How did your first month of goals go?
I wanted to give you an update on mine. I have so many fun things to share! As a refresher, the plan in a nutshell was:
1. Identify obstacles that are preventing you from doing what you want.
2. Remove those obstacles.
You can find my whole list of obstacles here, but my main goal was to make more time for what I want to do. I have been saying no to events, plans and meetings left and right. And I have never been happier. As a result? Well let me show you!
A. Health Results:
- Quit alcohol for the first two weeks in January (wahoo!)
- A great way to hit the reset button in the booze department.
- I am back on the bandwagon BUT – I felt so amazing during my hiatus I have cut back significantly without even thinking about it.
- Joined ClassPass and working out 4-5 times a week (up from zero!)
- CLASS PASS IS AWESOME! My favorite classes are:
- CorePower Yoga – Streeterville
- Flywheel – Goldcoast (Erin is The.Best. Her playlists are so hot I feel like I am cycling at Underground)
- Pure Barre – RiverNorth – awesome music and kicks my butt!
- Exhale Spa – I cannot get enough of their Chill Yoga class – a deep stretching session taught by a massage therapist. I do this on Fridays to loosen up my soar muscles. Then I take full advantage of the steam shower, amenities and hot tea. Wee!
- CLASS PASS IS AWESOME! My favorite classes are:
- Healthy, quick snacks – I’ve been both really good and super bad. This past Sunday I ate 5 Magnolia Bakery cupcakes in one day. Whoopsie daisies! But I have been killing it in the healthy snacks. Do you think this balances it out 😉 Energy Balls, Trader Joe’s pre-cut apples in a bag (thanks Steph for the idea!), hard boiled eggs, mini pickles, Kind Bars and tons of water.
B. Upping My Blog Game Results
- Pitching to brands: I have been straight up DENIED but I have a couple things still alive. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
- New Series: My Monday WSNH and Tuesday Fork to Fashion Series have forced me to plan ahead. I even have a baby Editorial Calendar. I know I am SO late to the game on this but WOW. I have noticed a spike in traffic and I am blogging more because I actually manage my time. Imagine that?! Not to mention it takes the pressure off of coming up with new ideas.
C. Goal Buddy
Want to light a fire under your tush? A goal buddy will do it! After I shared my 2015 goals, Melissa (who is amazing btw!) reached out and suggested we be real life accountability partners. We have been meeting every two weeks at a new coffee shop and I look forward to it so much.
So what about you? Are you keeping at it? If not, identifying my specific obstacles has been a serious game changer for me. I cannot recommend it enough!
These are great goals! Keep up the good work!
xo, Laura
http://www.brightandbeautifulblog.com/
This is great, Nicole! Way to go!!
It’s great to see your progress for 2015. I’ve worked with brands like Victoria’s Secret with my last fashion blog, and I’ve worked with bloggers on the brand side too. If you want a second set of eyes to look over your media kit, just let me know. My big goal was to “balance” everything, and um… I seem to just make my life crazier with building up my consultancy, improving http://www.30sandChic.com, buying a new home (which will likely need a full reno to be our modern dream home), travel, and an upcoming surgery. All good things, but it can be overwhelming! I’m hoping to join ClassPass too after my recovery 🙂
So proud of you!! Love the post and pictures. Thank you too for the mutual support! xo
Since I’ve been “out on my own,” I’ve been using an editorial calender too. It really helps me focus on what I need to do for the next week, and there’s no more “oh shits” about getting something together for the next day!
You look great! And I love reading your WSNH (and am super impressed/inspired that your able to have the next one planned to announce for the following week!)
Great job so far! I’m onto my next set of tiny tweaks. In February my main focus is to cut back on social media, by sleeping away from my phone so I don’t check it right before bed and right before I wake up!
TJ pre cut apples, genius idea! The real credit goes to the new babe that keeps me on my toes and away from the dinner table.
Great recap of your first month Nicole! I’m not at all surprised to hear your new blog series posts have ben spiking your traffic — they are brilliant!
Sed Bona
Pinning those recipes! It’s so much more impressive to hear about the results of someone’s goals than just the initial vision–goes to show why we set goals in the first place!