It feels difficult, or maybe downright ridiculous, to write about looking forward to the new year, when we’ve just been plunged into a lockdown just like where we were ten months ago. I’ve been unmotivated to write this one, but am desperate not to break blogging tradition!
The aim of this post is to look back on the goals I made in my ‘Hello 2020‘ post, see if I achieved them or want to extend them into this year, and perhaps add a new goal or two. Last year I actually only made three goals – perhaps I was somehow aware that 2020 wasn’t going to be an overly productive one.
Looking Back: Goals of 2020
My first was ‘Read more books‘. Now if you’ve read my recent round up of all the books I read in 2020, you’ll know that I achieved this one and then some. My goal of twelve books for 2020, and my actual achievement of 36 books, may not look like a big number to some, but considering I only read five in 2019, I had come a long way.
I really want to continue with this goal into 2021 – I’m so glad I let reading back into my life this year. I am excited about new releases like never before, exploring different authors and genres and most importantly, have rekindled my love for books that I seemed to have lost over my teen years.
My second goal of 2020 was to put more time into my blog. This is a trickier one – I think at times, I really managed this, and at others I didn’t. There were points where the endless staying inside sucked the inspiration from me, and others where I tried new ideas and wrote posts I was really proud of. I’m still torn between two mindsets about my blog this year – between being super organised and scheduling everything, or just going with the flow and writing when I feel like it. Honestly, the latter will probably be how I end up approaching it, because at the end of the day, blogging is a hobby, so I need to enjoy it!
The final goal I made last year actually made me laugh because I didn’t even think about it the entire year – keeping up my French knowledge. After I finished my A Level in French, I really wanted to keep my skills up because they had come so far, but unfortunately this never became reality! I think the closest I got was watching Emily In Paris on Netflix and being proud of understanding what her French co-workers said behind her back!
Looking Forward: Goals for 2021
A new goal I want to make and stick with in 2021 is to make more time for artwork. You would think that last year, what with that huge lockdown, I would have had plenty of time for painting, and yet I only did two and a half paintings last year. Not great. Painting and drawing is one of my favourite hobbies, and the only one that makes me truly forget about everything else for a couple of hours. I find it so useful to relieve stress, so I really hope I can get more creative this year.
Buying less clothes and makeup is a big goal for me this year too. I did pretty well makeup wise last year and this year hope to stick with the rule of only buying replacement products eg. a new mascara or brow product when they run out. I’ll soon be posting a ‘project pan’ style post about the makeup products I want to try and use up this year to make room for new things, so stay tuned! Buying less clothes is going to be more difficult – at first I was going to say no new clothes at all, but that would be lying as I have a list of a few gaps in my wardrobe I really want to fill this year – an oversized blazer and some good sandals being two I really want to find this spring. It’s not that I buy over excessively, or that I’m in the habit of buying clothes I get bored of – I’m such an indecisive shopper that about 95% of my wardrobe are items that I love and will cherish for years. But because I love them all, there’s plenty of them for now!
Are you making any goals this year? I was in two minds whether to even make any, since the start of 2021 doesn’t really feel like a fresh start, but it’s always good to try and make some positive changes, isn’t it? Let me know how you are feeling about the start of this year!
