January Favourites

The first month of a new year... always refreshing! This month has all been about planning this new blog and my 2015 journey, getting excited for moving into my new place next month, and getting stuck into a really important phase in work! Here are some of my favourite things from this month.




1. Mindful App - Just as an introduction, I downloaded a couple of mindfulness and meditation apps on my iPhone to get me started. There are daily sessions to follow, which form part of a programme, as well as various practices of different lengths and types, depending on what you're looking for. It also allows you to pause at various times in the day for a short reflection, this is probably the best part as you can complete it anywhere, and usually only for a few seconds.

2. Flaxseed - Because of my current lack of kitchen, it can be quite hard to get the healthy kick I want and need (3 weeks and counting until my new home is ready!). Until then, I still make sure to use any and all of the easy nutritional boosts I can. I love the Linseed flaxseed and goji berry mix - I mix it into my porridge in the mornings. It's full of protein, fibre, vitamins and antioxidants - and its quite yummy.

3. Gossip Girl - Somehow I've been re-watching this series through January. I'm such a huge fan - it's probably my TV guilty pleasure! When it's cold and rainy and horrible outside, there's nothing better than staying in with back to back Gossip Girl episodes and a cup of tea!

4. Pure Foods - Pure is a great lunchtime spot I've recently found close to my office. I love their selection of wholesome, freshly made food. A lot of it is super healthy, and my current favourite is their thai green lentil soup, made with spinach and coconut

5. Clarins Facial Oil - I have the weirdest skin - dry, yet congested, and London doesn't make it any better. Although it's still not at its best, Clarins rebalancing oil really helps me (I use Blue Orchid). They are completely natural pure plant oils which I love; there can be so many chemicals in facial products now, the natural something is the better, especially when it's going all over your face. Even though these are oils, they don't make skin greasy because they rebalance to the way your skin should be feeling.

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An organised life

I've always been a bit of a stationary fanatic, and I think in terms of diaries and journals it comes in very useful. It's so important to have a way to record your important thoughts and notes, whatever they relate to.

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I had a filofax planner for a while which I adored, but I fancied a bit of a change this year, and found this gorgeous book from my new favourite stationary store. The only shame was the postage and the fact that it took so long to arrive, but I love it anyway! I've always had a planner or diary, I love the idea of the printable ones I see so much of on Pinterest - I think I'll check those out for next year.

I don't tend to make to do lists personally, but this planner has a really handy section for it. I'm not going to waste it on work, but I'll probably save it for when I have a trip or event to plan later in the year. I love all the little additions that come with this planner including cute stickers, shopping lists and a year planner.

Work takes up so much of my time, so I love having the fun things I do outside of work pencilled into this pretty diary. I stick to my BlackBerry only for work appointments (unless I need to travel somewhere), and then fill my planner with everything else! I think it's really important to make sure your time is divided, and having it down on paper somewhere shows that although work can take over, there are a lot of ways to have fun with the social side of things and free your mind a bit.

For Christmas my mum got me the lovely pencil case you see above - I love it so much, and it even has my initials on it which makes it extra special. I tend to take it everywhere with me.

As well as my day planner, I have this black notebook which currently holds all my random thoughts about mindfulness, wellbeing, and blog ideas. I tend to jot things down here wherever I see them, either for the site or just for myself to remind me later.

The final book below is another diary, which I am currently trying to use as a food journal. Needless to say, it's quite hard - mainly to find the time and remember to write in it, but also to see on paper what I've gone through that day! As you know, I'm trying really hard to be mindful of nutrition this year, so it's not about calories or fat, and more about how good what I'm eating is for me. My aim over the next month is to get better at this!

2015 Questions

I’m following on from my aims of 2015 post here, taking the opportunity to look forward to 2015 whilst we are still in the first few days of the year. It’s obviously the best idea to do all the planning while there is still time to achieve it - so here’s my wrap up of 2015 plans in question mode.

1. What do you want to see, discover, explore?

I want to try and see a bit more of the world, explore my soon to be new neighbourhood, and discover my truest, happiest self.

2. What skills do you want to learn, improve or master?

I want to improve on my French language skills, my fitness and my cooking, learn yoga, and master the art of mindfulness.

3. Which personal quality do you want to develop or strengthen?

Probably self belief. This move to London meant a new job, and a period of realising that I can achieve what I want, be it personally and professionally. I have the aims that I’ve shared that I want to fulfil, and I also have a professional aim to achieve by the end of the year. I need to make sure I know that if I put my mind to something, and try my hardest, I can succeed. 

4. What do you want your everyday life to be like?

I’ve said before that I’m looking forward to getting a better routine in place. I want to be able to plan my week and have control over my food and exercise. I want to take time for thought and meditation, and just generally be happy and peaceful.

5. What do you want to achieve career-wise?

I want a successful year in my new role - it’s the first long term role I’ve had and I want to do well and make a good impression. I need to make some good contacts, get good results and put in place my plan for next year.

Goals, aims and aspirations

So the whole point of the writing, the change of mindset and trying to act upon it was to make me feel happier, better about myself and more fulfilled in any and every way. On reflection 2014 was a great year but that doesn’t mean I can’t do things differently and a little better this year.

I have 3 goals for my 2015 journey, as well as some aims and things I hope to achieve over the course of the year.

1. A clearer mind
This year is the time when I will start to take active time out of my day and schedule to reflect, and take care of my mind. I know I can make time for this, after thinking about it and starting work on this for a few days I feel happy and energised. Often through music, meditation or writing I will learn the best ways to practise mindfulness and benefit from this.

2. An enjoyable routine
For the first time in a long time, my life shouldn’t get uprooted this year, and I believe this will be a good thing for me. I get bored easily, I always need to be doing something and so a routine will be an excellent way to channel this. I want to take my first goal into consideration as part of this routine, as well as nutrition (especially getting back into a kitchen of my own, and being more regimented in my diet), exercise, and making sure that the way I choose to live this routine works for me.

3. Physical wellbeing
Really, all three goals go hand in hand. Here I want to find a ‘diet’ that suits me, one that I might take from a number of sources and make my own, and one that I want to follow and not just feel obliged to.
Honestly, I don’t like typical gym exercise. I enjoy walking, cycling and swimming and will do more of this going forward. I also want to strengthen myself by having more involvement in yoga and core exercises.

I also intend to do the following. One way or another, they all seem to fit into my goals above:

• Cook experimentally and discover new and healthy meals
• Learn how to meditate correctly
• Enrol in yoga classes near my new home
• Find a way to keep routine when travelling with work
• Spend 2 weeks in France learning about language & food
• Spend some time trying out different diets (wheat free, dairy free, vegan)
• Give some serious thought to who I admire and why
• Find my stress triggers and learn how to deal with them
• Write more letters
• Find a new exercise that I really enjoy

This will be my year?

A good friend once told me; if something still makes you happy, keep doing it. If it doesn’t just stop it – you are in control. Pretty obvious I know, but not something I always consider when I should. I think that as well as there being some things I do now, that I need to revisit and stop or change for the long term, there are some other things I need to start thinking seriously about, to make sure that I can safely say, yes they do make me happy. Perhaps I’ve hit the nail on the head for step one to the happiest life! To me, that statement really is as simple as that. 

More than a year ago I posted this picture on a social media site. Whilst I agree wholeheartedly with it, I haven’t really done a lot since to make any of this happen, or to follow these sentiments as much as I can. I think 2015 is my year to do this, and so I begin. 

Lately for me, it’s been about having clarity of mind and time to reflect, rather than specifically health and fitness; although of course the two go hand in hand. It’s obvious to me I need to write down some clear goals, as currently I have an idea of where I want to be, but not exactly how to get there and what is needed. 

My world for the last 2 years has been a hectic whirlwind of a full time, high-pressure job, 4 relocations within the UK, and an uprooting of life, pattern, and relationships as a result. That’s not to say I don’t love what I do, but now that London is my home for probably at least a year, I can begin to get a sense of normality, a routine and some clear and focused time to get my plan of 2015 into action. Hopefully after this year it won’t need to be something I even consciously think about. 

For now at least, the professional daily routine I currently have will need to stay, and as a result of a number of things I don’t feel particularly energised or motivated to do a lot else at the end of my day. I can’t blame my job for this, I don’t work particularly long hours, and soon I will be only about a 20 minute commute from home. I hold my attitude, habits and lack of motivation responsible for this, and I already have some ideas to put into practice in order to change this. 

A routine doesn’t have to be boring, and I’m really excited about starting mine. I’ve always been extremely organised, but like I mentioned, I’ve been having trouble putting this into practice from a health and wellbeing perspective until now. I’ve always dipped in and out of trying to be fit and healthy and can actually say that moving around so much has been responsible for them not sticking. That, and not really having a plan or goal; or focusing too much on what type of path I ‘should’ be following. I know now I just need to do what is right for me, and take care of myself; mind and body. 

I do have so many ideas and plans for the coming year and beyond that could throw a spanner in the works for my 2015 plan, but I’m going to find ways to fit these in, and enhance my path rather than restrict it. Things like travel, changing job, possibly even moving (again!) abroad may come to pass – but if they do I will know how to carry on and factor them in with success!