A Fresh Start

A Fresh Start

Wednesday, 6 January 2021

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Hello 2021! I think it's safe to say that last year was the worst. I think it's probably also safe to say that (so far) this year doesn't seem to be going much better. And while the vaccines are certainly a bright light at the end of the tunnel, there's still a whole load of tunnel to go. This is such a bleak way to start my first post of 2021, but I've never been much of an optimist.

Having said that, I do think the first week of a new year is the perfect time for optimism, especially this year, when optimism is so desperately needed.

Usually, this is the time of year that I write a laundry list of all the things I want to achieve or change about myself, but after the year we've had I'm just thrilled to still be here, warts and all. Maybe 2021 will be the year I finally accept myself as I am, who knows? 

This year, I only really have one goal - to spend more time on my blog. I'm aiming to finally, FINALLY get myself into a decent blogging routine. Despite blogging for almost eight years (!) I've never managed to get myself into a good routine with it, which is really weird because I tend to be quite organised when it comes to my actual work. I think my biggest problem is that even though blogging is very much a viable career option, it's not something I've ever seriously considered for myself, and because of that I haven't put as much effort into it as I perhaps should have.

But all that's about to change! I'm planning on a complete redesign although this will probably take some time, definitely more than I'm anticipating anyway. I'm also thinking of rebranding and I even have a content strategy in place. Check me out!

Now if you've followed me for a while you'll probably be thinking: "Yeah, we've heard this before", and to be fair you definitely have. But 2021 feels like a turning point for me. Like a lot of people, I lost my job last year due to the pandemic and found myself in the strange position where I've had more time on my hands to do the things I want to do, and absolutely no motivation to do them. But with the new year has come a ton of motivation and now feels like the time to try and create something I'm excited about and proud of.

Watch this space! 

What are you planning for 2021? 

New Look, New Name, Same Me

New Look, New Name, Same Me

Sunday, 23 April 2017

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10th March 2017 marked the fourth anniversary of my blog. Yep, you read that correctly, I have been sharing  - more like oversharing amirite? - my life and my loves with you guys for (over) four years now. I can't tell you where the time has gone, it seems like only yesterday I was sitting in my pokey uni flat, in a room full of annoying boys, trying to decide what my first blog post should be about (you can read it here if you fancy a laugh!)

September Goals 2016

September Goals 2016

Tuesday, 6 September 2016

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There's something about September, and the beginning of Autumn, that feels like the world's hit it's refresh button and everything is starting anew, I think it's because September is the start of the new school year. Anyway now seemed like the perfect time to set myself some goals to work towards and really spur me on through the rest of the year. Here they are.

Post all content on time

Recently my posting has been a bit... up and down to say the least. To be completely honest a lot of stuff I've been posting has been more because I've felt obligated to, rather than me wanting to share content that I'm really passionate about and have enjoyed making. Which is why I then end up missing posts, because I'm not happy with the stuff that I've done, or I just haven't been in the mood. I'll let you in on a guilty little secret: sometimes, more often than not at the moment, I've left taking my blog photos until the very last minute, which isn't like me at all. Lately I've been feeling really uninspired and I feel like I need to get my arse in gear. The most annoying thing is that when I can't blog -  like when I was on holiday and didn't have my laptop with me or when I don't have wifi, stuff like that - then it is all I want to do and I get a ton of ideas. So obviously it's something I care about very much and want to do, it's just the doing it. This month I would like to post all my content on time, my schedule is Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, but more importantly I would like to be creating content that I love, have loved creating and that I'm proud of.

Learn to play a complete song on the guitar

I've been learning to play the guitar, and I can play a few songs, like the really easy ones, but there are a ton of songs that I can only play individual parts of and not all once, so they don't actually sound anything like the way their supposed to. Luckily it turns out I absolute love playing the guitar, I've been practising for hours everyday. So I'm really excited to try and add some more complex songs to my repertoire, and more importantly, to be able to play them the whole way through!

Change stone bracket

I'm back on the Slimming World wagon, and have lost 10 pounds! Whoop whoop! But I do still have quite a way to go until I reach my target. This month I want to change my stone bracket so I see a completely different number when I get on the scales. I think that will give me a real boost and spur me on to get closer to my target weight.

Do interval training on treadmill 

When my fitness programme was first set up I tried really hard, and I mean really hard, not only to impress my personal trainer, but to prove to myself that I could. That kind of ended up backfiring, because the interval training that I've been put on is really, really hard. It's 12 minutes long and those 12 minutes are impossible and so painful. I've never managed more than 8 minutes of it. Although I think that's partly because I am so sure I can't do it that I end up standing in my own way a bit. I'd really like to get over this hump just so I can say I did.

Post first Youtube video

I have been saying I want to start youtubing for years, but every time I have sat down and got my camera all set up to film I just freeze. I've done dress rehearsals where it's gone perfectly but the minute I turn the camera on I completely freak out. Completely! It is ridiculous! I think it's because it's quite a scary thing to put yourself out there on the internet, and that is all I can think about, when I'm staring into the lens of my camera and trying desperately to remember what it is that I wanted to say. I do have some footage, but it's full of so many 'umms' and 'ahhs' that it's unusable. I just need to get over the inevitable awkwardness of my first video and just get it done!

What are your goals for the month? Let me know by commenting below, on twitter, or dropping me an email at lolarocknroses@gmail.com. Also check out my instagram, facebook, bloglovin', snapchat -search lolarocknroses - & pinterest for regular updates.

Love love love xxx