Now Is The Start // A Playlist For A New Year

A playlist for a new year: A little upbeat, motivating lyrics, a bit of a slow-down in the middle... it is filled with some songs that I am really loving lately & some old favorites. 

I hope that gets you pumped for whatever you have planned in 2014!

Track List:

1) Now is the Start - A Fine Frenzy

2) Sun Up Sun Down - Brooke White (feat. Christian Campbell)*

3) It's Time - Imagine Dragons

4) Something Good Can Work - Two Door Cinema Club

5) Anything Could Happen - Ellie Goulding

6) Lost! - Coldplay

7) Old Enough - The Raconteurs

8) Feathers - Jack and White

9) Just A Ride - Jem

10) Many the Miles - Sara Bareilles

11) Shut Your Eyes - Snowpatrol

12) Clarity - John Mayer

13) Tonight Let's Dance - Elefant

14) Don't Let it Break Your Heart - Coldplay

15) We Won't Go Home - The Colourist

16) All This Time (Pick-Me-Up-Song) - Maria Mena

17) Pumpin' Blood - NONONO

18) It's Alive - A Fine Frenzy

19) Roll Away Your Stone - Mumford & Sons

20) On Top of the Word - Jem

21) The Story - Brandi Carlile

* This is my favorite song to listen to on morning drives to work. 

Especially on days I don't feel like going.. :) 

What are some songs that get you feeling motivated or encouraged?

What are your goals for 2014?

Thanks for Reading,

Alexandra

2013 Goals Revisited.. How'd I Do?

26 Goals for 2013:

1) See an ocean. {no the gulf didn't count}

2) Attempt to make my own Macarons.  Surprisingly successful & easy!

3) Learn to use my sewing machine & make something cool with it.

4) Visit 5 new places.

5) Open my Etsy store.

6) Read at least 25 books, 5 of which must be classics. (15 & 2)

7) Upgrade my blog.-{photo label, new topics, better design & layout, ads for other bloggers etc.}

8) Visit a BIG flea market, the kind where you need a wagon!

9) Start buying all organic butter, organic cage free eggs, organic half and half and creams.

10) Actually make green cleaners and clean with them.

11) Start more "upcycling" crafts.

12) Try 25 family recipes and learn a story about them.

13) Buy and care for 2 house plants. 

14) Set up an emergency savings account. 
15) Clean out everything that is underneath the bed, and then use that space in a more useful storage way.
16) Start using eco-friendly laundry products to take when we do our laundry.-{no, we don't currently have a washer/dryer} :(
17) Learn to arrange flowers.
18) Floss & Use Fluoride Rinse 3 X's per week.-{did you know? Flossing regularly is said to help your immune system enough to add years to your life?!?}
19) Make a cleaning schedule.
20) Move More.-walk 3 x's per week after dinner, do yoga 2x's per week, do other workouts {belly dance, Kristi yamaguchi, just dance on the wii} 1x per week

21) Learn to do my hair-{use my diffuser, try blowing out my hair, other styles besides my typical ponytail}
22) Start sending more mail and giving more gifts just because.

23)Host 12 get-togethers.
24) Drink no more than 3 sodas per week. {Seriously, I drink WAY too much soda}
25) Make a menu-making and grocery shopping schedule to ensure less eating out and better budget meeting.
26) Reach 75,000 blog views.

Even though I didn't check off as many goals as I would like, it was an incredible year! I feel like I got to do so many great things!

Other Accomplishments:

Finished the Divergent book series
Finished the Hunger Games book series
Checked several things off of my 2022 list (Still coming soon!)
Moved to a bigger, nicer apartment
Got a furry friend
Beat my blog view goal by A LOT! (almost 95,000!)
Sat front row at a Celtic Woman concert!
Traveled A Lot (both near and far)!
Saw more concerts than any other year!
Did some seriously successful thrifting on many occasions!
Celebrated second great year of marriage!
Started working on my wardrobe development more.

My goals for 2014!

How did you do on your 2013 goals?

What are you planning for 2014?

Thank you for reading!! 

Alexandra

Color Run Lawrence 2012

Lawrence was lucky enough to have a Color Run this last October!

I am NOT a runner. I actually really dislike running. I would partake in most other forms of exercise first. However, I had made it a goal to do a Color Run within the next 10 years because it seemed like fun. (10 year list of goals coming soon!)

The Kansas City run was in July and sold out very quickly. But luckily Lawrence was chosen as a site and it happened in much cooler temperatures!

We didn't train. We ran once with our friends Emy and Matthew who signed up with us. Emy had run 5Ks before, so she was prepared!

For me, I just wanted the Color Run experience. The fun, the activity, the money to charity but I never set any specific goals for how much I would run. 

So we just kind of went with it. It was really fun! You run through 4 different color stations and then at the end there is a party where everyone throws color packets, dances and celebrates.  I think we probably ran about 2 of the 4 legs of the run all together. Either way, it was a really fun experience!

I highly recommend it to the young, old, runners and non-runners alike! 

Find an upcoming run near you, by clicking here.

It makes me want to look at other fun 5Ks. :) Any recommendations?

Have you ever done a Color Run? Did you enjoy it?

All for now,

Alexandra

7 Tips for Goal Setting Success!

Happy 2013! Here is a little guide of tips on goal setting that I put together. 

These are tips that I use personally that help me achieve the goals that I set. Many I have read, others I have just determined work for me as I set more goals. 

I hope that these help you set fun and challenging goals for 2013!

Tips for Success in Goal Setting:

1) Make fun goals! - Don't think that because it is the beginning of January that your goals have to be all about saving money, losing weight and de-cluttering! If those are some of your goals, great! If not, that's great too! The best way I have found to set goals myself is to mix the fun in with the more tedious ones. That way I get a good mix and feel accomplished in multiple ways at the end of the year. You aren't going to want to accomplish your goals if you aren't excited about them. 

2) Make your goals specific & measurable - Making a goal like, "exercise more," "save money," or "read more books," is setting you up to fail. When setting a goal, think about where you are now for the goal and where you want to end up. Be as specific as possible. For example: "read more books" - how many books did you read last year? how many books would you like to read this year? Is it a feasible number? Is it ambitious enough to be motivating? What types of books do you want to read? When do you want to complete the goal by? How will I know if I completed my goal? 

Your new improved goal might look something like this: "By January 2014, read 7 books, 2 of which are biographies and 2 of which are travel books."

3) Write goals as if you know you can complete them- This gives you the confidence of feeling like there is no question of your capabilities each time you read it. For example, the improved goal above about reading becomes even better when it is specific & measurable as well as written with confidence. The new goal would look something like: "By January 2014 I have read 7 books. 2 of which are biographies and 2 are travel books."

4) Be Ambitious!- Lululemon Athletica, a encourages their employees, blog readers & customers to set what they call BHAGs. Big, Hairy, Audacious Goals. We are competitive and we like to improve ourselves. Giving yourself a little bit of a challenge is very motivating and exciting. Last year, I could have very easily set a goal to make 50 new recipes in a year. That could have been a challenge, but 100 was truly exciting! I'm so glad I pushed myself to do it! I was very motivated to finish it because it sounded so impressive. 

5) Set a Mixture of end-point and on-going goals- I find that I do best with goal setting and achievement when I set some goals that have a definite end-point like, "see coldplay live in concert" and others that are on-going like, "floss 3 X's per week" If your entire list is on-going goals, you will probably wear yourself out and get stressed by trying to keep up with too many on-going habits at the same time. If you set only end-point goals then you might not feel very challenged. Picking a good mixture really helps me stay motivated and achieve more things in a period of time.

6) Start Small- Start with about 5 goals, especially if you are new to goal setting. I have started setting more and more as I have learned to identify what types of things I want to achieve and how I work best. You should be able to set a list that feels reasonable, but a little challenging to you. Don't overwhelm yourself with 50 big goals for a year the first time around.

7) Reflect on Your Goals, OFTEN- When you make your goals, make sure you revisit them monthly. Looking back at your goals helps keep you on track and excited about possibilities throughout the year/season etc. And at the end of the year make sure you see how you did. Did you set too many goals? Did you set too few? Were they all too similar? Evaluating your progress is a learning process. Don't be hard on yourself! Trying is half the battle! The courage to try something is often times much more important than achieving it. It is kind of like that quote "the journey is greater than the end destination." Post reviewing my 2012 goals, coming tomorrow! :)

Below I have added links to my goals for 2011, 2012 & 2013. Check them out for inspiration and examples of how it is hard to start out. My 2011 list is really unspecific and contains WAY too many things with not enough on-going/end-point variety. It might be helpful to get ideas, but it is a good example of how NOT to set goals, especially starting out!

For more goal setting posts, check out my achieve tab. 

To see my 2013 goals, click here.

To see my 2012 goals, click here. 

To see my 2011 goals, click here.

I hope that you found this post helpful! :)

What are your favorite goal setting strategies?

All for now,

Alexandra

26 Goals for 2013!

Chances are if you read my blog, you know I am a big goal person. 

I try to set them daily, weekly, seasonally, yearly and even longer term than that. 

This year, just like any other.. I made a list of goals for the coming year. 

I am really excited about this list and consequently for 2013.. so here you have it!

26 Goals for 2013:

1) See an ocean. {no the gulf didn't count}

2) Attempt to make my own Macarons.

3) Learn to use my sewing machine & make something cool with it.

4) Visit 5 new places.

5) Open my Etsy store.

6) Read at least 25 books, 5 of which must be classics.

7) Upgrade my blog.-{photo label, new topics, better design & layout, ads for other bloggers etc.}

8) Visit a BIG flea market, the kind where you need a wagon!

9) Start buying all organic butter, organic cage free eggs, organic half and half and creams.

10) Actually make green cleaners and clean with them.

11) Start more "upcycling" crafts.

12) Try 25 family recipes and learn a story about them.

13) Buy and care for 2 house plants. 

14) Set up an emergency savings account. 
15) Clean out everything that is underneath the bed, and then use that space in a more useful storage way.
16) Start using eco-friendly laundry products to take when we do our laundry.-{no, we don't currently have a washer/dryer} :(
17) Learn to arrange flowers.
18) Floss & Use Fluoride Rinse 3 X's per week.-{did you know? Flossing regularly is said to help your immune system enough to add years to your life?!?}
19) Make a cleaning schedule.
20) Move More.-walk 3 x's per week after dinner, do yoga 2x's per week, do other workouts {belly dance, Kristi yamaguchi, just dance on the wii} 1x per week

21) Learn to do my hair-{use my diffuser, try blowing out my hair, other styles besides my typical ponytail}
22) Start sending more mail and giving more gifts just because.

23)Host 12 get-togethers.
24) Drink no more than 3 sodas per week. {Seriously, I drink WAY too much soda}
25) Make a menu-making and grocery shopping schedule to ensure less eating out and better budget meeting.
26) Reach 75,000 blog views.

Why it is NOT too late to make your 2013 goals!

1) Goals are much more about little steps than they are about big successes. Many people think that if they don't start right at January 1st or do something successfully every week during that they have failed. This is just not true! Small steps and victories are the best way to gain self confidence when it comes to goal setting!

2) Goals give you a reason to do something fun or something good for yourself! Many nights I sit around wondering what to do with my evening. When I have goals I can spend time working towards them instead of wasting hours of facebook. At the end of the year, even if I didn't finish my goal, I definitely made steps in the right direction & probably had lots of fun doing it!

Check out my other post: 7 Tips for Goal Setting Success!

I hope that this list inspires you to make goals for 2013!

What is on your 2013 list?

All for now,

Alexandra  

Coming Tomorrow: My evaluation of my 2012 goals!

Daily Feats: Helping People Do Good

One day while I was shopping on Gaiam.com I stumbled across an add for Daily Feats. I didn't know what it was but I signed up.. and haven't looked back since.

Daily Feats allows you to log your daily "good" activities and earn points on their website. You can check in and say that you took the stairs, spent time outside, read a book, volunteered, ate leafy greens etc. And earn points which you can save up to redeem for online gift cards from places like Starbucks, Fandango, iTunes and Barnes and Noble {just to name a few!}. 

Not only can you redeem online gift cards but you can also donate your points to worthy charities! 

I have found that this website keeps me accountable to do good things in my daily life and keep me on track with my goal setting! I will start logging and see something that makes me think "hmm I should really do yoga today" or "I should really make a menu for the week!". It definitely keeps me on track with healthy habits and goals. But it also rewards you for doing fun things too! Reading, Dancing, Singing, Hosting a Gathering etc. It is both a health and social reward system.

As you may have noticed using Daily Feats consistently is actually one of my 2012 resolutions! Summer was the perfect time to get on track! I log my feats every weekday now!

The first time I used my daily feats points I donated $10 to Millennium Promise and ~$50 to Companions for Heroes. Millennium Promise is a global organization that is working to reduce and eradicate hunger and poverty around the world. Companions for Heroes is an organization that works to pair shelter/rescue animals with veterans who need service or companion animals. 

The second time I redeemed my points I received a $10 gift card to Gaiam.com.

The third time I redeemed my points I received a $10 Starbucks gift card.

The fourth time I redeemed my points I donated $165 to Companions for Heroes. 

This website is doing so many great things for the world!

1) Its helping people to achieve their goals.

2) Its encouraging people to do good things in their daily lives.

3) Its rewarding people for their good deeds.

4) Its allowing people to pass on their reward for doing good to do more good through charity donations.

This website is amazing. I would highly recommend it to everyone. It can help you achieve your goals, earn some gift cards and make donations to excellent charities!

Sign up for Daily Feats today!

Also for those lucky smart phone users out there, they do have an app! It makes it really easy for you to log as you go! 

Please send me your feedback or stories about using Daily Feats as well as your questions!

All For Now,

Alexandra 

The Day after I posted this I came across a Companions for Heroes Video. After watching this video I decided to donate another $100 to the cause with my Daily Feats points! It is such a wonderful organization! :) Check out the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdJKkw50z5Y

*NOTE* I do not work for Daily Feats, nor am I being commissioned to write this post by them. I am blogging about it because it is something that I truly believe in. {wouldn't it be cool to work for them though?? :)}