Imagine

We made it – Happy New Year! ๐ŸŽ‰

The last 12 months have been insane. ICYMI: You can read 5 main lessons I learnt from 2017 here.


At the start of 2017, I decided to give the year a name, something that was inspired by the Bullet Journalling community. The point was that the word would be the โ€œthemeโ€ for the year, a focus, grounding point if you like. My choice of โ€œPotentialโ€ was spot on. So, before we dive into the new year, I wanted to quickly look back at 2017…

The year of Potential.

Jump to sections:


2017 โ€œRESOLUTIONSโ€ I ACHIEVED:

Further Growth

1) Let go – Fully and truly. Thank you, space bear.

2) Donโ€™t rush into things – This referred to a lot of things in my life but when I wrote it, I was mainly referring to relationships.

This year I focused on not rushing especially after a tough break up and just embraced being single for a while. Although I had my moments of feeling lonely, I honestly feel like I โ€œhave foundโ€ and โ€œbuiltโ€ myself up again by just doing what I do and not expecting anything.

The saying that the right people gravitate towards you is SO true.

I am now in a loving relationship that has such a supportive foundation (heโ€™s my biggest fan after myself.) ๐Ÿ‘ซ

3) Taking my mental and physical health seriously – I can officially say that I dedicated one hour 5-6 days EVERY WEEK to work out for a whole year. I saw dramatic results in strength and stamina! August marked my 1 year of bringing this positive habit into my life. As always, I thank my dad for being my biggest inspiration and supporter.

 

If you followed me on Instagram and my kept up with my stories, you’d know quite well that a workout selfie was posted every morning without fail. #Accountability, right? I’ve enjoyed sharing my progress and inspiring others to take control of their health!

I also:

  • Practice gratitude frequently – Not as consistent as exercising, but I have a few logs each month on things I am grateful for using my Five Minute Journal. I also did this every month with my round-up posts on a section of 3 things that made me happy.
  • Continue meditation practice – Still going strong. Thank you, Calm. Honestly, the most life-changing app I have ever used (and no surprise to me that they were crowned App of The Year!) I have learnt so much about myself and my emotions – Iโ€™ve gotten a lot better controlling my negative, reactive emotions and my understanding of mindfulness has deepened.
  • Keep eating clean, healthy, real food and learn how to cook better – I can now cook enough to not poison myself. Mindfulness has made me more aware of everything Iโ€™m putting in my body too. My body has never felt so nourished – I donโ€™t just have chocolate and crisps as my meals for the day anymore!
  • Become stronger, lift heavier and become more flexible – I will have to put my hands up and say, I didnโ€™t commit to improving my flexibility because I was so focused on lifting heavier (crushed it! โœ…) than spending time to stretch and do yoga slipped away from my priorities. This is something Iโ€™m keen to work on this year!

4) Fully embrace minimalism – Although I havenโ€™t hit my goal of owning things that only fit into a backpack, I managed to get rid of a lot of the excess stuff.

Surprisingly, I havenโ€™t bought new clothes (this obviously excludes sportswear ๐Ÿ˜…), shoes or bags (which were my weakness!)

I definitely feel lighter knowing I can fit all my things in my room rather than having storage places scattered around the house. I have massively improved and aim to one day (soon) become like Matt who is a real living and breathing minimalist.

5) Working on my blog –

  • โœ๏ธ Consistency: I successfully blogged every single week for a whole year with the only exception being in March when I was travelling. Writing and publishing content every week was challenging to begin with but has become very fun and rewarding – it’s helped improve my written communication skills and allowed me to connect with new bloggers!
  • โœจ Spreading positive vibes and inspiration: I wanted to focus on my content not only being my own place to document key events of my life but also for others to see that if I can do something, they can too. Iโ€™ve had a lot more people reading my blog in 2017 with a lot of positive comments on how Iโ€™ve helped during a tough time or how my blog has helped motivate a lifestyle or mindset change. Itโ€™s very encouraging and drives me to continue doing what I do (it’s like a network of positive feedback ๐ŸŒŸ), which brings me toโ€ฆ
  • ๐Ÿ“Š Stats: Iโ€™m not one for looking at blogging statistics because I will blog even if no one is reading (it will always be my favourite hobby!) but Iโ€™m so pleased with the growth in unique readers in 2017! Thank you for reading and sharing the love!
2017 stats on Pawlean.com
2017 stats on Pawlean.com
Countries
World Stats on Pawlean.com

6) Give more – I gave most of my things away to family in the Philippines. I also started giving any spare pocket money to local businesses that have a great cause at heart, charities and crowdfunding I believe in.

I also continued my work with Code First: Girls and helped run free coding community courses in Sheffield to over 40 female students who had no coding experience. Some of them have gone on to do careers in tech or have used their new knowledge and applied it elsewhere. It’s always so rewarding to see students realise their potential!

Proud to be a part of such a positive community. 

Code First: Girls - #ShefCodeFirst - Python Class AW 2017
Code First: Girls – #ShefCodeFirst – Python Class AW 2017

Exploration and Discovery

7) Travel – I explaw’ed more than I have ever done in my whole life, my perspectives and outlook on life have changed because of it.

My former self couldnโ€™t get on a bus or a train without having a panic attack at the station. This year, I took several flights, trains, public transport in different places and could not feel anxiety cropping up instead pure excitement to discover and explore.

2017 Adventures
2017 Adventures: Screenshot from NomadList

I went to the Lisbon, Amsterdam, Nice, Monaco, Fuerteventura, Milan and New York in 2017. Yep, the latter really really really did happen. I still canโ€™t believe it. *squeals* In addition to my trips abroad, I did a lot of travelling in the UK – London, Leeds, Nottingham, Manchester, Crewe, Derby. ๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง

Iโ€™m so thankful for the opportunities this year to explore beyond my little town.

 

A post shared by Pauline P. Narvas โšก๏ธ (@paw.lean) on

8) Step out of my comfort zone, more often – Initially wrote this about going to hackathons but not only did I go to a few hackathons, immersed myself in the global community and now organising one myself, I also:

  • Started putting myself out there. On a stage. In front of people. I did my first public speaking gig at Sheffield Ruby User Group where I spoke about building inclusive communities, my second talk was about communicating for impact where I spoke about this blog (I never thought Iโ€™d be talking about my blog in real life, ever) and then I did a couple of talks at GitHub Field Day. I took this online too. I started โ€œworking out loudโ€ and itโ€™s been recognised in numerous ways.
  • Attended conferences and events – sometimes alone! I wouldnโ€™t have had the courage to travel and attend events in a room full of strangers in the past. These events involved a lot of networking. *shudders* Itโ€™s terrifying but Iโ€™ve gotten better at it from working full-time over the 2016/17 academic year (I learnt well from my awesome line manager.) Iโ€™ve made a huge number of meaningful connections professionally and life-long friends too.
HackSheffield3
HackSheffield3

Other highlights:

๐Ÿ‘ฉ๐Ÿปโ€๐Ÿ’ผ Professional Growth

PLACEMENTS
Early 2016, I worked very hard to secure a placement year and after SO MANY rejections, I managed to get one for the academic year 2016/17 where I worked as a Communications and External Engagement Assistant for the University of Sheffield. You can find my โ€œcheckpointโ€ posts and my overall reflection here.

TL:DR: I got so much from the placement year including transferable skills, friends, connections and grew overall into a well rounded, employable individual. I feel much more confident and ready to take on the graduate world!

Appt, TUoS, TechDept

Once I completed my placement year in summer 2017, I went on two more placements in the tech industry where I had a varied role from front-end development to digital communications. I even got to feature on a podcast!

Both experiences gave me the chance to explore different industries and roles which has given me an idea of what I want to do once I graduate.

FREELANCE
I started doing freelance work this year – for web development and content creation for different groups at the University of Sheffield. Iโ€™ve enjoyed fitting these activities which I do anyway for my own work for others, Iโ€™ve learnt a lot along the way too!

PART-TIME JOB
I wanted to continue working part-time alongside my studies because I think that it is a very valuable part of my university experience (for me anyway.) Thankfully, I secured one at the University that isnโ€™t in retail like I havenโ€™t been the past two years.

The team Iโ€™m working with and the environment has loads of learning opportunities; Iโ€™ve picked up some things about entrepreneurship since joining!

๐Ÿฅ‡ Recognition

Iโ€™m very grateful for the recognition Iโ€™ve received this year! For my placement year, I was nominated then shortlisted for the National Employability Awards 2017 and nominated for two Northern Power Women awardsโ€œOne to Watchโ€ and โ€œPerson with Purposeโ€ for the work Iโ€™ve done in the tech scene.

During my placement year, I led a project on raising awareness of green initiatives at the University and ended up winning 3 awards for it and was on the University’s website for a while… It felt pretty good!

๐Ÿ‘ญMeeting online friends and building better relationships

I met some long-time blogging friends in London and Manchester this year – Chynna, Mutay, Micah, Holly and Amy – and took our friendships away from the screens, we hung out, had Italian, ice cream, the best aรงai bowl and I now read their blogs in their proper voices and accents ๐Ÿ˜†

Blogger meet-ups!
Blogger meet-ups: Holly & Amy, Micah, Chynna & Mutay
Global friendships

I also met some of my online friends that I initially followed on social media through various events and elsewhere e.g. CFGConf17 at Twitter HQ, at the gym, on the way home after work (Tasneem recognised me, hi!) Iโ€™ve met some incredible like-minded people in 2017 and developed friendships that come from genuine connection (interests etc.) rather than the people who are just in the same city! I also met up with long-time friends from school and re-kindled connections. I’m so very grateful.

๐Ÿ’– Love

For my 21st, I was reminded how loved I am.

 

Matt surprised me with a book that reminds me exactly that every day. I also celebrated my birthday in New York, in the most extra way possible with my first Broadway show and first private plane ride as the sun was setting in NY!

Hands down, THE best day of my life so far.

๐ŸŽจ Creative Expression

I dipped my toes in filming and video editing in 2017 when words on a blog post just couldnโ€™t cut it. I found this especially when I travelledโ€ฆ

At the end of 2017, I started expanding beyond travelling, including videos on health and well-being, science, tech, my public speaking gigs and daily life. I also did a few video features for example with SheNomads, Women in Tech SnapChat and The University of Sheffield.

Also:


Gratitude


Of course, I could not have done this without all the support I’m blessed to have and figures/groups who have inspired me throughout the year:

I couldn’t fit everyone in this tweet, there are SO many people I want to thank for their cheer.

But I quickly want to add to the list: my parents.

Gosh, where do I even start?

Maybe with the glass of green happiness, I’m greeted with every morning made by my mom or my dad’s presence when I get a little too ambitious with weight lifting or their constant guidance and wisdom on my choices in life.

Just over a year ago, I was in my worse state. I lost touch with myself. I was ready to quit everything. My parents refused to let me slip away. They did EVERYTHING to help. They lifted me back up every time I tried to climb and fell. I am so grateful for them for ensuring that I shine as brightly as I can. ๐Ÿ™๐Ÿป


2018 – Building upon the foundations


2017 was quite a year for me. I think a lot of people like to think that things just go your way sometimes but isnโ€™t that far from the truth? I went into the new year last year with an actionable game plan, I held myself accountable, reflected, changed and actioned my goals throughout those 12 months.

2018 is another gift for me to fail, try again and succeed with this game plan. Another year for me to improve and grow, to explore and discover. Iโ€™m excited. Iโ€™m ready for the significant changes are happening aheadโ€ฆ

  • ๐Ÿ‘ฉ๐Ÿปโ€๐ŸŽ“ Graduation – Sometime mid-June, I will have finished my undergraduate degree at the University of Sheffield. Itโ€™s only a few months away but hell, itโ€™s going to be a bumpy ride to the end like it has been since I started my final year. But you know what? Iโ€™ve gone through tougher months, hit me! ๐Ÿ˜
  • ๐Ÿ’ซ Life after Graduation – This is so scary, but at the same time, Iโ€™m so excited to see what opportunities are out there in terms of career and life generally (moving? having more responsibility!), for me to explore, be challenged and grow an understanding of myself.

Imagine.


This year’s goals

1) LEVEL ๐Ÿ†™ on Mission: Live Healthiest & Happiest Life ๐Ÿ’ช๐Ÿผ

  • Lift heavier. I want to beat the numbers of what Iโ€™m currently lifting significantly by the end of the year.
  • Improve overall strength, stamina and build muscle. – work on reducing lower belly fat and improving abdominal strength.
  • I. WILL. BECOME. MORE. FLEXIBLE.
  • Continue self-care rituals Iโ€™ve built over the last year.
  • Focus on getting enough sleep.
๐Ÿ”ŽCurrent body December 2017
Current bod – December 2017! I’ve never been as body positive as I have been in 2017 – excited to seen how far I can push myself this year! Body update video below:

Actions:

  • Complete current Grace Fit Guide (Iโ€™m on round 2 of the second guide but will be purchasing the new guide after!) during the week, add ab workout at the end of each workout (aim for 3 a week, I know working abs sucks)
  • Meal plan. Focus on high-protein, nutritious meals. Reduce sugar intake – still adjusting after Christmas! ๐Ÿ˜…
  • Stop skipping stretches after each workout and add an additional session of yoga – aim for once a week.
  • Create an evening routine and STICK TO IT
  • Being as kind to myself as possible – itโ€™s OK if Iโ€™m not always on top of my game. Nobody always is.๐Ÿค—
  • Remember why I started: for health. Appearance follows. Focus on what is important and that is health! ๐Ÿ’™

2) Avoid setting up camp in the comfort zone ๐ŸŒŸ

  • Continuing to step up to doing more speaking gigs to share my ideas and have my voice heard! Remember you donโ€™t need to be an expert to get up on stage and talk.
  • Filming, editing and publishing video content on YouTube.
  • Push on the future (career – applications etc. and life – independence)
  • Speaking up about how much value I can bring i.e. how work I did at x at one point was awesome, never ever sell yourself short. Working out loud and communicating it well is how you get places.

3) Be in control of ๐Ÿ’ฐ

…so that I can travel more and keep exploring because thereโ€™s still so much to see!!!! OUR WORLD IS SO BEAUTIFUL!!!

Actions:

  • Stop mindlessly eating out. Cooked meals and prepared snacks are so much better!
  • At the end of 2017, I was lucky enough to secure various income streams. I want to take advantage of what I’m earning now and putting more into savings and spending less overall.
  • Try Hiro’s money saving tips and challenges!
  • Before buying something, check if there are deals elsewhere – make good of use being a student to my advantage.

4) Making the most out of time โฐ

Iโ€™m sure we feel like this all the time, but how does time go by so fast?! Itโ€™s crazy how those 12 months of 2017 passed, although I remember most of it, there were blurs. This year, I want to commit to โ€œliving in the momentโ€ more often and making the most of the time I have:

Is what I am doing right now – e.g. scrolling aimlessly on social media – getting me anywhere? How could I make better use of my time? If scrolling through social media is the best way to make use of time at that moment, then cool. But there are most definitely other things! So in 2018, I want to use free time to mindfully as possible:

  • Spend more time with my family. Theyโ€™re my Rocks.
  • Have coffee, catch-up and hang out with the cool kids who support me every day๐Ÿ’– (doesnโ€™t have to be a meeting, can be a quick call!)
  • Read books! Reading means more knowledge. More knowledge to apply elsewhere = growth.
  • Learn something new e.g. new coding tricks!
  • Play around my blog, change things, edit things, explore other blogs and connect with other people

5) Declutter โฌ›๏ธโฌœ๏ธ

I WILL:

  • Donate clothes I just donโ€™t wear anymore – let it go!
  • Stop buying gym clothes. Apart from that one, maybe. BUT SERIOUSLY. I HAVE ENOUGH.
  • Reduce possessions.
  • Tidy online clutter as you go because it can build up quickly!

Actions:

  • Ask yourself this: Would this item go with me when I travel? If not, you can most likely survive without it.

6) Continue what I’ve started ๐ŸŒŒ

  • Keep going to events and networking
  • Pawsitivity in Life ๐ŸŒŸ
  • Documenting and blogging ๐Ÿš€
  • Do less, but better.

Now I say this all the time, but goals are flexible. Youโ€™ve seen in my โ€œMonth, For Meโ€ round-up posts, I have goals that change throughout the year, I add new ones when certain things crop up in life. This open, flexible approach has worked very well for me.

Setting goals should never be restricted to the 1st of January. Go crazy. Keep yourself accountable, hit them, build momentum and boom: [Name Chant, Name Chant], youโ€™re so amazingggg!

This time last year, I wrote on Instagram:

One Day or Day One. Your choice.

I chose Day One and now, Iโ€™m Day 366 days in. Imagine what could be achieved in the months to come – bring it on 2018!

42 responses to “Imagine”

  1. Girl, I hope you know I GENUINELY love reading your posts. You are such a go-getter, so kick ass, and basically a badass human overall. I honestly wouldn’t have guessed that you went through such a dark period not long ago, because you seriously radiate good energy these days and it’s infectious. Everything you accomplished in 2017 is INCREDIBLE – you should be so proud of yourself! And, I’m downloading the Calm app now because I’ve been wanting to start meditating.
    I also need to work on flexibility this year. I used to be a dancer and could bend in all directions, and now I think I’m overly tight because I stopped stretching so much.

    So inspired by your goals for this year, and I’m hoping to achieve a lot of the same things! 2018, here we come!

    Susie | http://milehighdreamers.com

    1. This is such a heart warming comment, thank you so much Susie for reading! I have really enjoyed reading your blog and am happy that we have connected. Here’s to an amazing 2018 full of potential and inspiration!!

  2. Happy New Year, Pauline! Reading this post made me so happy. Itโ€™s amazing to see how much youโ€™ve achieved this year and how motivated youโ€™ve been. Iโ€™ve said this so many times before, but your posts are so inspiring.

    Iโ€™m trying to be in control of my money as well this year. I realised at Christmas just how much stuff I had that I havenโ€™t used, to the point where I could probably not buy anything new all year. I also realised that I really donโ€™t need to be buying extra stuff at work because a cheap packet coffee or a tea bag is just as good as a ยฃ2 one from the canteen. Iโ€™d like to keep better track so I donโ€™t end up feeling like I have no money for the last three weeks of every month!

    Decluttering is something I need to do more of. I started last year, but I still think I could do much more. My house is such a mess and I have no room for anything else. I rarely even look at sons of it as well.

    Good luck with all of your goals and have an amazing 2018!

    1. Thanks for being here the whole year Amy, I have really enjoyed connecting with you on the blogsphere and meeting you in real life has to be one of my highlights!

      Haha, those feels though! I totally get you, we can sometimes be completely mindless with our money as evident with my continuous gym clothing hauls ๐Ÿ˜‚ I have definitely improved though.

      Happy New Year!

  3. Reading this post has made me so happy! It sounds like you had an incredible year, and you achieved so much. I’ve been really inspired by everything you have done, and it’s actually made me re-evaluate a lot of my own lifestyle choices. I hope I can make some positive changes in
    2018.

    As I’ve mentioned on my blog, I started using the Five Minute Journal app this year, and I’ve found that it really helps with my mental health. It can really help to think of three amazing things that have happened each day, especially on days when I’m not feeling so great. Meditation is also amazing! I definitely need to get back into practising it daily. I’ve been a little lazy over the Christmas break.

    It was lovely to meet up with you and I hope we can do it again soon! It was also a pleasure to share a message in your birthday book.

    I wish you the best of luck with all your goals for the year ahead, although I’m not sure you need it because you’ll smash them anyway!

    Happy new year!

    1. Meeting you and Amy was a highlight of my 2017! Thank you for having italian food with me! ๐Ÿค—

      I’ve discovered some other great self-care apps (blog post coming up!) that will hopefully help you and others!! I love you Holly, keep slaying!

  4. You’ve done so much in 2017! Good job on all of your accomplishments over the year and I am sure it’s only the beginning. Your blog stats were popping last year! Keep on interacting with the blogging community and I am sure 2018 will be at least twice the hits.

    It’s great that you’ve been gaining some new experience and earning some money as a student! Haha, those clothes won’t pay itself! Hope things will work out with building your path to life after graduating.

    Good luck with your goals for the year! I totally agree with you about the scrolling through social media part. So much time is wasted by scrolling endlessly that you could be better off spending time doing other things. I learned to enjoy the now and put my phone down whenever I can, other than taking a few snaps for later, haha. Hope you will have a great year!

    1. “those clothes won’t pay themselves” GIRL YOU ARE NOT WRONG. Although I do hope to save a bit more this year and spend less on GymShark – who knows, maybe this is the year my addiction fades. ๐Ÿ˜›

      Happy new Year Nancy! Thanks for reading and being there for me in 2017!

  5. Bring. It. On. 2018.
    We’ve been bouncing back and forth for half a year at every step, so I feel like there’s really not much left for me to say to you, but you’ve kicked it, slayed it, and girlll you lookin’ fine ๐Ÿ˜‰
    You’ve achieved so much this year, and stepped wayy outta your comfort zone. Your fitness game is definitely a year ahead of me… Definitely inspired to get my body back in shape. The half year I spent getting to shape in 2016 was the best I felt about how I looked EVER, and I felt so productive. Looking forward to setting a schedule and rhythm for myself for 2018 so I can keep on knocking walls down.
    Graduation and losing the “student” status is definitely really scary and daunting. You suddenly lose the “protection” of being a student when people wonder what you do. It’s a hard transition a lot of my friends who didn’t have a job straight out of college went through (myself included), but it’s definitely a really humbling experience. And gives you more time to really noodle out what you want to do with life.
    Of course, best case scenario is you find a job before you graduate, but I tend to see that people who “soul searched” for a while tend to job hop and be more ambitious/inquisitive about “is this really it for me?” and gain higher grounds than people who just took a job offered right out of college… and stayed there. It’s a huge contrast in experiences, salary, life satisfaction, and confidence level (just the ability to know that they CAN do whatever they WANT to… they aren’t tied to their current line of work) wise… And I think you’ve already started pushing the boundaries and the envelope, so you’ll do great. I have friends who are at the same job and same title 5 years in, and others who have hopped around from job to job, looking for THE CAREER and not settling. Guess who’s happier? (Guess which party I’m in… haha.)
    Whatever may come (since that BIG CHANGE IS COMING!!!) I’m sure you’ll kick ass like you did this year ๐Ÿ™‚ And we’ll just be in each other’s effing lives and seeing each other’s updates!

    Sooo glad to have “met” half a year ago. Even though it was like… a week TOO LATE to ACTUALLY meet! Keep on kicking!

    1. I’m going to return to NYC and have noodles with you Hiro, just you wait. ๐Ÿ˜‚

      Thank you for reading and supporting me online since we first connected, I really appreciate all the love and support and encouragement from you! I’m glad that I’ve inspired you with my fitness lifestyle, I hope that you slay the game this year which you already are seeing from your updates ๐Ÿ˜› Love you loads! Happy New Year!

  6. You’ve had such an awesome year! You should be proud! I shall try hard this year too! =3

  7. 2017 seemed like such a stellar year for you. It made me smile reading about all of your memories. I look forward to more of your posts in 2018. Bring it on!

    1. Thanks so much for reading Brandy! Here’s to an awesome year ahead!

  8. Happy New Year! ๐Ÿ˜€

    It is fantastic to read about all you have achieved in 2017! It has seriously been a busy and productive year. It’s inspiring to read about everything you have been doing, and how much you have pushed yourself!

    I hope you have an amazing 2018 and can tick off all of those goals. ๐Ÿ˜€

    1. Thanks for reading and being there with me every step of the way Kassy! I appreciate you so so so much, happy new year!

  9. Wow, 2017 was an amazing year for you! I’m amazed at how much traveling you did, and how much you improved your life and health. I’m so happy for you, Pauline! I also think you achieved so much in just a year. It’s been great following along as you put yourself out there and step out of your comfort zone. I’m glad you didn’t give up on getting a placement! Rejection can be so discouraging, but in the end, it really worked out for you ๐Ÿ™‚

    I feel like 2017 was the year of blogger meet-ups! I really liked seeing everyone get together. It’s nice to see that online relationships can go further!

    Aahh, that’s exciting that you’re graduating soon! I’m looking forward to seeing what you do afterwards! It looks like you have a great list of goals for this year too, and even better that you already have ideas on how to achieve them. You got this!

    Happy New Year! I hope 2018 will be another good year for you!

    1. Thanks for the good vibes always Cat!

      I hope to smash these 2018 goals – I know I can’t do it without the fuel from all the support and love I get from the community. Thank you for being a part of it! ๐Ÿ˜€

      Happy New Year!

  10. Of course I had to catch up on this post too!

    I’m so happy for you for overcoming that relationship, and take it slow to start a new one. I preach about that all the time to everyone I know, especially when they ask if I’m ready to date. My answer has always been I’ll be ready when I’m ready (sometimes I get nasty responses). And it’s okay if it takes me years to undo the damage. I don’t want to rush into a relationship and bring in bad things that I haven’t overcome. ๐Ÿ˜›

    This year I told myself to start doing situps and pushups every day to recover my body from my health issues last year. Right now my recovering ankle can’t support my weight in anything but sneakers. Must change that! Please keep posting your workout photos – because I’m kinda curious on how much more toned you can get. XD

    I’m also impressed by how often you blog – how long does it take you to write posts? Mine range from 3 hours to 5, because I spend ages writing and rewriting, and editing photos for visuals. That’s something I want to work on in the new year and blog once a week or at least three times a month. I want consistency in my rebrand. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Conferences are so much fun! I attended my very first one in 2017 and then many others. In 2018 I definitely want to attend conferences with a better presentation of who I am so I can make meaningful professional connections and friends. Also, I applaud you for giving those talks about inclusivity and impact – in SF I don’t see a lot of Asian women on stage for those topics!

    Congratulations on your awards and recognition! Dude I am so proud of you. I can’t. HAHAHA.

    I can’t believe you’ve done so much in one year! I hope this year will be another great one for you. I really would love to see more videos from you – especially since you have so much to say that blogging can’t be enough! (For example I want to speak through visuals this year so I won’t be vlogging hehe).

    And if you’re thinking about moving (temporarily if not permanently), I really believe graduation is your chance to! Apply your skills to where you think you’d be a great part of, and go for it! You already have so many accomplishments so I think any workplace would be soooo lucky to have you.

    1. *big hugs* Thank you for reading Liv, I loved connecting with you in 2017. I just wish I was around New York when you were too ๐Ÿ™ Someday soon I’m going to come visit you and hug you in real life!

      I totally get it. That’s why I kept rejecting dates for months on end, I just felt like I wasn’t ready. Even when I met Matt, I felt like I wasn’t ready but after a while, I decided that I was and it’s been great ever since. I’ve really enjoyed his company and he’s a charm. ๐Ÿค—

      It takes me about 3 hours maybe? To write a post, I usually already have the idea floating around in my head a few weeks before. During term time, I usually spend Friday nights writing them (instead of going out lol) to publish on Saturday morning! I am pretty flexible when I can be though. ๐Ÿ˜€

      “Any workplace would be so lucky to have you” IM CRYING GIRL IM CRYING THANK YOU SO MUCH THIS MEANS SO SO SO SO SOO MUCH :'( GAHHHHH! LOVE YOU

  11. Congratulations on… everything, Pauline!

    I guess it’s always been a tradition for us Pinays to give away something we no longer use to our families back home. My parents (and a true miracle it is, especially for my father) will be traveling to the Philippines in February, so I’m also doing the minimalistic decluttering and giving away a lot of my things (mostly clothes also) to the family we’ve left behind.

    But I have to say that 2017 must be your year of accomplishment. Maybe because I’ve read/followed you more that year than the previous years, even though we’ve been dropping by one another’s blogs when we can haha! But you really have accomplished plenty. You should give yourself a pat on the back for that (and I give you a pat on the back too). Graduation from university as an undergrad can be a very scary thing. When I graduated myself some almost 20 years ago, I initially planned to enter graduate school for computer science or information technology, but I figured that I needed to gain work experience first. I actually got accepted into a graduate program for digital communication (and of all places, University of Manchester, online program) but I backed out because of the finances. Maybe backing out was a mistake, but once I get myself a much stable, higher-paying job I’ll re-apply again.

    I think everyone’s motto for this year is to slow down and take time, grab the opportunities that may open. I plan on doing that too. ๐Ÿ˜Š

    1. OMG Manchester is just in the corner of Sheffield! It’s a shame that you backed out but in the future, if you ever do, please do give me a shout! I’d love to see you ๐Ÿ˜€

      Thank you for dipping in and out of my blog when you can in 2017, I really appreciate it! Here’s to another goal-hitting year! ๐Ÿ˜€

  12. Hi Pauline!

    I’m so happy to hear that your 2017 has been a phenomenal year and you’ve made every day count. I love that you are taking the time to learn to cook healthier meals for yourself now; I remember barely knowing how to make anything beyond fried rice (which I still always eat XD) before I started living on my own for my exchange semester. I started to push myself into learning how to make other dishes through YouTube, anything I could find on the internet and asking friends about how they make their food and can comfortably make quite a handful of dishes now. Feeling so motivated to continue learning more as well.

    It’s inspiring to read about how you stepped out of your comfort zone to deliver solo talks at conferences and attend hackathons. I’ve never really attended events like these but I’m definitely going to consider, especially since I’m feeling a lot more confident now after CFG ๐Ÿ™‚

    Good luck with achieving your goals this year! Time management and decluttering are really challenging things to master and things I need to work on too.

    Enyiie

    1. Enyiie, thank you for not running away from my excessive extraness in 2017! I’m so glad you made the CFG programme and that you got to experience the amazing community. I’ve really loved and enjoyed your presence. ๐Ÿค—

      *big hugs*

  13. Wow, look at everything that you’ve accomplished in 2017. You are seriously an inspiration, and I can’t wait to see what you continue to do in 2018 ๐Ÿ™‚ Good luck especially on graduating! It can be really scary to move on to the “next phase” of your life, but it sounds like you’re already getting yourself used to change and pushing the envelope. Whatever you end up doing, one thing is certain: you’re going to kick butt.

    Happy 2018!

    1. Thanks so much Vicky! Have a great year ahead, I look forward to seeing your updates on Twitter! ๐Ÿ˜€

  14. omg this post is such an inspiration and gives me a lot of healthy envy to push forward on my own goals. My main goals is to take care of my self the year. I don’t need to study so late every night that I’m not taking care of myself. Yup time management. that’s my biggie for this year. thank you for this. I needed the inspo.

    http://cynicalduchess.com

    1. also the amount of grammar mistakes I made in this comment is dismal. I need to sleep.

      1. Thanks so much for the comment lovely! You got this.

  15. I loved reading your post. It’s so full of energy and happiness, I’m so glad for you. Well done for everything you’ve achieved in 2017. I hope your 2018 will be just as exciting as the last one. xx

    1. Happy New Year Anca! Thank you for reading ๐Ÿ˜€

  16. Happy New Year! Omg you kicked 2017’s ass! Can’t wait to see all your achievements for 2018! I met one blogger friend last month and I totally get what you mean by being able to read her blog posts in the proper voice and accent! It’s great hahah.

    1. I can’t wait to meet more bloggers this year too! It’s honestly so much fun!!

  17. This blog post is just beaming with pawsitivity, I freakin’ love it :3 I can’t help but smile as I read through all your accomplishments this year. I’m so proud of you Pauline! Thank you for always keeping it real and inspiring those around you (me included). And happy belated new year ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. whoops I mean all your accomplishments in 2017* sorry haha ^^”

      1. Happy belated New Year Nana! Thank you for dipping in and out of my blog and leaving such pawsitive ๐Ÿ˜‰ comments. You fuel me ๐Ÿ˜€ I love you loads!!

  18. Reading your posts leaves my mouth gaping open with amazement. Not an exaggeration, your inspiring posts are just so contagious. Congratulations on beating 2017 in its butt! I know you will exceed yourself this year. You definitely had a very productive year and I’m glad you just weren’t living idly, you were living purposefully (#yolo, yes?). Kudos for not letting yourself be boxed in your own comfort zone — that is definitely danger zone.

    Continue being you and improve on things that you need to work on. Keep on splashing pawsitivity! ๐Ÿ˜‰ You go, girl!

    1. YASS SPLASHING AROUND THAT PAWSITIVITY!!!!!!!!

      Happy New Year Senyth! ๐Ÿ˜€

  19. Happy New Year, Paulineeeee! So glad I got to finally meet you last year ~ we shall have to make more occasions of it this year, girl!

    So proud of all your achievements. You truly grabbed 2017 by the horns and didn’t let it go! 2018 is gonna be so shook of you, mate.

    Loving your goals and I absolutely know that you can smash them. Geddit, girl, geddit ๐Ÿ’ช๐Ÿฝ You’re so inspiring!

    1. YOU BET I DID GIRL

      Such a wonderful time meeting you last year, I hope we can meet again this year! I love you loads!

  20. Wow, it’s amazing how much time you spent working on your body last year, I hope to follow your footsteps with that this year. I haven’t even got an excuse to use either, as I’m in student accommodation and I get a free gym membership to the on campus gym, which means that I have endless swimming lessons, Zumba classes, yoga etc, and yet I find I’ve barely used the facilities all year. I krep saying to other bloggers that I want to invest more time and money into my health, as at the end of the day it’s the most important thing. I think watching what we eat is so important, and you look so much stronger and healthier, congratulations!

    Being more careful is another killer, last semester I kept going out for curries and stuff and it would easily cost ยฃ30 each time, whereas I know that if I had made them myself I could have learnt a nee skill, experimented, saved money, and create something that is probably healthier than any of the other stuff. I also went out drinking a lot (student life, right?), and although I’d spend less than ยฃ20 each night, five nights in and I could afford a budget flight and hotel somewhere in Europe for a couple days – much better spent I think.

    Either way, here’s to an even better year full of wealth and health and adventures and fun ๐Ÿ™‚

    Amy;
    Little Moon Elephant

    1. I think that all time whenever I’m about to splash money on getting food outside. Making eating in a habit has been amazing, I’m glad that I did it! ๐Ÿค—

      Happy New Year!

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.