Keeping your sh*t together ain’t easy. Here are some (easy) top tips on personal growth (and don’t worry, they’re easy to stay on top of!).
Personal growth is a weird one. It’s something we go through throughout our lives but I don’t think there’s ever a time we can actually stop and pinpoint feeling like we’ve fully got our sh*t together – I certainly can’t!
There are times I feel more organized and relaxed about life altogether and, as hard as it is to admit, I feel like these phases are happening more and more often the nearer I get to 30. I don’t know if this is because I’m just more relaxed overall and taking things in my stride or if I’m becoming a proper adult now – but nonetheless I thought it might be nice to share some tips.
Try a Mood Tracker
A bullet journal is a great way to create a mood tracker, but I also adore the app Daylio, which prompts me each evening to simply fill in how I feel and tap pre-selected activities of what I’ve been up to. It started off as just a bit of fun, but now that I’ve been doing it for over a year it’s great to see my ‘year in pixels’ which really do show the bigger picture of how happy or sad I’ve been. It’s a fun little hobby but it’s also easy to look back at and see how activities have affected my days – when I spend time with family or Shaun or manage to fit a workout in, I always have the best day, whereas days where I’m PMSing or am too busy to have time to myself always end up leaving me feeling a bit ‘meh’.
Organise the SH*T Outta Your Life with Google Docs
Google Docs is life. I use it for everything. I use spreadsheets for all blog planning and social media for myself and my clients, I’ve got colour-coordinated folders that both myself and my clients can access from anywhere they like…and generally, as boring as it sounds, it’s just really damn helpful to have my laptop/phone/Google account all linked up. Gone is the day where I’d have to take a photo on my camera, transfer it to my phone to edit it, send it to my laptop to edit it some more, back to my phone to resize it for Instagram and then once more to my laptop to post on the blog…now I simply drag and drop.
I have a huge ‘Life’ spreadsheet with my budget, passwords and plans on, plus Google Calendar. Of course, most of these tools have always been around but now that I’m taking advantage of them I’ve finally see what difference they’ve made to keeping my sh*t together. Each day I log on and see what needs doing and, well, that’s that. Try starting with just a budget or a blogging plan and see how you get on: there are apps for budgeting but it’s always useful to have a more comprehensive one you can access too.
Try New Hobbies
Since taking up Burlesque and doing PT sessions, I’ve gained so much confidence. Not only is Burlesque a hell of a lot of fun, but it’s also led me to meet lovely people and going to shows with them too. It helps me get out of the house and keep my evenings busy – as well as doing something more productive than heading home after work and just binge-watching Netflix! If you’re feeling like you’re in a rut lately, definitely try a new hobby. Many teachers offer taster sessions for free and classes like Pole Fitness, Burlesque or Strutt are so much fun because they push you out of your comfort zone – but push everyone else out of their comfort zone too. You’re all in the same boat and it’s a great opportunity to make new friends too.
Exercise More
I’m not usually an advocate for exercise…but I can’t deny the fact that starting Personal Training sessions has made so much difference to me, not only physically but mentally. PT has helped me feel better in my own body, helped me to learn to push myself and has generally kickstarted an interest in looking after my body and doing more fitness-related things. I actually see fitness/exercise classes and fun now and if I don’t get at least three classes/sessions in a week, I feel like I’ve let myself down.
This has, of course, helped towards my mental health too – challenging yourself every now and then is always a good thing and on paper, it’s always a million times better to stay active and eat healthy then sit on your ass all week gorging on junk food. Sure it tastes nice, but it makes you sluggish and also makes you feel guilty. Going out for a run, joining a new exercise class or pencilling in a weekly workout session can do wonders for personal growth – it changes ‘wanting to exercise to lose weight/be healthy’ into an actual long term fitness journey of wanting to take better care of your body.
Accept Your Flaws
Everyone has flaws. I’ve always been pretty accepting of my flaws, especially in relationships. I have trust issues. I can be clingy and jealous etc..but I’ve also noticed in recent years other areas of my life that I’m just not good at. Though I wouldn’t necessarily call them all flaws, I’ve come to realise I’m not much of an extrovert. I prefer to stay in rather than go out and socialise, and since stopping pushing myself to socialize all the time because of the belief that everyone should have a ‘large group of friends they party with all the time’, I’ve been a lot more relaxed on myself.
Not everyone wants to go out all the time: that doesn’t make me a bad person. I’ve realised my reasons for being a clingy person in relationships and have tried to work on those issues – but also accept that sometimes I cling on to someone if I feel them pulling away – learning to accept that it’s not always my fault and sometimes certain actions trigger me to act that way has helped me be honest about things and try and avoid situations like that in future..it can be hard, sitting down and accepting your flaws. But once you do, you can work with them. You can work out why you have them, discover ways to work with them and stop feeling so guilty about being who you are.
These are just a few little tips I have picked up in recent years that have made me feel more better in myself and feel like I have a better grip on who I am and my mental health/personal growth. Of course it’s not always plain sailing: I still turn into an absolute over-emotional mess when I’m PMSing and from the outside view I probably look like my life is all over the place! But keeping these tips in mind have definitely helped me in the run-up to turning 30.
Do you have any tips for personal growth? Let me know!
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