At the end of 2018 I felt that 2019 needed to be a year where I shook things up a little. I wanted to put time and energy into changing my routines and the way I did things to create more personal growth.
I do love routine, but unless you regularly check in to see if they are serving you well, routines can lead to stagnation and being too automated with what you do.
I don’t think I would ever score myself a perfect 10 out of 10 for goal achievement – there will always be things I could do better, but as I look back over 2019 I do consider I was quite successful in creating personal growth through the changes I made over the year. I will highlight the changes that had the biggest impact.
Establish a new work routine
At the end of April I took up a short term contract for three days a week work outside of the home. It was a great opportunity to undertake a social media and digital marketing role for an excellent not for profit. It started off to be for three months originally, but I ended up working until just before Christmas.
Having only worked from home the last 11 years, needless to say, it was a bit of a change for me to head out three mornings a week to the city. The changes however were pretty smooth for the family and I can honestly say the plans and routines I have in place made it that way.
Menu planning and weekly meal prep were essential to ensure we were all eating well and at a reasonable time for dinner. (I wrote about this in my June menu planning post which you can find here if you would like to read more about it.)
I learnt a considerable lot in a work capacity from the smart people I was working with. Working for a not for profit also helped give me a greater sense of perspective about the work I was doing here on PWK.
It was interesting to see how much I could still achieve on PWK with significantly reduced hours to do it in. It showed me there was plenty of room for me to be more productive and it helped me change the way I worked at home – changes I will definitely take with me into 2020.
Establish a new morning routine
In February I made my first change to my morning routine by going to a run group early Tuesday and Thursday mornings at a track. I am both a new comer to running groups and running on a track. After the initial discomfort of rocking up and not knowing anyone (and being much older than most attending the group) and the learning curve I experienced about track etiquette, I am loving it.
I found though that with two hard sessions at the track, I needed to change what I did on Wednesdays at CrossFit. I started doing a very easy jog before CrossFit and instead of doing the WOD, I would do strength based work which is programmed by the coach. I found that doing an intense WOD on the Wednesday wasn’t really allowing me to recover.
I continued to vary the sessions I did at CrossFit to compliment my running as it is my priority exercise. For the last couple of months of the year, I was finding this difficult to manage so very sadly, discontinued my membership at CrossFit. I will still continue strength work in some form because it is so important for injury prevention and performance with my running, but need it be simplified.
Highlights of 2019
When I review my year, I look broader than just the habits I have set to support my goal and here are some of the highlights for me in 2019:
- Joining a running group
- New 5km PB
- New 10km PB
- Successful training program for Shepparton Marathon and my second best ever marathon time
- Reading much more – mainly non fiction books with the book club and other titles in areas of interest
- A weekend away with girlfriends
- Glamping with the family
- Regular running sessions then breakfast afterwards with the husband
- Volunteering at the school and parish
- Removing meat from my diet
- Supported another child through their last year of secondary school
- Supported another child through the transition from primary to secondary school
- Documentary nights with the kids
- Run the Bay Relay – fundraising team running event
Key learnings from 2019
There were many things I didn’t achieve or that didn’t go to plan in 2019 – it certainly wasn’t all sparkles and unicorns! Here are some challenges I had and what I learnt:
- I spent too much time picking things up and finding homes for them – it is time to focus on decluttering a little more. Not only does it take up time to look after the stuff, but it makes my head feel cluttered too. I need to free up space in the house to help me feel clearer about things.
- I had too many volunteer commitments in the last quarter of the year – I feel it is important to volunteer but I need to simplify what I do in 2020.
- The last two months of the year saw my sleep suffer significantly – I learnt that when I am tired I am much more likely to go into an Instagram zombie scroll. I ended up taking Instagram off my phone to prevent this form of tired procrastination.
- I didn’t green the house with plants as I wanted to – I made this project to big and grand. It wasn’t realistic for what I had time or money for. I need to simplify it and work on it in 2020. I feel better with more greenery around me, so need to give it a higher priority.
- The photo albums are not up to date – this really bothers me and now that Apple doesn’t make them anymore I am going to have to find a new solution. This will also be a trigger to do some digital decluttering too.
What did you learn from 2019?
December review
| Habit | Connection to goal - Nurture new routines to re-energise, re-invigorate and create personal growth. | Poem quote | Dec 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 | December for a number of reasons was not ideal for my home work routine. But with the time that I had I was very efficient and achieved maximum output. In fact it made me reflect considerably on how much I can achieve when I have very limited time and deadlines to meet. I will take these learnings into my work routine next year. |
| 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 | My morning routines are running smoothly. I share what my typical day looks like - My typical day 2019. |
| 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 | In December I delved further into the world of habits, reading new books and listening to more podcasts. I am truly fascinated by habits. I find it super interesting that I can establish some so easily, yet others I struggle with. |
| 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 | Our last book for the year was Axiomatic by Maria Tumarkin. It is non fiction but written in a unique narrative style. I really loved the first three chapters or Axioms, but struggled a little with the last ones. They were not easy reads for me. I get that Tumarkin has some important things to say in them, so I will re-read them again in a few months and see what I can make of it then! |
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