Nostalgic Mumma

no more smileys please!

#rantalert (Just in case the heading was not clear enough).

Nothing puts me off more in reading emails than the ones that have smileys on the subject. It’s just… No.

They are fun and colourful in the body text. Don’t add them to your subject. It strikes me as a terribly desperate call for attention. I may as well have my teenage daughter writing and I would get the same feeling.

I like smileys, you may have seen a few of mine. Don’t get me wrong. But on the subject it just does not look professional. It looks childish. All in moderation. I find that it’s ok to have the odd one, if it helps to make a point or to help building a mental image.

This seems to be a growing trend, where most emails in my inbox have smileys on the subject. Even Hubspot fell for this. It’s just vulgar.

If you want your customers/readers to see you as an expert, an authority in a matter, smileys don’t do you any favours. On the contrary, I find that it lowers your credibility.

Little rockets, megaphones, microphones, light bulbs… No. I understand that we want our correspondence to be interesting but the fact that it lacks colours doesn’t always mean it is boring.

What you don’t want is for your communications to come across like a Primary School newspaper. In my opinion, it can become tiring to your eyesight.

Before using them ANYWHERE ask yourselves:

Are they really necessary?
Do they help making your point?
Is that all you’ve got?
Are you that bad in writing?

Straight smileys overload = Straight DELETE.

7 low cost holidays

why Portugal?

Why not? It’s a country with a tremendously rich culture. It’s a shame that most people are not aware of its history.

It’s a warm country. The people are welcoming. The food is absolutely A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! The nightlife (as you would expect from a warm country) is inviting and fun.

During the Summer, BC – and surely AC – (Before and After Covid) there’s always an array of music festivals happening throughout the country. I’m pretty sure that, if you have enough holidays available, you can check into all of them.

Drinking from this Portuguese article, I’ve spruced it up to give you a bit of a taster. I hope you like it, particularly the added sensorial bits links on the maps, as I carefully chose those to give you a closer feeling of what your holiday could be.

So…

ready to book?

North or South, you will find plenty of choices. Check these options for safe and low-cost holidays in Portugal. This list will jump-start your possibilities. I added a video link to all maps, for an extra sensorial experience. You will love them!

1. Dornes

Located in the Santarem District, near the Zezere River, it’s a sin not to visit. A town that has always been surrounded by a very strong religious and mystical character, it sits on a charming peninsula.

A quiet setting for a short-break, I would probably say perfect for a romantic escape ;) Absolute paradise!

Check points:

Dornes River Beach
Castelo de Bode Dam
Dornes Tower
Dornes Church

Staying & Eating

I will leave the Rio Restaurant to taunt you…

2. alcoutim

Landscape at Sanlucar de Guadiana, Alcoutim.

Our so beloved Algarve.

By the border with Spain, the Algarve away from the traffic, from the crowds, with just enough to keep you busy for a long weekend.

Lovely for a good hike or bike ride. And not too far from the sea. The food is gorgeous and you can get to Sanlucar in Spain in minutes (on foot in 22 mins and by ferry in 8).

Check points:

Alcoutim’s old Castle
Chapel of Our Lady of Conception
Montinho das Laranjeiras (Roman Village)
Alcoutim Fortress

Staying & Eating

If you’re still in doubt would The Only Cross-Border Zip Line in the World convince you?

3. cacela velha

Another warm water beach in Algarve 😍

Think seafood accompanied by our mini beers (250ml) :P

Our Spanish neighbours visit a lot too. It even had a nomination for one of the best beaches in the world in one of their magazines. Check out here for validation.

Check points:

Beaches binge (Fabrica and Cacela Velha)
Ancient Roman Villa
Almohade Residential (12th, 13th Century)

Staying & Eating

Do you Golf?

4. ponte da barca

Not too far from Spain (as if we had borders with any other country), but this time on the extreme opposite.

Named “Elaneobriga” by the Romans, later Ponte da Barca to mention the big boat that served as a bridge before the actual bridges was built in the 15th Century.

Here you can bounce between the dreamy river beach, the historical sites, the wine tasting and sports and leisure activities.

Check points:

Church of Ponte da Barca
The thirteenth-century Romanesque church
Lindoso Castle
Peneda-Gerês National Park (fancy Horse-riding?)
Vilarinho das Furnas Dam and Museum

Staying & Eating

The question is “How close to Nature can you get?”

5. peso da régua

Looking for spectacular views? Try São Leonardo at Galafura and Santo António do Loureiro.

Aah! The Douro! Birth place of Port wine 🍷

In 1756 was created the world’s first ever demarcated region for wine production: Royal Company of Vine-Growers from the Alto Douro Region.

In the banks of these green slopes the sale and dispatch of many Port wine barrels occurred from the 18th Century, transported in the characteristicly querky Rabelo Boats.

Get a good view of the wine slopes along the river on a perfumed, breezy boat trip over the 6 Douro Bridges. Maybe even during a good wine tasting…

Check points:

Douro Museum
Douro Historical Steam Train
Caldas de Moledo Natural Spa
Rabelo (and other) Boats trips

Staying & Eating

What about a posh experience for your bucket list?

6. castelo Rodrigo

Away from the beach crowds, we arrive to the inland mountains, the unknown of the Portuguese country side.

Try the heartwarming wine, homemade bread and the local smoked meats. The flavours will stick with you.

Keeping everything in the middle: travelling further to the midlands to encounter a little medieval village, we come to find Castelo Rodrigo.

With an undeniable historic wealth and with a tracked records of extended terrirory disputes, worth a whole new games of throne saga, Castelo Rodrigo stands as Portuguese territory since 1297, under the Alcanices Treaty with Spain.

Then there are All Terrain Tours, BTT Routes. And don’t you dare missing the pre-historical engraved rocks!

Check points:

The Castle
The T Shaped Embrasures (strategic monitoring positions during invasions)
The Chamber House
The Charity House
The Medieval Cistern
The Church
The Clock Tower
The Sun Door
Cristóvão de Moura Palace

Staying & Eating

Inside the Fortress, the peace and tranquility of the Almond Tree House. (Well worth skipping 2 or 3 visits to the hairdresser’s for!)

7. comporta

Not all the of the greatest beaches are in Algarve. And tbh we tend not to advertise it too much because by pure selfishness. But there are many more.

My native area 💖

According to NY Times Comporta is one of the unmissable holiday destinations.

Part of the Sado Estuary Nature Reserve, located on the Troia Peninsula, Comporta’s history is very much related to rice cultivation and fishing.

You can visit it by ferry (by car or on foot) and try all those lovely local restaurants and the lively night life.

Check points:

The Rice Museum
Troia Beach
Carvalhal Beach
Setubal
Arrabida Mountain

Staying & Eating

Did you know dolphins visit the are frequently?

Want to know other beautiful Portuguese beaches that are not in Algarve? Stay tuned.

pastel de nata

If you have been to Portugal (and no, Portugal is not part of Spain), you know that the main reference baked good is this infamous custard tart. It’s a real unique treat. The fact that it comes in such a small size tricks us into believing it is not a so sinful one. I guess that’s probably the way the monks guaranteed their place into heaven. All was forgiven and forgotten.

History tells that because in convents and monasteries large quantities of egg whites were used for starching their religious habits, (and also provided the higher classes) they were left with quite a large quantity of egg yolks with which many conventual desserts were made around the country, the pastel de nata being one of the most popular. You can find a few more here.

You must try them with a sprinkle o cinammon accompanied by an espresso: the perfect punishment. The recipe, however, is no longer the monks’ secret. You can have a go by clicking on the image.

I leave you with a video I subtitled into English, which shares the story of this exquisite sweet delicacy by the original recipe keepers: Pastéis de Belém, also short and sweet.

Remember to select English subtitles on the bottom of the video before watching. Hope you like it.

it’s true, we are what we eat

When I decided to stop working full time, I already knew this was not going to be a full stop. Mums are very busy people. All. The. Time.

“Eating well (i.e. a well-balanced diet rich in vegetables and nutrients) may be associated with feelings of wellbeing. “
Diet and Mental Health

My initial thought was to allow myself more time to build my own writing business. It’s something I always wanted to do.

I have always been a freelancer on the side. A linguist professional. That didn’t change. What changed was that now I was going to focus on reshaping my freelance business.

Recently I decided to go on a diet. This may sound completely unrelated but walk with me here. The diet had an impact on me that in many ways surpassed the physical realm.

“Research shows that what we eat can influence what we want to become .”
Eat Yourself Happy

Reshaping my business for me means that I don’t want to be a linguist only, I want to offer writing services too. I am entering a dimension that is new to me. It will need ire a lot of practice, networking and funly enough, advertising.

Getting into that brave, all-confident mind frame can be a slow process. I read it can take years. I’m pretty sure that is because we all have/had different career paths.

Not everyone has the first right vision. Sometimes it takes a while to be clear, other times personal life gets in the way and priorities change. Our physical (and physiological) wellbeing play a more important part than that one we think.

I’m the latter. Marriage, emmigration, children, divorce, house moves, redundancy, lockdown. All more than valid reasons to delay my true call. Or so I say to myself.

Since I started this venture, in October last year, I have enrolled on a couple of copywriting courses. And started exploring freelancing platforms in more depth.

I spend a lot of time on the side building up planners and testing and changing settings. As well as playing around and experimenting with platforms and blogging.

In the beginning stages all these tasks can feel daunting. Especially when you look around and see so many “peers” successfully established can be scary, even though you know much of what you see may be fake.

“Evidence suggests that as well as affecting our physical health, what we eat may also affect the way we feel.”
Food and Mood

All this requires a reasonable amount of time and mental and emotional juggling. I need to be at my most disciplined (and swiftest) status ever. I need to be able to switch between mother and freelancer-mode.

This diet has been life-changing. I’m certain the extra weight I was carrying around was fogging my brain. It was impairing my judgment. It was hard in the beginning, I’m not gonna lie, but it was totally worth it. My ability to focus increased, my views are now more positive.

As a consequence, this has had without a doubt, a major impact in my confidence. We tend to overlook the mental benefits it brings, as we generally only see its physical benefits. But it can actually affect you positively in many other ways. This has shown to be true.

“More and more research is coming to light on the impact food has on both our overall mental wellness…” Food and Mood (Click on the image to read the whole article).

I have read about it before and although it only sounded like my mum repeating herself, it was common sense. But, like most people I procrastinated my attempts to test it myself. I have never been much of a diet person.

The thought of prohibitions of food that I enjoyed has never been appealing. And on the other hand, I’ve never been a fan of take away food or regular fried food of any sort. My extra weight was mostly due to the portion sizes.

The fact that I felt this change myself, more than a validation, it made me proud of my achievement. Furthermore my mind is now free from enrooted preconceptions related to different ingredient combinations, which made eek (like my daughter says). :D

Now I find myself eating things I wouldn’t consider before AND enjoying them! I am absolutely loving the dieting experience and I have no intention to stop. Maybe it was only a coincidence or maybe it was the right time and only now my taste buds and my body were ready for this.

Have you experienced the same? I would love it if you’d care to share.

The most important thing now is not to lose the momentum and keep it going. Onward and upward!

Shhhh… Listen! Do You Hear The Sound Of Travelling?

Got a bit distracted with courses and all-things writing but the lockdown has not taken the best off of me yet.

The days have noticeably become bigger. Bigger and sunnier.

It’s still a bit chilly but it’s starting to look a lot like Spring. Finally we see the light!

We can say we know to a degree what it is like to come out of a hibernation period, because it felt like it.

Spring is around the corner and the lockdown is easing its way out too. I can ‘t help but start thinking about all the things I want to go back to. Or start doing as soon as I can.

If there’s one thing this lockdown made me realise was that nothing is assured. We never know when we’re going to be in another pandemic lockdown again.

But, for now that’s water under the bridge and we must look into the future with a strong faith. The brighter days are coming and we have a lot to look forward to.

Seeing family and friends is right at the top of everybody’s Out-of-Lockdown bucket list.

Travelling will be the big one. The free movement is something we’re all looking forward to.

I’m thinking of going back to one of the old ways of travelling. I’ve always loved travelling by train. You get to see the landscape, you get time to sleep, to read, you can stretch your legs, you can have a drink. Gosh, they even have wifi and plug sockets!

I never dreamt of flying for holidays. My first holiday travel goal was always Europe, by train. I have always thought that would be the best way to get to know old Europe. Hands-On. The live experience.

You still get from many A to Bs with only half of the airport’s hassle. The children will love a change. And it’s ever so affordable. No excuse. So based in this one article from Euronews I have done some light maths, for one adult travelling only. It gives you a good idea. Walk with me here.

In Paris (France) in 2 hours for about £50.
Or in Bordeaux (France) in over 5 hours for under £100.
In Brussels (Belgium) in 2 hours, also for about £50.
In Cologne (Germany) in 5 hours, for about £100.
In Bern (Switzerland) in 8h 25mins, via Paris for about £100.
In Florence (Italy) in 20 hours, via Paris from about £100.
In Amsterdam (Netherlands) in 7 hours, via Paris for under £100.
In Vienna (Austria) in 15 hours, via Paris for just over £100
In Seville (Spain) in 15 hours, via Paris for under £150.

Without too much thinking, if we multiply that by a family of four (not even accounting ages) we can get the trip paid for under £500. And if we take advantage of advance booking.

Isn’t it tempting?

Next step will be to change our mind set to travelling with the least luggage, which we are no longer used to. It will be an interesting experience to cut down on our travelling essentials. To even THINK what are currently essentials to us is going to be a challenge.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not completely removing the flying option. We know there are trips that would be too time-consuming without it. And I’m no Willy Fog. But I would like to consider that option where possible.

I believe it could be a valuable experience for us all.

Three Pin-Worthy Words

I have been doing a lot of reading. Reading, listening and researching. (As you may tell by the intervals between each blog I posted, since I decided to embrace the writing path.)

I’ve been trying to understand the ins and outs of the trade.

Whilst building my portfolio, on the side, I am constantly changing, improving, implementing. It’s been a daily testing to give me a better idea of what is virtually correct and what’s not.

In this learning path, three key words have stuck to the back of my mind like chewing gum. I came across them in copywriting-related podcasts, and in business and coaching articles.

As I do with everything, I always go to the origin of things first, so looked for their common meaning as well.

Mindshifting

Mind shifting is really important to help you achieve your objectives. The way you perceive yourself and the way others really see you can be miles apart.

We can understand things in a technical perspective but making sense of them when you apply them to your own experience is another.

How do you start in a trade without experience?

How do you start in a trade without a qualification?

What if you don’t have either?

They all sound like dead ends, don’t they? They go hand in hand.

You can have a certification but not the experience, in which case, you only know the theory. There’s the risk that your work is too technical because you are following a taught rigid structure. And there’s not one recipe that fits all.

If you have the experience, you risk being too liberal in your work, you will have accommodated bad habits, you will probably have worked in a niche of a sort.

You look around and all you see is amazing people doing the job. And you can’t stop thinking “what have I got to offer that compares in any way to them”? (Yup, that Impostor Syndrome bug). In reality they’ve been there since always.

But have you ever noticed that only until you get that one car, that one piece of clothing or that one gadget, you realise how many of those are actually in use around you, and that you haven’t noticed before? Why do you think that is?

This is where mindshifting is so useful.

To expand your range of skills, you have to take risks. You may have to make a complete fool of yourself (but at least you were brave enough to come forward) or even work for free. But it will be worth it! And then you can show it off on your portfolio.

Either way, the important thing is that you are honest about what you have to offer and brave enough to face the world.

Frictionless

Once again, the notion of less being more is lingering on.

The concept intends to pass the idea that keeping obstacles to a minimum will enable you to get where we want more easily.

It can come down to little things as keeping a TV remote in a high drawer to incentivize us to move more. Putting your children’s technology on a higher shelf (maybe they won’t bother to reach for them).

Reducing the friction of little tasks that you can avoid to progress with a bigger task.

Thinking about it, this really isn’t an old concept. It’s just reframed to adapt to our current lifestyle. Really it is common sense.

The questions you need to ask are:

What would you like to achieve?

What can you do to make achieving it easier and quicker?

What tasks/processes can you cut down?

Reducing the friction is all about a mindframe shift and a remap of your objective. This exercise can help you become more productive and hopefully see more results in a short term.

The best steps to reduce or keep friction to a minimum:

Visualize your Goal

Trace all possible routes to get there
Analyse which routes can you cut tasks/steps from (that can save you time and stress)
Replace all negative thinking thought process
Cut the routes that don’t suit your purpose
Take time in actually drawing the route down (all steps)

This is equally the case with people visiting your page. How many times do they need to click to get to you (or you offer)? How well does it flow? How slow does it load? How quick can you pass the message? All friction needs to drop.

To Resonate

This relates to identification, sympathising, meaningfulness.

We can look at it from both our perspective and the potential client. Guess what it’s related to?

It relates to your common interests, between you and your client. That’s pretty much your niche. That will be what is more likely to work for both, which will then have an obviously higher chance of success.

So basically, go with what you like, what you’re comfortable with. But never stop absorbing everything there is to know about your niche. This IS qualification. The clients will eventually come and everything will fall into place.

“You must fake it till you make it trusting that if you build it they will come and believe it, everything will fall into place.”

Witty Freelancer

Fellow Freelancers, I Salute You

Time to Face The Music

You decide to go freelance in an era where more and more people are looking to be one. Competition is deemed to be fierce.

And the vision of our goal is like a dark endless tunnel. There seems to be no reaching it any time soon.

It’s anything but easy. And there’s too much going on: finances, a full-time job, partners, children, lockdowns, Winter… You put all available time into it and it seems like it’s just not going anywhere. Everyday it feels like you are swimming against the stream, like all the traffic lights are red, all the level crossings down…

You want to believe it will work. You gave up more times you would like to admit. You still go through the same struggles. Nothing you do seems to be working.

Your Impostor Syndrome is still lingering… Your fear of public embarrassment of making publicly visible mistakes is always with you: “Everyone is going to think I’m a failure. A joke. That I’m nothing but a wanna be.”

Who in their right mind nowadays would think the simple act of writing can provide you with a living?

Shake Off the White Noise

All those fancy marketing strategies and promises to give you the overnight solution to getting more visibility and public recognition of your brilliant talent.

But you keep looking at your social media feeds. You see all these nice photos of other pseudo-freelancers that made it.

These entrepreneurial coaches that promise to change your perspective in a life-changing programme.

“You too can be your own boss and get a 6-figure income!”

The over-romanticised vue of the freelancer working from home can be as off putting as inspiring.

You can’t help but feeling inapt, unskilled, a professional misfit. Usually promoted by gorgeous fit and sophisticated people, under the perfect landscape, the perfect light, they portray the lifestyle most of us dream of.

We all know those are digitally pimped photos and that real freelancers don’t really look like that.

Before

We all have things to juggle with. We are all multitasking in our lives.

There is so much pressure, so much competition for popularity, so much disproportionate ambition resulting from the constant defficient information we are being fed on a nano-second basis.

After

Facebook, Google, Alexa, Microsoft, are all working in chaotic unison. Have you ever connected the dots of when you have a conversation around a tech device (your phone, Alexa…) that your news feeds across all platforms will be bombarded with sponsored-related ads?

Or did you really think it was all an act of the mystical powers that surround us? All of the world is finally becoming One? Romantic, right?

Take Time Off The Internet

(not just Social Media!)

It’s overwhelming. Just think about how much time you waste daily reading fake news, dismembered and unrealiable sourced pieces of information.

If we take some time to think about it at least 75% of it adds nothing to our lives, and would have made no difference if we hadn’t read it.

We subscribe to useless Newsletters and mailing lists only to find we don’t have the time (interest or patience) to read them all. Scanning through the email headers and cherry-picking the most interesting ones, and if you’re like me, unsubscribing some of those only a few days after subscribing ‘cause it’s too much.

Go for walks every so often. Mingle with nature, interact with the elements, use your five senses to help you find alternative and more vibrant ways to write. It works for me.

Taking time off technology can only be beneficial to our mental health. The decrease in the stress level is oppositely proportional to the level of self-confidence we achieve.

Having an offline break contributes to inspiration, away from all the neuro-stimulus incited by the all of the colours and movement around the internet. Similar to those of a hypnosis I would imagine…

Photos by Anthony DeRosa s, Andrea Piacquadio, Yan, Anastasia Shuraeva, Prateek Katyal, Ketut Subiyanto from Pexels

When Remote Work Gets You Stuck

It’s all good and well when you are working remotely. Surely by the third lockdown we’ll be used to all this. But now, baby, it’s cold outside.

We enjoy staying indoors, managing our own time AND actually getting things done, which I thought was going to be proven difficult.

Working desks, comfort, regular breaks, everyone is good. We are all on a schedule. All we need to make sure is that everyone knows what they’re doing. (Most of the time we’re all like cats and dogs, between four walls but we go with it…)

Until you need to pop out to run an errand. It’s cold and the cold affects not only us people but also machines. Living in the UK for nearly 20 years, did I ever expect a cold blast? Yes. Was I ready for it? No. Just over a month from its last MOT. Mr Bean-typical!

No charging kit, and we can’t necessarily knock at the neighbours door to ask if they’ve got one we can borrow… We are in the middle of a lockdown! Off we go to Halfords. Thank God they’re still classed as essential!

Spring will soon be here and the end of the lockdown is not expected until at least the Summer.

Then we get rid of the cold only to reach the second Spring in Covid lockdown. The weather will be inviting, people will want to get outdoors and you know people, they don’t follow rules…

Well, at least Trump is no longer President, property prices will decrease, remote work will go on, vaccines will roll out everywhere. Vive les vacances!

7 Remote Work Recommendations

If you’re working from home (like me) then you’ll value anything that makes your life easier.

Never before the expression “creature comforts” was so well placed.

Going forward, you want to make sure you continue to be productive whilst working from home. This is the future and there is hardly a return from it, the pandemic only precipitated it.

We are familiar with most of the numbered points. We know we will rip benefits in sticking to them, but it can be hard for anybody to self-discipline to a routine.

it is important to go back to the drawing board, finding a consistent method and making sure we stick to it. Find a good balance between your career and wellbeing. Then everything else will fall into place.

1. Sit straight!

It is important to continuously ensure your posture, whilst sitting down for long periods of time, is a correct and comfortable one. I’ve tried using the laptop as per its original design, but it was not designed for routine use.

Sitting on my bed has shown to be an ergonomic challenge. It was ok for one week. I’ve also tried using a portable table by the bed but then I started getting backaches, there was no back support.

I sorted it out by finding a comfortable chair. Failing that the kitchen/dining table is probably the next best thing.

2. Break often

The best way to do this is to set reminders on your phone. I know I have to do this, otherwise, I get so zoned into my work that I can miss breaks, lunch. (And I’m sure it was causing bladders stretching…) NOT GOOD!

If you are employed, the UK law states you are entitled to 20 minutes per each six-hour period. Try and spread those break times in a balanced way throughout the day.

There’s no legal stand about the safety of working on display screen equipment. But the

Health and Safety Executive recommends 5 or 10 minutes every hour. If you are self-employed, you can afford this health and safety “luxury”.

Take these breaks to stretch your whole being! Fuel up on healthy meals (now that you have the control to prepare. No more excuses for not having the time. And no lingering to unhealthy snacks!

Make sure you keep yourself hydrated. I was not much of a pure water drinker myself, I’m barely ever thirsty. In fact, if I don’t go to the gym or is Summer all my liquid intake resumes to coffee, milk, tea and wine.

But working from home restricted my movements. And cramps started to creep in whenever I stretched. I found out the hard way (and some research) that these can be avoided if we drink a reasonable amount of water. Drink up, fellow remote-workers!

3. Accessorize

Noise-cancelling headphones are a God-send! For those of us who are parents to small children (for obvious reasons), these are not recommended. My choice goes for Bluetooth-enabled ones.

4. Remote Outdoors

When the lockdown is lifted and it’s safe to do so and if you know the places that welcome remote workers, it’s brilliant!

Cafés
Garden Centres
Libraries
Hotel Lounges
Coworking hubs or hotdesk spaces (at a more reasonable cost than paying for another rent, you pay a monthly fee and have access to a bunch of perks as well. Free coffee or access to gym facilities) If you find the idea interesting try this search.

5. Keep Distractions Off

Make sure you discipline yourself as well as others around you. Keep all distractions away during your working hours. This means ideally all your notifications should be off. ESPECIALLY Social Media ones, because they can be irresistible.

6. Move

With every break (and other opportunities) move and even jump around. It gets the heart pumping, the blood flowing (kicks your brain), warms you up and improves the mood.

7. Reset

Sleep is essential to a fully functioning body. As vital as the water we drink. See it as a full reset as it is your most valuable device.

Remember those moments in some days where you feel like you’re hitting a brick wall?

You can’t focus and think about that same topic anymore, you can’t find an answer no matter how hard you try. Even a break doesn’t do the trick. A good night sleep will 9/10 give you the answer.

See? Easy peasy!

Stay safe everyone!

Coronial Resolutions

Following a much-needed idleness and lethargic thinking, I have decided. I am joining in the world-viral coronial resolutions movement.

Over time New Years’ resolutions perspectives have changed.

In my teens they were like a haircut, improving my social life, or finding a hobby.

In my twenties, it was to travel more, to finish Uni, working in the European Commission.

In my thirties, to travel, to stop smoking, to start a business doing what I love, to become a mother.

As life goes on (and even having had a few of our resolutions fulfilled), we would expect to be able to relax a little. Relax and turn the spotlight in our direction to try and achieve more. Yet we can never be too careful, and this year’s resolutions MUST cover that too.

So, without any further ado, these are my 2021’ Resolutions.

Stay safe & ensure my family’s safety (where possible)
Persisting in healthier options (eg. more sleep, more water intake, more greens, exercise, reduce portions, fewer meats)
Relearn to focus (eg. better time management, ignoring external “stimulus” during working hours, focussing on business targets)
Reading More, Writing More
Finishing my Copywriting course
Travelling

I recognise most of my resolutions will be a result of my second resolution. I know I need to work on my time management skills.

Working from home has been this year’s challenge for me. It was quite a dynamic change. At first I didn’t want it at all. I thought it would be easier to deal with the pandemic if I continued my routine, as much as possible. I wanted to be able to choose not to stay at home, but I only postponed the inevitable. But it has also shown to be a game-changer.

It will be important to strengthen the ability to manage time whilst working from home. It is not easy to draw a line between being at home and working from home.

Whilst for some, this may mean to become more sluggish, lazy, eat more, exercise less.

My struggle is to be able to sit and focus. To be able to get work done without using a 5-minute break to do a load of washing or some prepping for that night’s dinner.

This struggle doubles if you’re stuck indoors with children. Although they have their routine, I am unable to switch off the Mum-mode when they’re on my radar.

This must feel like a weird situation for them. They can actually be on technology for a good amount of hours a day without getting told off, all thanks to Corona.

This Government was incapable to pass the urgency message, with all the give and take. Katy Perry’s Hot N’ Cold wouldn’t have made more sense if she had written it to mark the year of 2020.

When it should be a time to reflect on the dangers of viruses instead it is unalarming, as if it was of no consequence. The result is children failing to grasp the concept of how their actions can have an impact. Not only on themselves but as well on other people.

The main resolution has to be ensuring that my children understand the power their actions can have on other people. And there is something more useful than moaning about how poor my children’s academic progress was. That will be to ensure none of us is part of the negative statistics. If they survive this, they will have plenty of time to catch up.

Happy New Year!