Create joyous weekends

Saturday 28th January

Joy of joys a free weekend ~ Time to look at my creative area J

I am aware that I need to make regular time for my creative pursuits:

·         Patchwork & Quilting

·         Creative textile work

·         Making gifts

·         Creating my own greetings cards from photographs

·         Selling items from my collection of mid-century modern china

Action points

·         Go through my fabric stack

·         Finish off projects in hand

·         Sort photos and send off for printing, these can then be matched with the blank cards I have

·         Arrange a day with my daughter where we can both have a stall at a Craft Fair to sell the china

·         Find local courses to extend my skills and meet with like minded people

·         Attend Embroiders’ Guild Meetings more often

·         Have already booked a craft day with my daughter

What is missing from your weekends and what could you do to make best use of this time for your benefit?.

Your home and garden , at the centre of your world.

Friday 27^th January

I am pleased that I am sustaining the changes I have already implemented and having an abundance of free time today, I want to look to look at the home and garden area of my life. I want to have a home that works for me. However, having been raised with the maxim of ‘keep things, you never know when they may come in useful’, I have a tendency to hoard! 

I continue to be inspired by the affirmations of Cheryl Richardson

I let go of all I no longer love, need, or use. I adore space

I am excited to share the things I no longer love or need with people who will love or need them more

I transform my life by transforming the space in which I live and work

Every room in my house makes me smile

I easily release clutter from my life for good

I love living in organised beauty

Once I have absorbed these affirmations I can go on to carry out my action points with the right energy and focus. Find what affirmations work for you and then set up your action points:

Action Points

Clutter clearing

Scheduling a wardrobe clear/ reorganisation ~ this can be done a drawer at a time ~ chunking down tasks like this will avoid overwhelment and keep me on task!

Using up food in freezer

Stock taking/clearing kitchen cupboards ~ again this is a chunking down exercise

Recycling unwanted household items

Garden maintenance ~ book lawn maintenance

Scheduling household repairs and maintenance

Remember: Making your home and garden environment great will have an impact on the rest of your life and how you feel and act over the next year.

Working on work?

Thursday 26^th January

I am pleased with the changes I am making and sustaining. Will take the grandchildren out for a push today ~ fun way to keep fit!

I also want to spend time looking at how I can improve my business. You may want to look at your job role if you are an employee. 

My Action Points

·         Learn how to use Facebook and Twitter more effectively

·         Set up a regular Newsletter ~ explore online links for this  and allocate time to set this up and update it regularly

·         Pleased that I have already embarked on writing my blog ~ this was one of my goals for 2012!

·         Think about skills swapping so that I can gain expertise in this area

·          Have booked to attend a Women in Business Goal Setting meeting

·         Book inspiring courses and workshops

·         Continue my treatment swaps with a friend

·         Explore networking groups

·         Find ways to expand my business within the Clinic I currently work at

·         Find new places to work at

Affirmations

·          I surround myself with authentic and loving people who share my journey of personal growth and awakening. Cheryl Richardson

·         As I use my gifts and talents to serve others, doors open to support my success. Cheryl Richardson

What can you do to improve and enliven your job or business for this year?. What would your affirmations be?

Work life balance and how to achieve it?

Wednesday 25^th January

Focussing on the relationship/family/friends area today

Looking at my work/life balance, I want to continue to allocate quality time to spend with my partner, family and friends. How is your work/life balance???

It’s very important for me to take time out in this way, I also realise that I need to be fit to be a hands on grandma, so all the more important for me to pursue the healthy eating and exercise!

·         I am setting up the litre of water daily and have already started to implement dietary changes and plan my meals for next week. Exercise ~  I’m fitting in 30 mins of yoga/Pilates at home today.

Action Points

·         I have booked a Spring break for my partner and I

·         Look at forthcoming theatre productions, art exhibitions that we can visit together.

·         I have booked a Relax Day at a Spa with my daughter

·         I am booked in to babysit my twin grandchildren and look forward to quality time with them and my son and daughter in law

·         I will be visiting a friend that I have known since childhood soon and will be staying overnight with her

·         I plan to allocate time to explore my family tree/genealogy more and make contact with my cousins

·         Important to make time to see my elderly and inspiring 90 yr old aunt!

Having read my examples what could you do in your life?. Make sure that you get the balance right to keep your life fullfilling.

Using SMART goals to achieve a plan.

Tuesday 24th January

I’m very excited at the prospect of exploring and improving these aspects of my life.  I decide to use the SMART goal system, making goals that are:

·         Specific

·         Measurable

·         Attainable

·         Realistic

·         Timely

In the past I have set myself up to fail with unrealistic goals. This time as I focus on my vision and goals for 2012 I am going to align them to my values. That way they will be in keeping with my sense of well-being and purpose in life. I’m also visualising how I want to feel about myself and my life in 3, 6, 9, 12 months’ time. What we visualise we materialise.

So onwards and upwards, I am going to do something each day to move in the right direction!

 The first area I am looking at is health and wellbeing

 I want to make a series of small changes that will be sustainable and add up to a big shift in my energy and fitness levels.

Action Points

·         Drink more water ~ a least a litre a day ~ I am going to alkalise this to neutralise the acidity in my body and enhance mobility, digestion and so much more.

·         Move back to a healthy eating plan that focuses on G L foods so that I sustain blood sugar levels and reduce cravings, get and keep fitter and leaner and have more energy/vitality

·         Fit more exercise into my life ~ take a look at local classes, Tai Chi, Qigong and Yoga all appeal.  The walk to my local park/lake takes 1 hr; Pushchair walks with my grandchildren also 1 hr. walks to and from the shops. Schedule a walk or class every day.

 Reading Caitlin Moran’s How To Be a Woman recently,  I was struck by the way she talks about how the ‘ sugar highs or the deep soporific calm of carbs’  amount to ‘choosing food as your drug’

I find that if I start the day with a healthy breakfast I am more likely to keep to healthy eating during the day

One of the joys of the GL eating plan is that I can have two healthy snacks a day as well as 3 nourishing meals.

Action Points

·         Have set up a weekly order for healthy and tempting Graze snacks.

·         Decide that I motivate myself best when I make myself accountable, so I enlist the help of my friend Corrinne as a mentor. My first task is to email her menu plans for next week

Can setting up a healthy eating plan be the right thing for you, can you set fitness targets that work with your life?. How is your wellbeing and can you set SMART goals in this area?

Authentic personal development

Guest blogger and coach Beverley Hamilton is going to talk this week about how to approach making changes in your life. Perfect for a New year!.

Monday 23rd January

In my work as a coach I am aware that I am also evolving on a personal development level and in order to be authentic I have to ‘walk the talk’.  2012 spreads before me like a blank canvas, full of potential.  How will I best use my time, create opportunities, reach my goals? A realistic look at my strengths and weaknesses reveals the following:  I LOVE new beginnings; however in the past I have not always been good at finishing things! One thing in my favour is that I hate stagnation, so I welcome and thrive on change.

Action Points

·         Best to take a look at the areas of my life that I would like to improve:

·         Using the wheel of life tool (www.mindtools.com) I identify the following areas of my life:

·         Relationship/family/friends

·         Health & Wellbeing

·         Holidays

·         Creative time

·         Quiet reflective time

·         Work

·         Leisure/culture

·         Home/garden

What about you ?. What changes would you like to make in your life and what does this tool reveal about areas that you would like to change. Follow my journey this week and look at your life and what you want to change and what is working well for you?