Image from Sometimes Sweet

Well, it’s officially over; 8 weeks to a better me has come to an end. I’m going to finish with a progress report of the second 4 weeks, to go with the one I did half-way through.

In week five it was all about loving life and having fun! I aimed to do something fun, just for myself; document my days in a journal, focussing only on the good things that happened, the beautiful things I found and did; and laugh. Unfortunately I didn’t get either of the first two done, but I did manage to laugh despite university stress making light-hearted moments hard to come by.

If you read my first progress report, you’ll know I was keeping score between myself and ‘procrastination’. I ended with 8, procrastination with 4. Including week five this brings it too…
Sam – 9; procrastination – 6.

Weeks six was ‘Home Sweet Home’, a.k.a., making your home/bedroom/whatever right you. I aimed to make a virtual bedroom inspiration board; organise my craft supplies more; and find some new picture frames. Using Pinterest (one of the most brilliant sites ever) I created and added to a bedroom pin board. I also managed to organise my crafts a little bit more (but I still have a lot do); and unfortunately I had/I’m still having bum luck on picking up nice frames. Boo!

Sam – 11; procrastination/lack of decent picture frames – 7.

Week seven was all about cultivating our personal style. I aimed to think about my personal style, to see if I could really define it; make a list of a few of my favourite kinds of outfits; and contemplate selling some of my shoes, to make room for quality pairs that will last a long time. I thought about my style and decided that being eclectic is okay with me, that I don’t need to define my style as anything in particular. I also thought about selling some of my shoes but decided against it. I am not ready to part with some pairs just yet! I didn’t get around to making a list of favourite outfits though.

Sam – 13; procrastination – 8;

Week eight, the very last week, was about awakening our creative sides, something that is very dear to my heart. If I can’t be creative I go nuts. Anyway, I aimed to spend about 5 minutes per day with my craft journal – did not do; find some great yarn – did not do this either; and make a list of supplies needed for DIY projects – sort of did this. When I say ‘make a list’ I literally mean write it down, not think about it briefly while mentally escaping from studying. However, that is what I did, so it sort of counts. Especially because on Saturday I went to the DIY store and actually picked up all the things on my mental list and did not screw it up.

Therefore, Sam – 14; procrastination – 10. Technically I beat procrastination. Insert happy jig dance here.

This still leaves me with 10 incomplete goals though! Frankly, I am not okay with that, so I will continue to make weekly goals, using the 10 remaining and perhaps adding some new ones every-so-often. I’ll be making a brand new post all about it, later today!

If you did 8 weeks to a better me, how did you get on? What did you love? What was hard for you? Have you learned anything new about how you handle goals? I would love you hear about your experience!

xo

Image from Sometimes Sweet

Wow, I can’t believe this little series is almost over! It’s been a great motivator and incentive to plan these small goals each week, and to have such a great number of themes to help.

I just want to say a huge thank-you to Danielle for starting this feature on her blog, for inviting so many great bloggers to participate in the themes, and for encouraging us readers to join in. You’re a great inspiration, Danielle; I don’t know you, but I love you! In a non-weird way, of course! I want to be like you when I ‘grow up’.

Anyway, the final theme is all about awakening our creative sides and the lovely Leigh-Ann did a fantastic guest post with some truly excellent tips for getting creative. I love how many ideas she gave for collecting inspiration, some I’d never thought of doing before. I love having new options. She also covered the really important step of taking your inspirations and actually doing something with them, i.e. starting a project. It’s really easy to have ideas but it’s harder to actually take those ideas and turn them into a reality.

This week I aim to:

1. Spend about 5 minutes per day with my craft journal in hand, noting down ideas, working on existing ones, and sketching.
2. Find some great yarn for a crochet project I remembered I wanted to do this winter. The between-semester break is the perfect time to tackle it.
3. Make a list of supplies needed for some DIY projects I want to do for my bedroom.

Off to browse for yarn samples, now! xx

Image from Sometimes Sweet

I’ll be honest, I’m having trouble coming up with goals I can realistically accomplish this week, knowing I will be spending the majority of my awake time studying for exams. Overhauling my personal style is not exactly super-high on the list! Having said that, I was so pleased to see this theme and read the wonderful guest post by Elsie over at Sometimes Sweet. I have admired her style (and all-round awesomeness) for over a year now so it was cool to read some great tips from her!

Okay, this week I aim to:

1. Have a think about my personal style, to see if I can really define it. My tastes are very eclectic, I can go from 50s housewife to 90s grunge in a heartbeat (I have the dresses and plaid shirts to prove it). I fluctuate between simple feminine classics to tomboy-with-a-pinch-of-lady. Sometimes I’m just a good ol’ jeans and t-shirt/shirt/tank kinda girl. My style is kind of bipolar! While I find this confusing at times, I would like to think about how this is actually a good thing and embrace it more. Create my own definition.

2. Make a list of a few of my favourite kinds of outfits. The one’s I feel the most comfortable in, for different situations. This can be my go-to list for reining in my crazy shopaholic, impulse-buying self. It can also function as a reminder on days when I think all my clothes are rubbish and look horrible!

3. Contemplate selling some of my shoes, to make room for quality pairs that will last a long time. I’m a shoe obsessive. It runs in the family. Both of my sisters are afflicted and so is my dad (I know, he is awesome). The thing is, I buy shoes when clothes shopping goes badly, i.e., I buy shoes to make myself feel better when my clothing size has changed and I don’t look good in much! Shoe size does not change once you reach my age, therefore I can always be sure that my feet are a size 9 and those damn awesome boots will fit like a charm. Unlike jeans. Trouble is, I don’t always wear many of my pairs, and I don’t see the point of owning them if I don’t wear them…

Love and hugs!

Image from Sometimes Sweet

Oh man, I pretty  much squealed when I realised this week is about making your home pretty, and with Mandi! I adore her style so much and her tips for making your home the best space for you are really great. Head on over and have a read!

This week I aim to:

1. Put together a virtual inspiration board for how I want my bedroom to look.
2. Organise my crafts some more and move them to their new corner.
3. Find a few new picture frames that can be hung on walls. Preferably interesting ones!

xo

Image from Sometimes Sweet

This week’s topic is loving life and having fun. I can’t think of a better thing to work towards for this week! I see a lot of people struggle to remember to have fun in their daily lives. I think sometimes it is so easy to get caught up in everything we’re supposed to be doing today or this week or this month that ‘fun’ doesn’t really factor into our priorities, at least perhaps not high up there anyway. One thing I adore about my boyfriend is his zest for fun, from little things like our playful banter or a random joke to more planned fun and adventure. I am the uptight, anxious one in our relationship and so often I am wound up like a rubber band, all twisty and serious. He reminds me to just take a moment to remember it’s just life. Life is beautiful and not a super-serious project that needs unfailing concentration to ‘do’, that sometimes living is best done when you let go of expectations and just be with the moment you find yourself in.

This week I’m going to:

1. Do something fun, just for myself. While I love having fun with others, there are times when doing something on your own is really nice. Tomorrow I am planning on getting a pedicure, something I’ve only ever done for myself! Fun and relaxing.
2. Document my days in a journal, focussing only on the good things that happened, the beautiful things I found and did. While I would love to take my camera with me every day, having my DSLR at university isn’t very practical. I’ll be taking my journal with me instead, noting down little bits and pieces throughout the day.
3. Laugh. As much as I can, all week! Spend time with friends, watch funny stuff, play games with the kids I know, etc.

Happy Monday! xo

Image from Sometimes Sweet

Given that we’re half way through the 8 weeks to a better me project I think it’s time I updated on how I’ve been doing. Successes, failures – you know the drill.

In week one it was all about blogging and I aimed to blog about my 23rd birthday, make one post about what I did that day (because I enjoy reading those kinds of posts so why not write one?), and share a playlist. In that same post I shared my first ever downloadable mix full of current must-listen-tos. Although I wasn’t able to write about my awesome Friday on the actual day, I did recount it, and I also shared a birthday post!

So, that’s 3/3 for the first week! Sam – 3; procrastination – 0.

Week two was focused on fitness goals and I aimed to purchase a decent exercise DVD, work out three times, and actually push myself further than I think I can go. I had trouble that week and the only goal I managed to complete was the first: I ordered the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred DVD which arrived the other day. Later today I plan to go through it if writing my paper doesn’t go too badly.

1/3 for week two. Sam – 4; procrastination – 2.

Week three was to make healthy eating goals and I aimed to drink at least 2 drink bottles of water per day, eat at least one piece of fruit a day, and eat one salad per day. That week my health issues came to a head and I was in a situation where my diet was limited to white bread, chicken nuggets, and malt biscuits. I was able to drink about 1-2 bottles of water each day and was having vegetables with dinner as usual, but they weren’t always salads.

I think that means 1/3 for week three. Sam – 5; procrastination – 4. At least I’m still winning sort of!

For week four we’ve been working on goals related to loving yourself and I aimed to make an effort to wear things I feel really comfortable in, every day, set up a twice daily alarm on my phone to remind myself to be nice to me, and try to remember for every negative thought I have about myself (or anything, for that matter), to combat it with at least one positive thought. From Monday to Friday I definitely made the effort to dress in ways that I found comfortable in, both physically and in terms of my confidence. This weekend will probably involved sweatpants and t-shirts which I am also very comfortable in (but would not wear out of the house unless I was exercising). The twice a day alarm on my phone has been great. It reminds me to stop what I’m doing for a few seconds/minutes and reflect on how I’m feeling and how my day has been going. I’ll be keeping it on my phone. I’ve also had success with combating negative thoughts with positive ones.

All around, an awesome week! 3/3 goals accomplished so Sam – 8; procrastination – 4.

If you’re participating in this fabulous project, how are you doing? Actually, even if you’re not following ’8 weeks to a better me’ but have been setting some small goals for yourself, how are you doing?

Image from Sometimes Sweet

This week is all about loving yourself, something I think most people could do with working on. I have always been hard on myself and often find I come up with all these unrealistic expectations for myself. Honestly, if I tried to have those expectations on someone else, they would tell me to go stick it and to stop being such a tyrant-cow.

So, this week I’m going to stop being a tyrant-cow to myself, and ‘do unto myself what I would have others do unto me’. Or something less fancy but equally as awesome.

This week I will:

1. Make an effort to wear things I feel really comfortable in, every day. I always feel so much better when I am comfortable in my clothing, but wearing something that doesn’t make me feel sluggish (like PJ bottoms or sweats, my at-home habit…).
2. Set up a twice daily alarm on my phone to remind myself to be nice to me. Let’s face it, I’m probably not going to really remember during the day to stop and appreciate who I am, how I look, etc.
3. Try to remember for every negative thought I have about myself (or anything, for that matter), to combat it with at least one positive thought. I would also love to document these little -/+ conversations I have with myself in my journal. I think it would be a good exercise for finding thought patterns.

Here’s to a new week! Speaking of new, I’ve redesigned my blog theme. I really wanted something very simple and minimal (hence the lack of giant header).

Oh, by the way, it’s currently 7:49pm and I am not enduring the end of the world, nor have I floated to heaven or whatever. I sort of figured I wouldn’t really know if anything was happening because I don’t think I know anyone who’s been ‘good’ enough to get into heaven. I wondered if perhaps I would see souls floating into the sky while I hang around waiting for something awful to happen, but no. How’re things for you?

Image from Sometimes Sweet

This week’s goal theme is definitely needed, but it will be hard! As I sit here typing and simultaneously biting a slice of pizza (the frozen kind) I am readying myself to make 3 healthy eating goals. Oh yes, time to banish the chocolates, chips, and full-fat laden iced coffees while embracing trail mix, veggie sticks, and water.

This week I will:

1. Drink at least 2 drink bottles of water (like Danielle, I have a CamelBak bottle which I love).
2. Eat at least one piece of fruit a day.
3. Eat one salad a day.

I find salad-eating particularly hard as the weather gets cooler. Quite frankly a cool salad isn’t always very appealing! However, they are good for me and I do enjoy the light, fresh feel I have when I incorporate them into my diet regularly.

Happy goaling (new word, learn it ) everyone!

Image from Sometimes Sweet

This week is all about fitness goals, which is actually quite handy because I really need to get back into exercising again. Somehow I will manage to squeeze in about 3-5 hours a week, starting this week.

This week I plan to:

1. Purchase a decent exercise DVD so I can workout at home. I need something more specific than just a walk! At the moment Jillian Michael’s DVDs are looking pretty good.
2. Work out three times: Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
3. Actually push myself further than I think I can go. I often tend to give up once I start to feel like I ‘can’t do it anymore’, but I know I can go further so I just need to push myself that bit more.

Damn, now I have to get off my butt and work out tonight.

Image from Sometimes Sweet

Dani Hampton of SometimesSweet. Her blog shares the number one spot as my favourite and has done since I discovered it early last year. I always look forward to her posts, and find much inspiration in them, especially to keep a positive attitude and set goals. It didn’t surprise me when I read her ’8 weeks to a better me’ launch post earlier tonight and found myself once again inspired!

Check out the post to get the details and follow along too, especially if you’re like me and benefit from a little extra encouragement to stick to goals.

Kicking off Week One are blogging goals, something I certainly need if Wrongdecade isn’t going to continue it’s coast into a black void. Each week I plan to see about three goals, and this week they are:

1. Blog about my 23rd birthday.
2. Make one post about what I did that day. I enjoy reading about others’ daily lives, so why not share my own?
3. Share a playlist.

In the effort of not wasting any time, I present to you the first ever Wrongdecade playlist, downloadable here*. A collection of songs I have been particularly enamoured with lately; it’s a bit eclectic but tends to run in the indie pop-rock direction.

heart clip art

Download // Tracks:
01. Rolling In The Deep – Adele
02. Blood Bank – Bon Iver
03. Arizona – Kings of Leon
04. No One’s Gonna Love You – Band of Horses
05. Tighten Up – The Black Keys
06. Sparrow & the Wolf – James Vincent McMorrow
07. Dance In The Dark – Lady Gaga
08. Heart It Races – Architecture In Helsinki
09. Day N Nite – KiD CuDi
10. Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains) – Arcade Fire
11. E.T. (Futuristic Lover) – Katy Perry
12. Tomorrow Never Knows – Carla Azar**
13. Lover Song – Death Cab For Cutie
14. Heavy In Your Arms – Florence and The Machine
15. Get Some – Lykke Li

*I chose not to use one of those streaming playlist sites because I know a lot of music on them isn’t available everywhere in the world. Case in point: many blogs I read share playlists I can never listen to! Sad Face.
**From the Sucker Punch film soundtrack, which I highly recommend.