Sunday 1 September 2013

Setting a goal and sticking to it!

Why set goals?

We all have things that we want to do in life. It could be a monetary or material goal, it could be a personal development goal like losing weight or completing a marathon. Even in our day-to-day life we have goals to get to work on time, cook something for dinner, watch a certain TV show.

I thought long and hard about what my first post should be about. I wanted to set up a blog about beauty, make-up and lifestyle as these are all things I really love and when you're starting out why not write about what you love.

Then when I sat down and thought about it lots of these popped into my mind. How would I make mine unique, how would I fund new purchases to try out if nobody was reading and it led me back to the bigger picture. Why did I want to start a blog in the first place?

My reason is quite simple, and is part of a goal that I used to focus on a lot that has fallen by the wayside over recent years. I want to write. 

Blogging gives a voice to millions of people who would not have been able to have such a creative outlet in previous years. As a teenager before the Internet really took off I would keep a diary and record my thoughts on a daily basis. Since the increase in things like YouTube, Blogger and other sites it's a lot easier to do this now. I've blogged in the past, fitfully and inconsistently and whilst I was off chasing other dreams my dream to write got buried.

How does this relate to goals and goal setting then?

Having a goal in mind isn't just something you write down and forget about. It takes time and stages, and more often than not is made up of lots of little goals.

You find out what it is you really want and then put together actions, a completion date and resources you will need. You need to take time to reassess and re-evaluate when things aren't going to plan but never losing site of the end goal.

So consider this my goal setting post. This post is the beginning of a journey I hope to take over the next year. it'll take time and I'm sure I'll make some mistakes along the way but I would love it if you could join me, share with me your goals and plans and hopefully, with a bit of luck and a bit of graft, we can do it together.

My Five Goals 

1) Building my blog - September 2014

This blog has got to be my first port of call I need to stay focused, formulate a plan and grow on it.
In twelve months time I want to be able to say I have a well designed, well thought out blog with a good subscriber base. I would love to set the goal of being able to be a blogger full time but it'll take time to see how this will pan out.

My first action to complete is to blog at least twice a week for the next month. That's four weeks, eight blog posts. Fitting this blog into my life is the first hurdle I need to overcome. Hopefully by doing this I will find my voice and my forte.

2) Pass my driving test - December 2013

I've been learning to drive now for.... god... YEARS. I, like many other aspects of my life end up stop start, stop start. I am well on the way to doing this now and am doing 2 hours of lessons per week. I would like to take a test by December 2013. I'll keep you updated with my scrapes and victories along the way (today I managed to remove my instructors hubcap FTW!)

3) Go to New York - January 2014
(Source - http://nyc.metblogs.com - Royalty Free)

I got married nearly a year ago and it's been amazing. Once upon a time I wanted to travel the world and, to some degree, I've done this. Before Mr Candy and I start thinking about the next step (Babies Eeek!) I really want to go back to New York for a week. Mr Candy would love NYC and would be able to finally buy some shoes that fit him (Size 15 UK!) I've found the deal (7 days for the two of us £1100) but now I need to do a couple of things

a) Convince Mr Candy

b) Pay for it - By my reckoning if I put it on a credit card I have 4 months to raise the cash. I'm thinking a bit of decluttering and ebaying might be in order. 

4) Get a new computer - September 2014

Ok, so NYC is my main "financial" focus at present but I am really hankering for a new computer. I've used my trusty MacBook Pro I am writing on today for close to 6/7 years now and although still functioning, it's feeling the strain. I have access to a shiny whizzy new iMac at my father-in-laws which I will no doubt be using for any photo heavy posts but, if I want to "make it" as a blogger I need to start thinking about what tools I'll need moving forward. Currently saving all my shiny silvers in a Terramundi (a sealed pot for saving that needs to be smashed before you can get the money out). Once I get to NYC this will be my next focus.

and lastly

5) Make a new blogging friend - October 2013

Whenever I watch YouTube vloggers I love I always admire (and slightly envy) the great relationships with each other. The blogosphere seems like it's filled with genuinely nice people. Now obviously you get a troll or two but I've experienced that in the past. I'm at an age now where I can brush it off a little bit better.
The great thing is about friends is you help each other out. Maybe you're someone with a similar dream? Maybe you have some useful insight to share? Who knows! Feel free to drop me a link below to your blog and we can navigate this crazy blogosphere together :)


That's all for now. I've waffled on enough, let me know if you have any goals and what your plans are to achieve them. I'd love to help you out if I can as well!

Till next time,
FluffyCandy
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