Hi, remember me? Fresh from my latest bout of absence I’m the first to admit consistency is not always my thing. This past month I’ve not really felt like doing anything; whether that be Instagram, working on my business or blogging, to the point I actually started taking on consultants to take on some of my workload so that I could take an active step back.
With the fog beginning to clear and some kind of normality in the world returning I can begin to feel that familiar pull of creativity and the desire to re-take the reins.
But here’s the thing. Bouts of creativity and motivation are all very well but, for me, these usually end up in overwhelm and ultimately withdrawal. And so the cycle continues.
As I lazily scroll through YouTube for inspiration {aka the answer to all my self-sabbotage problems} I found myself skipping the usual “get it all done”, “day in the life” and productivity videos in favour of something new. It was then I came across a video by Sam Laura Brown {an Australian blogger, YouTuber and Podcaster – is that a word?!} called How To Create a Personal Development Plan which sparked my interest. In this video Sam spoke about her desire to create conent which inspires her to be a better person then tells her exactly how to do it which then prompted a series of in-depth exploration posts into how to be the best version of ourselves. Still with me? Exhausting as this sounds I watched on and it was literally one of those moments you have to laugh at because what she was describing was, well, me.
Alongside this video is a blog post; “A Beginner’s Guide to Personal Development”, in which Sam provides an overview of what personal development is and isn’t, including the misconception that personal development is for people who are considered “broken”. She also talks about how to start your own personal development journey, create a plan and what to expect. And as if this wasn’t enough – Sam also has a podcast and a FREE self-discovery workbook. Amazeballs right?
One of the things Sam talks about which really resonated with me was about being a perfectionist and having an all or nothing approach. This has always been a personal battle of mine with many aspects of life which brings me back to the first area of self-development I’d like to focus on – consistency and the development of positive habits.
This could easily branch out into different areas – health, business, blogging – something which would usually trigger my all or nothing approach where I would want to change or work on everything at once then when I inevitably realise I can’t, I stop. But what I really want to focus on first is the habit of simply being consistent. To do this I’m setting myself the goal of spending 30 mins a day {max} working on my personal development – 15 minutes of learning {watching/listening/reading} and 15 minutes of implementation and action. For example, I may read 15 minutes of a personal development book {such as Atomic Habits by James Clear} or listen to a podcast then spend 15 minutes journalling about what I’ve learnt, completing a workbook or going out into the world to take action. By doing this relatively simple task I’m hoping to create a sense of discipline which I can then take into other areas of my life.
And I’d like to take you along on this journey with me. Sam undertook 365 days of personal development. I’m aiming for 30 days {in the first instance}.
Why I am planning to share my personal development journey
- To give back more than I take
- To stay accountable
- To try to break my all or nothing tendancies
- To challenge myself
- To install some consistency and discipline
- To prove to myself that I can do it!
How I am planning to share
I’m aiming to upload daily posts to Instastories over at my Instagram account @alifetwintastic to say what I’m up to that day, how I’m going to work on my personal development and how I’m feeling as well as updates on the blog. Some {most} days are going to be pretty boring with short posts but I’m hoping other days will be inspiring, productive and take positive steps forward.
My personal success criteria
My success criteria would be to be more present and consistent both on my a life twintatsic blog/Instagram, business and personal life.
What do I envisage this looking like?
- Not waiting for things to be perfect before I start/take action vs. my usual all or nothing approach
- Consistent, useful content vs. impulsive creativity followed by a drought
- Consistently opening up and getting involved in conversations / communities vs. actively shying away from them
- Checking and actioning/delegating my emails regularly vs. letting them build up and feeling constantly behind/overwhelmed
- Creating boundaries around when I need/want to work, be creative, be lazy, be mum etc.
- Putting the washing away before it becomes a mountain of doom!
Just to turn this on it’s head for a second, maybe I am already more consistent then I consider myself to be. I already consistently look after my kids, take them to school, feed, wash and clothe them. I show up to meetings and take phone calls. I put dates in my diary and give in permission slips. I brush my teeth everyday! Pretty darn consistent right?!
And maybe consistency is at times exactly what I don’t need. Something I definitely do not want to lose is the impulsive, spontaneous moments of creativity. I don’t want to create regimes so structured that I feel trapped and limited. Instead I hope to achieve the mental and physical space to take consistent action on these moments even if they end up not working out. This new endeavour, for example, may end up being a flop or my focus may completely change or life happens and things get in the way. And that’s ok, it’s all part of being productive not perfect. That is unless my desire to be more consistent and habit based is actually my subconscious sneakily trying to create a perfect life whilst I’m consciously trying to step away from perfectionism as a barrier to creativity. Agh – what a minefield!
At the heart of all this is my continued need to create a simplier, easier but also fullfilling life. I’m a very simple creature at heart. So watch this space {or to be more exact my Instastories} for regular updates and feel free to hold me accountable if I fall off the face of the blogging world again!
Have a great day
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