2018, Here’s Your Best Bits…

It must be an annual thing for me, where by reading everyone’s round ups of the year about to pass and their goals for the year to come just fills me with anxiety.

Then I read my post from the start of 2018, all about how I was gonna Be more Jekyll, Be More Hyde (Be More Me) and it filled me with direction.

I don’t need to go through every minute of my year for a blog post and I certainly don’t need to totally have my sh*t together for 2019 already. The basic building blocks are naturally already in place…

I’m gonna finish the year the same way I started, celebrating 3 great things and then sharing 3 things I plan to focus on for the year ahead. So here goes… 2018, here’s your best bits:

ONE. The Blog. In 2018, I finally did the big move from Blogger to Wordpress and tbh, although every blogger out there says you HAVE to do it, I still don’t agree. You just need to do whatever works for you. I do think it was the best decision for me though and I’ve enjoyed getting to grips with Wordpress although we now have to start all over again with the new update. In this same year, I celebrated 6 years of this space on the internet which is an amazing achievement and I couldn’t be more grateful to every person who’s ever stopped by or contributed in anyway! Finally, in this area, it was great to remain on the Vuelio Top 10 Blogs (Fitness & Exercise), to move up to the #5 spot aaaannnd then to get shortlisted for the awards in November. Although I didn’t win, I had an amazing evening with friends all glammed up, celebrating everyones hard work!

TWO. My MSc. In 2018, after many episodes of tears and stress, I successfully completed the first year of my MSc in Management and Business Innovation. It was a steep learning curve, being in an academic setting again but I managed to do really well and even enjoyed when I could share some of what I was learning here with you on the blog. After the 2.5 months summer break wizzed by, it was straight back into year two and the only thing on my mind has been my Dissertation. So far one term is down, I have one term with two modules coming up in January, one term with just my Dissertation to focus on and the summer holidays to wrap it up before it is due in September 2019. I’ve just taken delivery of my Passion Planner for 2019 and after this year, I know that planning and spontaneity are going to be required in equal measures.

THREE. Life. Although finding time to be social has been difficult, I have had some stolen moments to enjoy life beyond my MSc. I had a weekend in a treehouse. I went camping… twice. Me, I went camping! lol …I took on Tough Mudder 5km, the Half and the Full. I ran. I cycled. I cycled on mtb trails. I cycled in Amsterdam. I entered my first cyclocross race. I reduced my teaching schedule and I started working full time again. I played tennis, I wore make up, I made pizza. I enjoyed life.

So 2019. What would be 3 great things to focus on? Well, here goes…

ONE. The Blog. I couldn’t not have this as a focus when I’m here writing about it huh?! Well, after thinking through everything from 2018, I’m in the midst of finalising my plans for 2019. I’m well into my 7th year of blogging and although I’m more than happy with how things have been, I know I can progress so much further. My goals focus around the areas of Content, Passive Income, Income, Social and Email List / Added Value. I’ve already started reinvesting in my blog with my Race Day Prep PDF which you can check out here and download free of charge. And after nearly 7 years, there is a lot of content on here which goes unseen even though it is just as relevant today as the day I wrote it.

TWO. My MSc. Erm, this is kinda shaping up the same as 2018 huh?! But I invested a lot of money into doing my MSc so it makes sense to give it a share of my focus until the end! Next term, I have a module in Digital and Social Media Marketing so I will be sure to share any nuggets of knowledge I come across in addition to a module on Strategic Management. I’m in the middle of finalising my Dissertation topic right now so once I know what it is, I’ll probably also share that as it will be within the realm of fitness. From what I know so far, planning will help me to complete my Dissertation and having a timeline in my diary (which I will complete soon) will help me make decisions about what I can and can’t do when it comes to the blog and life…

THREE. Life. No surprise then that number three is life. I’ve got some big plans and if there’s one thing I’ve learnt, it’s that putting them down on paper or saying them out loud aaaand using positive language such as “I will…” or “I can…” is the first step to manifesting them! So, in 2019, I will move into a house and bring my Pinterest dreams to life. I will squeeze in travel between deadlines and lectures (it doesn’t always have to be half way around the world). Fitness will keep me balanced – running and volunteering at my local ParkRun, road cycling, cyclocross and teaching. And then some…

What do you think you will focus on for 2019?!

Elle