail (most of the time) as well as bar work, it's definitely not something I want to be doing forever.
3 // Believe in myself. This sort've ties in with no. 2 - I sometimes forget that I have a Masters degree and CAN do things if I set my mind to it; I take the easy route and I want to push myself more! I'm not always the most confident person and it can be easy to just go with the flow rather than doing what you really want, but this year I really want to change this!
4 // Get a car. I passed my driving test over four years ago and I haven't driven since! I think it's because I was never the most confident driver to start with and Dan has always had a car to ferry me around, but sometimes I think it would be so much easier if I had a car!
5 // Put pictures up. Our house may be beautiful and white walled but it definitely needs a few more pictures and pieces of artwork to make it feel homely. I've purchased a few prints but I also want to put up photos of family and friends and maybe some of my own artwork, if I can knuckle down and do some!
6 // Say yes. I've always been quite a nervous person when it comes to certain things - going on rides, anything remotely scary etc. but I want to start pushing myself a little more to get out of my comfort zone. Last year we went to Go Ape but I was too scared to do it so just watched from the sidelines, which is something I've regretted ever since. This year I'm determined to go back and do it!
7 // Make more of an effort with friends. Sometimes when life gets busy it can be really easy to neglect friendships, especially when some friends live so far away. This year I want to make more of an effort to see friends and meet up with people I may not have seen in a while - It might feel like a lot of effort to arrange things in a group chat but it's always worth it when you see everyone and have fun!
I feel like this has been a really long, rambling, diary style blog post, but sometimes it good to write what you're feeling down. Do you have any new years resolutions/ goals?
