Is it just me or do you feel like 2017 is just flying by?

January, zoom, it’s been and gone. One 12^th of the year already over. And what have I got to show for it?

Well the year started off more like a fizzle than a bang, with a massive puce bruise on my leg from falling down the stairs, and a pretty decent dose of SAD (seasonal affective disorder).

But some of that was also fed by the pressure I put on myself in January. You see I’d put together this great list of goals for 2017 but some of them were struggling to get off the ground.

I had surprised myself actually by cutting back on the TV watching and I’ve given up EastEnders (don’t tell me any of the storylines), and I’ve been doing so so on finishing work at a reasonable time each night. But I haven’t made it to the climbing wall or even to the English countryside for a stroll, and my “regular” blogging, well I think we will just say no comment on that.

It’s interesting, when you set yourself goals, the mental anguish you can go through when you realise you’re not meeting your own expectations. At least that is the case for me and I have lambasted myself a bit over the past few weeks. In general, I’m incredibly hard on myself and should probably learn to give myself a break at times.

But part of it, at least again for me, is about having a plan in place. (Oh boy do I like a plan!) Call me a control freak (it’s true) but if I have a plan or I schedule things in the diary then things are more likely to happen. I’m not very good with waking up and saying ‘hmmm what shall I do today?’ – that’s how I end up being unproductive and wasting time.

With this in mind, I know this is the reason why I haven’t gone rock climbing or walking yet this year – because of the simple fact that I haven’t “planned” when I should do this. Some things can’t be left to chance – if you want something, you have to make it happen.

And now I need a kick up the behind – I’ll be in New Zealand in a month (at least those plans are progressing well, though taking longer than I would have liked) and there are some serious outdoor pursuits involved. Based on this morning’s vicious spin class I definitely need to do some training.

Tomorrow then, is going to be a walk over the rolling hills in the south of England – not exactly the best training for the more rugged mountainous terrain in New Zealand. But it’s a start, right?

How are your goals for 2017 progressing?