Welcome to my collection of April goals, and a new extended version of this post. Recently, I decided I was going to introduce a feature called Week In Review. But I've chosen to leave that for the time being, which you’ll find out about later. So I thought it would be good to include a review in my usual goals post. I think you’ll enjoy this if you like seeing an insight into other people's goals and progress; you need to be inspired to create your own goals, and you like a bit of behind the scenes action.

April Goals Review

1. Push myself in my new job [done] - Everything that has come my way I've tried to complete to the best of my ability and as efficiently as possible. Sometimes I've been stuck and yes, I've made mistakes. But I've definitely pushed myself. I've learnt a lot in the month I've been there and I'm hoping I'll keep growing to be more confident.

2. Book a holiday [done] - We finally did it. It took almost a full day, but it's done. During June, we're going to France for a week. I can't wait! The countdown begins.

3. Spend less [done] - Excluding the holiday of course. But yes, this month I've kept more of an eye on what I've been spending. It's really made the difference. This is a goal I'll be keeping for each and every month. I think it will hold me accountable and get me into a good habit of buying intentionally.

4. Make the most of time off [sort of done] - I try and make the most out of all the spare time I get. It's what we've got to do when we really want something, right? I try and find a good balance. When I feel I'm up to a certain stage, I give myself a break. This could be anything from a walk with Tom to an hour before bed reading a magazine. But lately I've been struggling with this whole time thing. Which leads me on nicely to...

May Goals

1. Keep up my exercise routine of 4 to 5 workouts a week - I mentioned in a recent post that I've been slacking on my workouts recently. But with a holiday coming up, it's time to get back on it. So no excuses this month.

2. Set time aside to work on other projects - Recently, Tom and I have thought up a lot of ideas for where we want to take our lives in terms of our career. But unfortunately, working full time makes it difficult to bring these ideas to life. The free time I get is spent creating content for this blog through my editorial calendar. But what about everything else? That's why this goal is here this month. I'm going to set a specific amount of time each week to work on a side project that isn't having time dedicated to it yet. It's the only way that these are going to get done. And it's what I need to do to drive this space forward.

3. Finally finish my bedroom - So the next two goals aren't career or blog based, but I'm quite glad about that. First up - the bedroom. At the moment, Tom and I are each living at our parents houses. So my bedroom is a very important place to me. It's been at a great stage for a long time. But it's just not quite there. You know those finishing touches that never seem to go away? That's what needs to happen this month. I want to finish creating a place that spurs me on productively, so everything is aligned and I can create from a place I love. Until I move out and get my own home office of course.

4. Revamp my wardrobe - Next up - my wardrobe. At the moment it's completely all over the place. This month I'm going to be ruthless. I want my wardrobe to replicate who I am currently. Which means a bit sort out is needed.

So usually I'd end this post here. But I've decided to add something extra - the month in review. This will give you some behind the scenes action of many things I probably wouldn't blog about without this series.

I just wanted to add something here before I jump in. I'm not doing this to tell you about myself. I'm doing this to help you.

Sharing my progress will hold you accountable to your own. Sharing my progress will inspire you. And sharing my progress will help you grow.

April in Review

BLOG

Part way through this month, I thought of increasing my posting schedule again. Truth be told, I was missing the gap in my editorial calendar. But soon after, I decided against this. Mainly for a goal I shared above. You see, my struggle at the moment is that I’m not getting the time to work on other projects for this blog. Why increase my blog schedule when I could be using this other time to create other great things instead? So my schedule will stay the same. You’ll get to see a round-up of all the content from this month’s theme at the start of next week. But for now, I just wanted to clarify with you all, what will be posted when.

Monday - Creativity/Life/Advice

Tuesday – Digital Marketing/Social Media

Wednesday – Creativity/Life/Advice

Thursday – Career

Saturday - Newsletter sent out

Letting you know the categories for each day means you can tune into the ones you’re really interested in. For instance, if you’re really interested in reading about social media, Tuesday is the day for you. Hopefully this decision will pay off and at the end of May, I’ll be able to share some behind the scenes progress with you on other features.

SIDE PROJECTS

This week, Tom and I sat down and had a big chat about our plans for our careers. Luckily, he loves my initial idea and wants to get on board. This makes me so happy, that I’m going to have someone to share the journey with and also hold me accountable. I’m an impatient person. So I've been frustrated recently that things haven’t been happening immediately. But I think before you can start anything, you've got to talk to someone about it. Keeping the idea in your head will just confuse you. Sharing your thoughts out loud will allow you to feel clearer about each aspect and plan every part. Now we've had that initial discussion, we can start putting things into motion.

WORK

Tell me if you relate to this situation – you write four or five things down on your to-do list to complete that day. You know you can get them done in the time slots you've allocated to them. But then, other tasks come along that have to take place as priority. And your lovely to-do list is pushed to one side and forgotten about until the next day, when you have to start all over again.

That’s been my work life.

I've done a full month at my new job now, which means I've experienced all the usual processes and what goes on for every four weeks. But I’m still trying to find my feet. I also want to try and get involved in other projects. So I guess a big part of it is going to be putting myself out there.

FITNESS

My fitness regime took a bit of a back step towards the end of this month. I was really pumped at the beginning of April, knowing I had a holiday coming up. But there were other important things to focus on that appeared, and some of my workouts didn't get chance to fit into my schedule. Take last week for example. We had friends up and a few appointments during the week, which meant I only got in two workouts. So I've decided that May is going to be a very strict health and fitness month.

LIFE

Tom and I are still in the process of saving up to buy a house. It’s looking like it’s going to be the end of the year when we start looking properly. But it’s really exciting every time we see the amount in our savings account increase.

What was great about this month was when my mum, dad and brother were off for two weeks whilst I was at work. I know that sounds odd! And of course I wanted to be off with them. But it was comforting knowing they were at home getting about their business, with my mum sending me pictures of what they were all getting up to. It was nice having them all to come home to. Ah what life would be like if everyone worked from home!

Another highlight of this month was last weekend when we had friends up. It was a very food heavy weekend! Tom and I cooked a huge curry for us all on Friday night, and Saturday saw us taking a trip to the local pub for a good meal and one too many drinks.

As for May, I’m hoping for a quieter month, enjoying a couple of bank holidays and getting ready for our holiday. The countdown is on.

I’d love to know, what have been some of the highlights of your month? Did you achieve all of your goals?