Ciao dearies,
Happy New Year to all of you!
Today I want to look back at 2015 and do some looking ahead to this year, 2016, with not 365 but 366 days with still 362 to go! Let’s make every day, every moment, count! Starting with writing down what I learned last year.
Read on to find out what I learned in 2015 and what my goals for 2016 are!
Baci,
Saranda
Follow me on: 
Learned in 2015
There are five things that sort of stood out for me while looking back at the last year.
First off I ran into my own limits; I sometimes tried to do too much. Work, freelance assignments, my blog, starting at My Isabelli again as intern, trying to still see my friends and family as much as possible while they are free in the weekend and for me it is the other way around. I got tired. It was simply too much and I think I was leaning against a small burn out at some points. This is one of the reasons I took a little social media / blogging break around the Holidays. I really just needed some quality time with my family and my love! The fact that I am always putting somebody elses needs in front of my own made me realise that I need to say no more often. If I had been honest with myself and others from the start I would have saved myself some trouble I think… This year it is time to put myself first more often!
Besides this I learned that it is a waste of time, energy and money to hang out with people that drain your energy and give nothing back in return. Relationships like this are pretty much toxic to me. So I think halfway through 2015 I decided to stop my part of the investment and decided to only build further on relationships with people that gave me energy.
Next I learned how big a thing LOVE is… Love for your husband / boyfriend but also love for your family and friends. It has not always been an easy year. But together with the people that are closest to me I survived and I / we only got stronger! We learned a lot, grew up, and found that LOVE is so super important. I have also started to appreciate my family more. The way they have always been there for me, the way they have pushed me and sometimes are still pushing me to be the best version of myself. It is amazing! When I turned 25 I celebrated my birthday for the first time since moving out and last Christmas my boyfriend and I hosted our first Christmas dinner with both of our families. Events that made me grow up and make me feel more connected to my family while it also makes me feel more like me, my boyfriend and our cat are a little family of our own. It’s a special kind of feeling to learn this, I can tell you that much!
Another thing I sort of figured out last year is my personal style. I have always thought this to be hard to define as I can be a true chameleon. But while experimenting a bit at the end of last summer I got very interested in the Parissian fashion style and 60’s / 70’s fashion. Inspired by Alexa Chung, Brigitte Bardot and the brand Chloé I even got a 60’s side fringe haircut done! Which ofcourse I will soon show you.
Last I found out that work and money are some very personal things. I have learned that I would rather like to invest in building a career than setteling for something just because it pays good! I actually have learned that investing is most of the time better than going for budget and only looking at money. Quality over quantity!
Looking ahead, 2016…
I did not really make specific new years resolutions or something, or specifiek goals for the new year… As I think most of the time they are too hard to uphold, or you just forget them somewhere during the year.
Based on the things I learned last year, and some of the things I hope to achieve this year I just made a little list of things I want to do this year.
First of I want to say YES to opportunities! But, as I have learned from last year, I need to stay honest to myself. If it is too much, it simply is. Therefore I will only say YES if my heart says YES, if I feel the excitement running through my vains and if I feel like it is the right thing to do.
Second I really want to finally figure out what my careerpath will be. I have a feeling that I pretty much know it by now, but I am afraid that I will get dissapointed if it turns out not to be the right path for me. Any tips to help an undecisive girl out?
Also I want to learn and read more, therefore I have set my Goodreads challenge of 2016 to 12 books. One book for every month. I can do this! 😉
Last but not least I will choose for myself more often, which is in line with the saying YES and learning to say NO part of this blogpost. I have a feeling that when I will choose ‘ME’ more often I will be a happier and more positive person. Besides I think that choosing yourself is a very mindfull thing to do. I think it will let me enjoy life more and I think by doing this I will also be a more relaxed person to be around. Personally I think that this is one of the most important things on my agenda for 2016. And I think this ‘resolution’ will have a very big (positive) effect on the other points mentioned above! How will I do this? By taking some time off when I really need to, by taking trips with my love (BALI is high on the wishlist for this year!), by doing YOGA, by planning my work time and free time and with work time I mean everything career related (job / freelance work etc.).
Do you have any other tips how to achieve this?
By the way, if you perhaps would like to start yoga as well, than now is the perfect time to get yourself the perfect yogamat! Check out the article I wrote about Manduka and Yogagoods at the end of last year and let me know what you think… Spoiler; you will find a nice discount in that blogpost! 😉
Most of these ‘goals’ or ‘resolutions’ – call them whatever you want – are about living a mindfull / happy life, and in short they will all come down to one, key goal: ‘TO DO MORE OF WHAT MAKES ME HAPPY’.
What are your resolutions or goals for the new year?!
Like Like!!