Happy New Year 2020

I can’t believe it’s 2020, last year flew by. It’s a new year and a new decade. I’m excited to see what’s in store and how much I can achieve. This year I want to become more consistent and disciplined with my goals.

Reflecting on the past decade

I have grown so much over the past decade and I have so much to be thankful for. I have progressed in my career, travelled to some amazing countries and had some amazing experiences. My nephews were born who I love dearly and bring joy into my life every time I see them.

The past decade I have acheived so much and I hope to acheive even more over the next decade.

Some acheivements and events over the decade:

Taking part in Sing While you Work on BBC2 and Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Choir was formed
Receiving Christmas Number 1 with the Lewisham and Greenwich Choir
Having the oppoortunity to sing at some amazing events from singing on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbuty to the FA Cup and recording at the famous Abbey Road Studios
Becoming a Project Manager
Enrolling on a Business Degree
Losing 2 stone
Travelling to some amazing countries
Formed Unity A.B.E.P
Photoshoot with Boden

Career

In 2009, I worked as an IT Service Desk Analyst. This was my first role within IT and was only supposed to be a fixed-term contract but I was asked if I wanted a permanent post. I enjoyed the role which could be challenging at times but I learned so much. I stayed in this role for 3 years and I then progressed to a Web Applications Analyst where I was in charge of supporting the clinical applications. I loved this role as I was able to build new requirements such as a new electronic form for users to complete for patients. I stayed in this role for 2 years and then progressed to a System Manager role where I was involved in implementing and then supporting a Clinical Patient Web Portal. I stayed in this role for 3 years and was asked if I wanted to apply for a Project Manager role. I would have never thought I would become a Project Manager. I always thought I would stay in a support role. This job definitely took me out of my comfort zone. I had completed the Prince2 Foundation and Practitioner Course(Project Management Course) and passed but wasn’t planning on becoming a Project Manager. I just wanted to learn the project life cycle and understand the process. So, here I am today working as a Project Manager. This year will mark 3 years so I am ready for a change.

Travel

I am so thankful to have travelled to some amazing countries over the past 10 years. They include:

USA

Hawaii
New York
Las Vegas
Florida – Miami, Disney World and Universal Studios
Georgia
Massachusetts
West Coast of America Tour – Las Vegas, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Yosemite National Park, Zion National Park and more.

Mexico

Europe

Paris, France
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Copenhagen, Denmark
Berlin, Germany
Dublin, Ireland
Reykjavik, Iceland
Milan, Italy
Barcelona, Spain
Palma, Spain
Santorini, Greece

Africa

Tunisia
Egypt

Carribean

Jamaica
Cuba
Barbados

I had the opportunity to go on 2 cruises and the destinations included:

St Lucia, St Kitts, St Thomas, Puerto Rico, Grenada and more.

Asia

India

Family and Friends

My relationships with my family have continued to grow stronger and I am so thankful for each and everyone one of them. They have taught me lessons and advised me on this journey called life. I don’t know where I would be without them.

I have formed some great friendships and reconnected with friends over this past decade. Some friendships have ended and new ones have begun. Each friend I have in my life right now are ones that will be staying.

Personal Growth

I have learnt so much about myself over the past 10 years. 2019 was the year I finally began to love myself (get the violin out, lol). I have struggled with my confidence since secondary school from being bullied, getting told I’m ugly on the bus ride home by teenage boys to thinking I was fat when I was in a dance class at The Brit School next to my size 0 classmates. When I started to work my confidence began to grow but then I began to date and my confidence was knocked when things didn’t work out to plan. That’s when I started to gain weight and began the yoyo diet phase. As I put on more weight my confidence began to decrease until I had none at all. I became an emotional eater so whenever anything bad happened I would reach for food. I tried every diet and lost then put on more weight. This cycle continued until 2019 where I’m finally at a place where I can control what I eat and lose the weight I gained. The weight loss has given me my confidence back and I finally love who I am. I still have a bit to lose but I’m finally on the right track. I’ve begun to stop caring what people think (well most of the time) and have stopped comparing myself to other people. Everyone is on their own journey. I’m not where I want to be in my life but everything happens at the right time and I can’t control everything. I just need to focus on the things I can control such as career/finances and continue to move forward.

Goals for 2020

It’s that time of year again, where some of us set new years resolutions for the year ahead. In my birthday post, I reflected on 2019 and my achievements but I also set some new goals. I prefer the term goal, instead of new years resolution as it feels like it’s more obtainable instead of being another want that’s not achieved. I briefly mentioned the goals I would like to meet in the new year, in my birthday post and have added a few more.

2020 Goals:

Pass my degree – I start my final year at university this month. I need to allow myself more time to complete my assignments and not leave things to the last minute. Also, to read the core reading books provided at the beginning of each new module. I start off well by taking the books out of the library but the books end up sitting on my bookshelf collecting dust until the end of the module.
Improve my time management skills – There are so many things I want to do and at times I try to do everything at once. This then leads to tasks not getting completed. I want to use this year to improve my organisational and time management skills which will allow me to become more productive daily. I have tried using apps like Evernote to help with completing tasks but I didn’t stick to it and stopped using it after a while. I have also tried to block out time in my calendar but again I book too many things in and everything overruns. If you have any tips on organisational/time management skills please comment below?
Post 2 blog posts a week – 1 down, 105 posts to go to be precise.
Read 1 new book a month – I have so many books to read including the ones from my reading list post. I love a good book so this goal should be easy to complete. I will post an update each month with my review on the book I have read.
Exercise 3 times a week – This a goal I didn’t achieve last year. I need to plan this into my week and I’m hoping I will get into a routine.
Learn to read music – I sing in a work choir and when we receive new songs we are expected to have an idea of what notes and the correct key to sing in. This will be beneficial in the long run.
Learn a language – I downloaded the Duolingo app a couple of years ago and was consistent; practising every morning. I started to learn French, Spanish and Polish. I then fell off track so will focus on one language.
Research new jobs – I have been in my current organisation for a long time and I think it’s time for me to come out of my comfort zone. I want to use this year to review a variety of jobs to see what I would enjoy doing. I would like to stay in IT but I’m not sure I want to continue working as an IT Project Manager.
Complete A-Z Restaurant\Places to see Challenge (post to follow soon) – Hazel and I love to visit new restaurants/places. A friend mentioned that she completed an A-Z of Pubs in London with her friends by picking a letter from the alphabet and finding a pub with that letter e.g. B – Buckingham Arms Pub. I thought it would be great to try this idea but with restaurants and places to see in London.
Tick off 3 things from My Bucket List – There are so many places I want to visit including Buckingham Palace and the London Eye. This year I want to try new things and ticking items off my bucket list is a great place to start.
Continue to save and stick to my budget – In 2019, I continued to budget using YNAB but I wasn’t very disciplined. A couple of months I went overbudget and I could’ve saved more. I have reviewed my spending over the past year and I have seen where I need to make changes. This year, I have joined a 2020 saving challenge where each month a new saving challenge is set. I haven’t completed a saving challenge before so again I thought why not try something new. I will provide a monthly update with my progress.
Reach my target weight – I weighed myself this morning after the Christmas festivities and I have 2 stone 1 pound to lose to reach my target. I aim to reach my target weight by 31st March by continuing to follow a healthy diet and to incorporate exercise into my week.

So here are my goals. 12 goals for the year ahead which seems a bit daunting but they are definitely achievable. I will schedule recurring events in my calendar every week to complete tasks such as writing blog posts and exercising. I’ve read that it takes a minimum of 30 days for a habit to form so I will need focus and be consistent.

Have you set yourself a new years resolution/goal? If yes, what are they and how will you achieve them? Let’s motivate each other to keep on track.

I wish you all a Happy New Year and I hope 2020 brings you everything you wish for.