3 Year Goals and How to Achieve Them

the last time i sat down to my computer to pen (ahem!), write a personal post the response has been overwhelming. it’s really great for me to know what you guys like and don’t like on the site so that i can adapt accordingly. i love taking outfit photos and playing with clothes, but also realize that getting real is totally part of the package. i don’t always know how to tackle some topics on here without bringing down the overall mood of what the site is all about so sometimes it’s just easier to go through it alone. except i found with my 3 years goals post, is that it’s not at all the case. i loved sharing my stream of consciousness with you and what i loved even more was your guy’s feedback. setting goals is important but what really separates the boys from the men is action. how to follow up on my goals and how to best achieve them without compromising my own happiness and freedom is the follow up question.

i wanted to take a closer look at the things that make me happy and the things i want in life and share with you ways in which i plan to best make them happen.

work smarter: i want to grow my skills and my opportunities but i also need to learn when to say no. i need to learn when to get off my phone/computer and let myself enjoy all the hard work that i’ve been doing. i want to grow into a team of talented people who have similar goals and will help me achieve mine without having to make life changing sacrifices

ironic because as i am writing this post i still haven’t figured out the images i want to share with you, nor how or when i will take them. photography is a big part of this blog and i always always stress how every photo that appears on here HAS to be original content, meaning that i will not substitute it with stock photos or any third party content. for any project i have to be directly involved in the end product.  this helps with setting the overall aesthetic of the site, directly affecting my overall voice. it is a slippery slope allowing sponsored content to be provided, it sets a precedent and i want no part in that. i am thinking in extremes, but i AM generally a very extreme person, it’s all or nothing. balance is a hard word for me, but lo and behold it will be the key word for all my 3 year goal success. growing a team, letting go of constant control and even taking it easy once in a while will all lead to a healthier work/life balance.

buy a house: a HUGE undertaking on our radar, obviously the more achievable at the moment will be paying off our first mortgage. not living with debt has always been a valuable lesson my parents taught me. having had paid off several debts in life so far i know how good it feels to have that weight off your shoulders. before life can continue evolving this one MUST be crossed off the list.

not as straightforward as it may seem. there are a lot of factors to consider. size and price are obvious, but location is on the lock down. the goal is to move in with my mum, consolidating two apartments into one common space will definitely be tricky and there are already all these conditions that must be met. the house has to be new (we don’t have the time nor willingness to put in the work to renovate someone else’s space), it has to be plain: white walls, white tiles. so many developments these days look outdated before they even have a chance, i really don’t understand why they just can’t create blank spaces. am i the only person in the market for such a thing? four perpendicular walls are harder to find than one might assume. it has to have a finished basement and enough bedrooms for all of us, two cats, an office and a closet room (that’s right i said it). because we are often away from home we want to be close to my brother so that my mum can also have easier access to visit with him than she currently does, giving me a peace of mind that she is safe and close by if she needs any help. and so the search continues. so far it’s still a far away dream but if we don’t look we will never find.

re-decorate: before we buy a house i want to create a space in our current home that makes me happy, helps me relax and allows me to breathe. de-clutter my home, de-clutter my life. it’s been almost ten years of me living on my own, that means i’ve been surrounded by many of the same objects for that same amount of time. as weary as i am of change i also think it helps with finding clarity and the same thing applies to your space. i’m ready for a full over-haul!

buying a house will hopefully give us more space to breathe, but you know how it goes, when you get the space you find a way to fill it. organizing ourselves now will allow us to practice for a more de-cluttered life in the long term. our place sees a constant rotation of products, clothes and equipment. sometimes it’s not even worth finding a space for things because we know it’s a very short stay, as a result things are everywhere. with the coming of summer it’s the perfect time to do some ‘spring cleaning’, the issue is, of course, time. so we act in small intervals whenever time allows. i think i already got a pretty good hang of letting go of material possessions. at the same time i am working on freshening up our favourite spaces. making small changes like adding a colourful pillow or a beautiful candle to an already existing scene can really give a space a new lease on life, follow along on instagram in the month of june to see some of the canges i’ve been making. the one thing i really want to re-do completely is our living room. our faded b&b italia couch really needs a facelift and our dark bookshelves have to somehow disappear completely. i am also working on hosting my bi-annual clothing sale in the coming weeks so stay tuned.

take better care of my mind and body: this, in big part, goes back to travel. it’s so hard to keep a routine when we are on and off the plane every other day. also really hard to have my favourite products with me at all times, they weigh the most and i have to be really efficient with the way we pack (whether or not i actually succeed is another story). whenever we stay at a hotel that has a gym i will try and use it as often as time allows. meditation would be great, but i really don’t know if i have the zen in me.

travel really helps us stay fit, constant moving around from point a to point b, running through airports and even taking public transit keeps the heart rate up, when we are at home it’s a different story. there is a lot of sitting by the computer, editing, catching up on admin work. finding good classes and ways to exercise is always a challenge. my attention span doesn’t let me run the treadmill for an hour, my mind needs stimulation, currently i have signed up for classes at a local barre studio, barre belle, which should keep me feeling healthy, happy and alert.

choosing the right beauty products is another very imporant aspect of taking care of your body. there is so much out there on the market right now and even though we all have our favorites it’s good to try new things and give your skin a break from routine. i recently discovered beauty counter, an environmentally conscious brand out of la that doesn’t sacrifice quality but sets new health and safety standards when it comes to what we put on our bodies. i have been using it for the last couple of months and it keeps me aesthetically happy, my skin feeling good and it acts responsible for the world we live in.

spend more time with family: if we are going to be travelling as much as we do then i want to spend every moment i have when we are at home with my mum. simple as that.

nothing to add here. a pretty self explanatory statement. it can also be a difficult one. the more time i spend at my mums house the less time i have for myself, to de-clutter my space, to take care of my mind and body. trying to keep other people happy can be a full time job, and not always rewarding. my favourite is the ‘nobody is asking you to do this’ line. nobody has to, because i know that it makes her happy to see me as often as she does, i know that she wouldn’t ask me to sacrifice anything for her and as a result i could very well be overcompensating. but if there is anything i learned in the recent years is that we don’t get time back. if my life ends up a little less organized, or my skin a little less bright because i spent extra time with, or even around my mum i will have no regrets.

in terms of children i’m just as unsure as ever, we have an amazing trip ahead of us but the world is full of constant changes and surprises. the zika virus is all over the news right now and traveling to certain parts of the world can be a risky and potentially life changing decision. in line with my 3 year goals, starting a family is nowhere on the radar. i spoke with dr. christine palmay, a family doctor based in ontario over the phone last week to clarify some misconceptions about birth control and how to best incorporate it into my planning process. dr. palmay stressed how important is it for women to be educated and informed on the topic. as the advocacy of the pill decreases year after year and our schedules become more hectic it is harder to take the pill at the same time every day (think late meetings, travel schedules, time zone differences) and so the risk of unintended pregnancy is realer than ever. knowing your options and choosing according to what your lifestyle requires is key. dr. palmay made an excellent point in saying that if we are always staying up to date with our apps, looking at new ways to update the way we take care of our bodies should have a similar, if not higher importance in our lives. iud’s are of course the obvious alternative to the pill and they too come in different shapes and sizes (so to speak). depending of where you are at in your life you can chose a 3 year, 5 year, hormonal or copper options. according to dr. palmay, an iud is as effective as having your tubes tied, a decidedly sure way of taking control of those less predictable things in our lives and helping us achieve those 3 year goals. to learn more about different birth control options visit www.birthcontrolforme.ca. how do you take the reigns to achieving your goals? leave me a comment, i’d love to hear it all and share in your wisdom! xoxo