New Year, New Resolutions: Welcome 2018

2017 has been a mixed year overall really. It’s been a year of some really enjoyable highs, and some pretty crappy lows, and just about everything in between. On a global scale, the world is becoming unrecognisable, and uncomfortable; on a personal level, life doesn’t look nearly as rose-y as it did at this time last year.

My resolutions for 2017 proved quite eye-opening, and really showed me what my priorities are. It made me think about things that I find important, and regularly looking back at my resolutions in the form of quarterly check-ins kept my resolutions in the forefront of my mind, and made them more attainable. Emma, my friend/housemate/fellow blogger at The Terror of Knowing has some resolutions that cross over, so I think we can hopefully use each other to keep us accountable.

So, without further ado, my resolutions for 2018:

Reading

Read at least 52 books: I found this an attainable and enjoyable goal last year, so I am bringing it back. There is something the Goodreads Reading Challenge that makes this simpler, and it makes me keep reading, which is really important. I thought about upping it from last year, but I want this to be something I can achieve, and as I have been off reading recently I don’t want to make it too difficult or too high to reach.

Read 5 classics

I haven’t read enough classics in my life, and now as I have a much larger collection, access to audiobooks as well as paper books, and someone living with me who reads more classics, I think it’s high time I actually read some literature with a classical pedigree.

Read 3 Non-fiction

In 2017, the books I harped on most about and the ones I liked the best turned out to be non-fiction. I don’t read that much non-fiction usually, but I have purchased a lot more non-fiction books recently. Combine this with my recent liking for memoirs, I think I want to try and keep it up and make sure I continue to read this genre. I find non-fiction keeps  my brain more active than fiction too which is a good side-effect.

Take part and actively engage in at least 5 readathons

2o17 was the year of the readathon in my world. I signed up to lots, and completed almost all of them. Not only did I take part, but I thoroughly enjoyed the world of the readathon too. I may have taken part, but I didn’t always engage well with other participants and the wider community so I want to take a more active part in at least 5 readathons during 2018. That means more twitter chats, more comments, more challenges, and more thought into my own posts.

Review every book I read

I really like to look back at what I do and try and remember how it made me feel at the time. Reviewing all of the books I read in 2017 really made me think about the things I was reading, what I liked and didn’t like, and how they stacked against each other. It was’t a resolution as much as something that happened, and I’d like to keep it and make if official in 2018.

Blogging

Find a balance between blogging quality and quantity that I am happy with

I really enjoy blogging, and have really found a rhythm with my blog over the past few months. I still don’t have a true ‘blogging voice’ but I feel like I have more things to write about. I sometimes struggle with the balance between blogging quantity and quality, between writing content that is meaningful and doing memes and tags that bring in views and followers. I’d really like to try and find my voice and find a content medium between all things blogging.

Maintain blogging diversity e.g, travel, and personal, and books

I currently blog about a variety of things, but sometimes slip into a book blogging hole. There is nothing wrong with a book blogging hole, but books are not the only thing I like to write about, so I need to make sure that I keep variety and diversity. Blogmas has helped me think about this, maybe a diary or continuation of the method I’ve used during Blogmas will help.

Utilise scheduling

At times this year, I have fought to get a post out when I want to. I have also planned well ahead and decided what I am going to post in advance. I’ve thought about the time and the day that posts go out, and feel like properly utilising the schedule feature will help my blogging development and engagement in general.

Engage with other bloggers and online communities

We all love it when people read, like, and comment on our blog. The problem is that I am really unreliable about being involved and engaged with the blogging community. Yes, being involved helps your own stats, but it’s actually more about enjoying other people’s efforts, writing, and just generally being more involved in the community.

Invest time tidying up my blog appearance/layout

I don’t think I have invested much, if any, time since I set-up my blog in 2014. I’m only just realising how lazy that actually is. I really need to go through it, sort it all out, maybe think about the relevance of certain aspects and highlight areas I want visitors to engage with. I have toyed with buying my own domain, and investing more than just time into my blogging efforts, but think that some work, effort, and time is the thing that needs to be invested first.

Personal

Lose weight

This single resolution is by far the most important for me in 2018. I really want to shift some serious weight in 2018. Fat Friday is something I have been doing for a couple of months now, and is something that has made me accountable for my health in that time. I feel ready to be healthier, to be thinner, and whatever it is that drives you to start in this journey has happened. I don’t have an aim in terms of total, although at least 15% of my current body weight would be a nice start. I have a big trip at the end of October planned to go to Florida, so ideally I want to have shifted a good amount of weight for that trip.

Exercise more

If losing weight is the most important resolution on this list, then this is the second. The purpose of Fat Friday is to lose weight and become fitter, and exercise is a crucial part of both of those elements. I really like the feeling I get when I exercise, it makes me feel better emotionally and physically. I also like it when I feel fitter. I feel more able to do stuff, to take part, and don’t feel like my size holds me back.

Broaden healthy eating/recipes

Emma and I eat pretty healthily over all (snacks and tavern breakfasts aside) but the list of things we make is quite limited. Emma has set a resolution to make at least 1 new recipe a month, and I think it’s a great idea. I think eating a bigger variety of food keeps healthy eating interesting, and it’s never the worst thing to have more meals in the locker.

Travel more in the UK

I’ve travelled quite extensively over the past few years to different countries, but I have somewhat neglected Liverpool and the UK. I want to see more of what my home city, and  home country has to offer. I want to experience more of Britain, and actually see some of the things that I have on my doorstep.

Complete 5 things from my Bucket List/30 Before 30 list

When I first started travelling and set up my blog, I made a bucket list. As great as it is to do such awesome things, it’s not realistic in home life to be doing this all the time. So, I made a 30 before 30 list to coincide with my bucket list. I think aiming to knock things off both lists is a good aim for 2018, and hopefully thinking about them both will make me look into what is actually on there a little more too.

Adulting

Save at least £100 every month

I need money to travel. I need money to redecorate. I need money to see shows. I need money for everything. I don’t spend all of the money I make, and want to make a real effort to save more money so that I can do more stuff. I also want to save this money and avoid spending it (Disney not included as this is a large part of the reason I am saving the money in the first place.)

Sort my papers, bills, and important documents into a file

Sorting out my car insurance, phone bills, and address details this year has been deeply unpleasant. I have missed opportunities to save money, and I have lost important documents. There are papers dotted all around the house. If I could collect these, sort them, and file the important stuff correctly, my life would be a lot more ordered.

Tidy, sort, clean, and maintain my bedroom

This is something I said I would do last year, and something I then completely failed at. The fact is that I find my messy room stressful, so if I can try and sort this and keep on top of it, I can have a more pleasant personal living space to deal with everything that life will throw at me in 2018. I want a space that I am proud of and look after instead of a messy pigsty. I’m old enough now that having a messy room isn’t a childish whim, it’s just a bad example that you’re making of yourself.

Tidy, sort, clean, and maintain the house, and do the decorating odd jobs I have been meaning to do in 2017

I feel like this is a little bit of an extension of the previous point, but also so that we have a more comfortable living space. The house is now cluttered, and I think a good sort out, tidy up, and deep cleanse will certainly help. Once we have things sorted we can look at all the little things we’ve mentioned doing or sorting, and we can just generally having a nicer home. Who doesn’t want that?

Don’t waste time

How vague does this sound? well, its a little intentional. I have a tendency to sleep in on days off, laze around the house at the weekend, and just generally spend time doing nothing. That’s OK some of the time, but it means that I miss the opportunity to do things that I want to do more than lie on the couch. Whether it’s through planning, or a change in outlook, or simply saying yes more, I really need to make a little bit more of my time.

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I wasn’t really planning to make quite so many resolutions, but, if I stick to them this is sure to be a fantastic year!I’d love to hear all about your plans and goals for 2018, so please comment or link to your own resolutions below.

Thank you for sticking with me in 2017, I hope to get to know even more of you lovely people over the next year. I hope 2018 is a happy, healthy, and prosperous year for you all!

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