Goals Review - January

My last post for 2015 on my blog was my 'Highlights of 2015, Life and Blogging Goals for 2016'. This post is pretty much self explanatory, but I included a mixture of goals that I would like to achieve online and offline. I thought I would do a goals review each month. This way it would really help me to track my progress, help keep my motivation levels high and to remind myself of some of the things I would like to achieve within 2016. Also I thought it might be something you might enjoy reading and might spur you on to review your goals and get back on track.

In terms of life goals, I haven't been able to achieve much during this first month of the year. One of my goals was to get a full time job in Marketing or Administration. So far things haven't been that great. I feel like I'm constantly looking and not really getting anywhere. There's either nothing that is suitable for me or when I do find something that interests me, it's in the middle of nowhere and would be difficult for me to get to. However I'm not going to stop looking or give up simply because of the lack of success so far. I am still regularly looking each day and hopefully by the next goal review, I will be able to say I have applied for some jobs and might have even attended some interviews.

Because of not being able to get a job yet or doing much with my time, my confidence hasn't grown hugely either. Although I would say I have been receiving some really positive and great feedback on my posts recently. It honestly surprises me so much when I see a new comment on a post! It makes me smile so much and it so rewarding when a post goes down well. I was so shocked when I kept getting new comments on my Lush - Cupcake Face Mask post. I honestly had no idea why people kept commenting. Even though it probably isn't many comments to some people, for me it was insane and I just couldn't believe it. It made me feel so happy and boosted my confidence in my blogging abilities. Thank you to everyone who takes the time out to read and leave a nice comment!

One thing that has really been a disappointment this month is the fact that my anxiety and depression has flared up quite bad again recently. I have no idea why. I think it might be due to the fact that after Christmas I felt like there wasn't much to look forward to any more and I really knew I had to really knuckle down to find a job. I couldn't let my anxiety win any more. I had to take back control. However, the whole lack of job finding and day's of not doing much, has just made me feel so worthless and negative about myself and certain things in my life. My sleep has been a bit on/off this month too which has a major impact on my moods. But there has been quite a few days this month where I've just been feeling really down, unmotivated, exhausted, anxious, worried, stressed, irritable and not been able to relax easily. I've also been putting way too much pressure on myself about my blog, but I'll come to that a little bit later. 

On a slightly more positive note, I have been trying hard to work on my emetephobia. When I go out now, I find that I am less worried when I come home about what germs I might have picked up and it doesn't bother me when I go to sleep like it use to. Also I even managed to let my boyfriend cook for me, which was a major step in the right direction. Last year, I wouldn't let anyone other than myself or my mum cook for me due to a fear of food poisoning. However, even though I was terribly anxious, I actually really enjoyed my boyfriend cooking for me. It was a nice change and I'm more willing now for him to cook for me more. If you're reading this, Hi Reece!

Speaking of food, my goal of making healthier choices and exercising regularly has somewhat been successful. I've been thinking a lot more about what I am eating and making better choices when it comes to meal choices. I've started making sure I kick start my day with a healthy breakfast and I have been also trying to drink more water. One to help my skin and two to make sure I stay hydrated. I never drink enough and find I can get dehydrated quite easily which just makes you feel rubbish. Drinking more water and being more healthy in my food will easily change this. In terms of exercise, I've managed to go on one run so far this month and done a few work outs at home. I still need to up my game though to get to where I want to be. But I feel the more I do it and push myself, the better I will feel afterwards and it will become apart of my weekly routine. 

Moving onto my blogging goals, so far I have and I've had a bit of a rocky ride with it recently. I've felt a bit rubbish about my blog. I have also fell out of love with blogging a bit in January. My passion for it is there. But my motivation is at a disappointing low. I've just felt bad about everything to do with my blog. The design, the layout, the template, the photographs I've produced, my content and ideas. Basically everything hasn't been sitting too well with me. I've been putting way too much pressure on myself and comparing myself to others! It's not good for me. I've been trying to take small breaks away from the blogging world. For example, I decided to take a break last week from blogging and I've been trying to not compare. At the end of the day, it's my blog and my space. It's always important to remind yourself of that and to think about why you started in the first place! It certainly wasn't to feel rubbish and to compare. 

Also I've gained a few followers this month which has been so lovely and rewarding! It's always nice to get that little notification pop up telling you that you've got a new follower. I do feel like I'm a step closer now to my 100 followers goal for the end of the year. Thank you to you guys for that!