My goal for 2019 is to:
Nurture new routines to re-energise, re-invigorate and create personal growth.
This goal came out of feeling that I had been a little stagnant. It came from feeling the need to mix things up a little. At the end of last year I wrote:
It is pretty clear I love routines, but routines need to change and evolve over time. 2019 for me feels like it is the year to shake things up a little and put some time and energy to changing my routines and the way I do things to create more personal growth. I feel like I haven’t challenged myself (other than physically) much over the last couple of years and have become a bit too comfortable. In 2019 I want to make myself experience some discomfort and mix up what I do from day to day.
At the half way mark, I can happily say I have achieved this more than I thought would have by this stage of the year. Returning to an office environment three days a week has definitely taken me out of my work from home comfort zone.
It has meant changes for everyone in the family, but so far it is going really well and I am lucky enough to be working for a fantastic not for profit with a great team of people. My role is currently a great blend of feeling like I am contributing but I am also learning a huge amount too.
The change has had its challenges. It has taken some time to work out new routines that share the workload and keep everyone happy. We are currently in school holidays and this is the first time I have been working during school holidays and I have had to approach them differently in some ways than I usually would. This has also been the first time my husband has taken time off during school holidays to be with the kids.
I am still finding my feet with routines to keep up with the work for Planning With Kids (PWK) and the online courses and with the house work. There are weeks when I tilt one way into PWK and then find the house isn’t at a standard that makes me feel calm. Then there are weeks when I tilt towards home stuff and I fall behind in PWK work! I have a couple of months left on my contract so it will be interesting to see if I can nail this before it ends.
So overall I am super happy with how things are going so far. I feel that the changes I have made this year have led to personal growth and this feels great!
I still feel I have plenty of opportunity to change up how I am working with PWK though, but I am realistic enough to know that I cannot work on everything at once. I think I will have more time to focus on this in the last quarter of the year.
How are you traveling so far this year? Are you where you wanted to be? What has surprised you about this year so far? Let me know, I would love to hear!
| Habit | Connection to goal - Nurture new routines to re-energise, re-invigorate and create personal growth. | Poem quote | June review |
|---|---|---|---|
| Establish a new work routine | I have been working from home for the last 10 years and the last couple I have had less connection with others. In 2019 I want to change the way I work to re-energise the way I feel about work. | “Don't let your life goals fall victim to the allure of comfortable routines.” ~ Zero Dean | This year I have changed from having a work routine that was the same Monday to Friday to one that is different most days. I am now doing some contract work outside of the home three days a week - two days I start and finish at the same time and the other is different. What I do on my days at home is also different. I am really liking the variety and even though each day is different, I have a rhythm to each day that allows me to move from one stage to the next without having to think too much about it. The completely awesome thing about routines are that while they can require effort and discipline to set up, once established they make your days so much easier! |
| Establish a new morning routine | I have had the same morning routine for about the last 5 years. It has served me well, but with the changes in ages of the kids there is now greater flexibility and it is time, I tried some new routines to re-invigorate the start to my day. | “You will never change your life until you change something you do daily.” ~ John C. Maxwell | Changing my work routine obviously had a significant impact on my morning routine. I now have less flexibility for lunch time runs as I am working in an office a number of days a week, so at the moment am getting up earlier than I have previously done three mornings a week to fit runs in. By far the best thing I have done to my morning routine this year has been to join a running group and attend two track sessions a week. The track where we run isn't local to me, so it takes extra time and effort to get there but it is well and truly worth the effort. I have been going for four months now and have set new 5km and 10km PBs and met so many great runners. |
| Dedicate two hours a week to learning something new | I read, listen to podcasts and audiobooks, but I haven't taken the time to really learn something new for some time. This habit may change a little along the way, but the aim is that I learn something that helps me grow or gives me a new skill. | "Change is the end result of all true learning." ~Leo Buscaglia | During June I read up more about indoor plants. I want to have many more in the house to help with air quality and for aesthetics. I picked up a fantastic book at the library which I have now ordered online as I want to have it as a guide. It is called Yates Top 50 Indoor Plants And How Not To Kill Them! and is super useful - can highly recommend to any other non green thumbs out there. |
| Create a bimonthly non fiction book club | Starting a book club has been on my list of things to do for years and by making it non fiction, it will support my goal for personal growth. Yes I could read the books on my own, but I always get so much more out of a book if I know I have to discuss it with others. | “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” ~Dr. Seuss | We are now reading our third book for the year for the club and it is Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. I have read it before but this is one of those books that every time you read it, you get more out of it. I very much felt that I was in need of the perspective that this book gives. I will write a full review in the coming months. |