Making sure 2015 is your best year yet: Day 30 - Clear out the clutter

I DID IT....

Today I took a day off work and just spent the day cleaning, throwing things out and getting organized. MY HOME FEELS clear of distractions, mess and anything standing in my way of making this my best year yet. 

My home, now feels like a haven to just retreat to at the end of a day, where I can continue to be positive and focus on my goals, dreams and visions and I AM IN LOVE with my flat all over again :)

It has to be done. We can not begin our best year yet surrounded by mess, clutter and chaos. Whether it's in our minds, our homes, cars or at work. WE HAVE TO CLEAR IT ALL OUT to make room for the good stuff, the positive energy, the love and everything else that is good in between. So with the weekend being too close and just around the corner, dedicate some time over the next day or two to clear out the clutter and make room for your best year yet....Especially as February is just around the corner :)

Here is to clearing it all out (and hopefully not hurting your back like me....#oldladyproblems)

- A 

Making sure 2015 is your best year yet: Day 28 & Day 29 - Commit to thinking positive

Its so easy to get lost in the day to day, the worries, the stresses, the negative things that pull you down. You suffer one setback and in your mind the world comes crumbling down. But should it?  I mean Rome wasn't built in a day and it certainly wasn't built with out a setback or two (at the least). So why should our goals and visions suffer???

It's time to change your thoughts, control you mind and keep pushing along. But how you ask?? How do we get the negative thoughts out? 

In all honesty, I myself have not mastered it. I mean I am definitely more aware and present with things that are happening and going on in my mind, so the minute something negative comes in, I try my hardest to work at getting it out, but it still takes me time. Whether it means I have a conversation with myself, blast some Taylor Swift or fall into a trance of Meditation, I work at it. I will not let myself be the thing that stands in the way of getting it all. AND YOU SHOULD NOT EITHER. 

So what are you going to do to make sure your thoughts stay positive?? Have any idea??? Well just in case you are struggling here are some suggestions: 

1. Listen to HAPPPY HAPPPY MUSIC!!!! Come on, Pharrell wrote Happy, so if you can not think of anything at least you know you have that one :)

2. Take out a piece of paper and a pen and set your clock on a timer of 7 minutes. Now for these 7 minutes write down everything that you love!!! And write them out like - I love my new funky pj's, I love the comfort of my bed, I love London, I love XYZ, etc. 

3. Watch something that makes you laugh - I mean there is just no shortage of these are there?? I mean funny movies, YouTube video's, TV shows, comedians - YOU NAME IT!!!! 

4. Do something you love - Go for a run, to a yoga class, sit at your favourite cafe, go for an aimless wonder, DO WHAT MAKES YOU FEEL GOOD

5. Go find someone to hug...I mean don't hung a random stranger, but HUGS ARE THE BEST THING IN THE WORLD, they make everyone happy. 

6. Call someone who make you happy or better yet go see them and just be surrounded by their positive energy. Positive energy is just so infectious and addictive it will be hard for you to just steer away. 

Okay - so there you go a starter list to get you going, to help you train your mind and get you in the right frame of mind to REALLY BELIEVE that this will be your BEST YEAR YET. 

SOOOOO LET'S GO!!!! Here is to positive thinking :)

- A 

Making sure 2015 is your best year yet: Day 27 - Commit to your goals

You have to commit. Oh no there is that scary word - commitment. YIKES!!!! 

But its true, that with no commitment, there can be no reward in the end. You have to not only believe in your goals, but you have to be committed to the path. Which means that when opportunities arise that align with your goals, you jump on them and to things that come up that are distractions or go against your goals, YOU RUN, run like the wind as far away as you can from them. 

Commitment scares me, it makes me feel vulnerable and as though I am completely in the arms of trusting something other than myself. But IN this case you are just trusting your own words and visions so it should feel less scary. This year I am committed to fostering my brand and the next stages of my career (#womeninbiz), which is why when someone emailed me the opportunity to sit and learn from some of the best female entrepreneurs I had to jump on it - because it aligns DIRECTLY to what my focus is. I AM COMMITTED. 

So are you committed? BECAUSE YOU SHOULD BE!!! This is your life and your best year yet and what better way to show some love to yourself than to commit to the path your goals take you on. 

- A 

Making sure 2015 is your best year yet: Day 26 - Find your outlet

As we all continue repeating our goals in front of that mirror of ours, it's important that we also determine what our outlet is. And by outlet, I mean that thing - that activity - that gets you back into your sweet spot no matter how blue the days have turned. Because let's face it, this may be our best year yet, but even if it is the BESTEST YEAR EVER, it will have moments that make your cringe, that make you second guess yourself and that make you want to shut the curtains and hide from the sun. 

But that's why we have our outlet. By understanding what our outlet is, we have a place to retreat to when all is down, to quickly pick us up and put us right back on that right track. 

SO WHAT IS IT FOR YOU? WHAT MAKES YOUR SOUL HAPPY? AND WHAT WILL SAVE YOU FROM A DAY OF HEADING OFF TRACK?

Spend the time finding it, because with out your outlet, your best year ever could be in danger and we definitely don't want that. 

- A

Making sure 2015 is your best year yet: Day 23,24,25 - Understanding and visualizing your goals

Okay, so tardy is not even the right word to describe the lateness that is my post writing. But in my defence I have been battling a terrible flu, which has left my ears clogged, my nose leaky as hell and my throat coughing uncontrollably. I swear I am an absolute disaster to be around and should not be visible to either the real or cyber world. However, I am now slightly less contagious and a bit less high on cold medication, which is why I have retreated back to my lap top and to setting the stage for our best year yet.

So when I left you all my cyber friends we had just set our goals for our best year yet. And while setting them is critical, writing them down is never really enough. You need to understand what your goals mean and know them inside out - so much so that they are in your mind at every point of everyday.

So with that comes a two part exercise. The first piece is about going back to your goals and really understanding them and I mean really understanding what they mean for you, your life and how you see the whole thing panning out. You need to be able to visualize the end result, which comes from knowing what your goals mean for you. Once you feel as though you understand your goals you are free to move onto the second part of this exercise.

So then armed with your goals and your vision of them, head to the bathroom or a room where you have a mirror. Stop directly in front of that mirror and repeat your goals out loud while looking yourself in the mirror. Now I know what you all are thinking and doing (i.e. rolling your eyes), but it has to be done. IT NEEDS TO BE DONE. You need to know these goals and you need to believe in them, and by visiting this mirror daily and repeating your goals out loud, you will begin to remember these goals in everything you do and as a result will stay on track, while getting closer to achieving them and your visions for your best year yet... SO YOU WITH ME?

Remember writing down your goals is just the first step  you need to show commitment - understand them, believe in them and believe in your power in achieving them.

SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!?!?!! Pick up those goals and begin the process.

A recovering runny nose blogger
- A

Making sure 2015 is your best year yet: Day 22 - Goal Setting

In keeping with the theme of writing, it's now time.

We have spent all month reflecting, enjoying and taking in the air of a brand new year. But now after all this time and prior to the start of the next new month, it is time to get our goals in order, so we can plan for what in fact our best year yet will look like.

So keep that notebook and pen out and start writing out your plans, your goals, your visions. What will this year bring? And what area's are you most keen to focus on. AND DON'T BE VAGUE. Wishy washy goals and ideas never got anyone anywhere. So start broad if that is easiest and start asking yourself what that broad statement looks like to you. It will help you brainstorm millions of visions and ideas that will help you make that broad statement so much more specific.

For example - My objective is to do well at work this year (broad statement). Then ask what does well look like? - Getting promoted, excelling on my daily tasks, getting a pay rise, etc. Okay so in the end my objective is to excel in my day to day tasks at work, resulting in a promotion that will further result in higher pay.

Got it!!! And don't be afraid to write things out. I found it so daunting to do last year, especially when I knew some of my goals involved things I was actually terrified of. And looking back after realising them all, I realise that you can not be afraid of what you want, you can not be afraid of the power that you hold to make your dreams happen.

After all, these goals armed with your will and passion will be all you need to make this your best year yet.

So get goal writing already will you!!!!

- A

Making sure 2015 is your best year yet: Day 21 - Write and write like no one is reading

Okay so I may be slightly bias with this post, considering that writing is my solace. But I do believe in it. I have a book that sits by my bed side that seems to always be a place of reflection for me, especially around this time of year.

As of late, I have flipped through it, reading up on where I have been and what I had hoped. And as I continue the reflection on the year that has passed and the year that is to come I realise how important writing is.

So as we move from the reflection period to deciding what will make this year the best years of our lives, get a notebook and not an electronic device that you can write on. And take out an old fashioned piece of paper and pen and start writing out your visions for this year to come. Write them out in any words or form that you want - this writing is just for you. And don't be afraid to dream and write big. THIS IS YOUR BEST YEAR YET AND YOUR CHANCE TO PROVE TO YOURSELF THAT YOU CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN.


So get creative :) Happy writing

- A