Sebastian (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
wildeabandon) wrote2019-04-02 11:10 pm
wildeabandon) wrote2019-04-02 11:10 pm
March Goals Update
Goals. January. February
Meta
I'm still liking todoist, which I think means it's been more successful for me than any other productivity app so far. I think I'll stop commenting on it now unless that changes. I have not only managed to refrain from taking on anything new, but now that both my piano exam is done and Thronescamp is over, I'm starting to free up more time. Shortly I'll also be handing over the reins as church treasurer. I think at that point I might be able to relax the "nothing new" rule a little bit, but I should probably make sure that I'm very on top of wedding planning first. Writing these monthly updates is definitely proving helpful in continuing to make progress against my goals - even the ones I'm not quite achieving, I think I'm getting closer to because I'm keeping an awareness of them in my mind.
Finances
March was another not-brilliant month in terms of spending, coming in about 10% over budget, which puts the running total over for the first time this year. The discrepancy was spread across a few different categories, mostly small amounts, although unsurprisingly dining out was the biggest one. April was looking as though it might give me an opportunity to rein that back in, but then I made some fancy dinner plans for May that I needed to pre-pay for. I've pared back a few other categories, but at this stage even if I stick to my budget as planned for the whole months I'll still come in slightly over again. On the positive side, I now have two exciting dinners that I've already paid for in the diary for May, so hopefully that will make it easier for me to resist temptation to add more, and let me make up some of the shortfall.
Faith and Church
So on the one hand I'm still not doing brilliantly at the specific goals I set. I am doing better at making sure to talk to people, especially people I know less well, over coffee, and although I've not been quite maintaining a daily examen habit, I've definitely been managing it a reasonable amount of the time. I've been saying Compline once a week after my Lent course at Mirfield But I've still not manage to carve out any times for longer periods of private prayer. On the positive side, I have been doing quite a lot of reflective reading of books about theology and also of scripture, which isn't exactly prayer, but it isn't exactly not prayer either. I've actually put some time in my diary next week in the slot where my Lent course has been the last few weeks to think about and plan for more prayer.
Health
Running continues very well. I missed quite a few days early on in the month, but more because of having other commitments that were higher priority than not feeling like it, and I caught up the distance gradually over the month, finishing with 127 miles (against my target of 125) with a bonus day off on the 31st. I've been enjoying it quite a bit more than I did in February, partly because I'm measurably improving, which is always nice, and I think partly because the weather has been nicer. I'm aiming for another 125 miles in April, and got off to a good start with a 13 mile run on the 1st. I ran 5 Parkruns, taking my total for the year to 13/40, so comfortably ahead of schedule. I also got two PBs, going from 22.52 to 21.53, and then down to 21.21. Strength goals are still on hold. At some point I'll pull back on the amount of running I'm doing and switch focus to strength.
Hobbies
Take (and pass!) Grade 5 piano - tick!
I'm not really managing to do music practice every day, or even nearly every day. I think honestly I'm probably not going to turn that around this month, although I'll be spending more of it in London with a piano, and I'm making things happen with St John's Singers, so it's not completely falling by the wayside. Writing dreamwidth entries is going a bit in fits and starts, but it is happening. I hosted two readthroughs in March, and have a to-do list entry to start planning another (small) one after Easter. I only cooked one new recipe, but this is another thing that should be easy to do more of in London. I saw two plays, have one in the diary for April (plus an opera in May, which I think counts), and I've got two more trips planned, just waiting for people to get back to me about dates. I visited Cambridge once, and have another trip planned in April (for Easter). I haven't hosted any dinner parties, and nor are there any in the diary, so I should get on that.
Meta
I'm still liking todoist, which I think means it's been more successful for me than any other productivity app so far. I think I'll stop commenting on it now unless that changes. I have not only managed to refrain from taking on anything new, but now that both my piano exam is done and Thronescamp is over, I'm starting to free up more time. Shortly I'll also be handing over the reins as church treasurer. I think at that point I might be able to relax the "nothing new" rule a little bit, but I should probably make sure that I'm very on top of wedding planning first. Writing these monthly updates is definitely proving helpful in continuing to make progress against my goals - even the ones I'm not quite achieving, I think I'm getting closer to because I'm keeping an awareness of them in my mind.
Finances
March was another not-brilliant month in terms of spending, coming in about 10% over budget, which puts the running total over for the first time this year. The discrepancy was spread across a few different categories, mostly small amounts, although unsurprisingly dining out was the biggest one. April was looking as though it might give me an opportunity to rein that back in, but then I made some fancy dinner plans for May that I needed to pre-pay for. I've pared back a few other categories, but at this stage even if I stick to my budget as planned for the whole months I'll still come in slightly over again. On the positive side, I now have two exciting dinners that I've already paid for in the diary for May, so hopefully that will make it easier for me to resist temptation to add more, and let me make up some of the shortfall.
Faith and Church
So on the one hand I'm still not doing brilliantly at the specific goals I set. I am doing better at making sure to talk to people, especially people I know less well, over coffee, and although I've not been quite maintaining a daily examen habit, I've definitely been managing it a reasonable amount of the time. I've been saying Compline once a week after my Lent course at Mirfield But I've still not manage to carve out any times for longer periods of private prayer. On the positive side, I have been doing quite a lot of reflective reading of books about theology and also of scripture, which isn't exactly prayer, but it isn't exactly not prayer either. I've actually put some time in my diary next week in the slot where my Lent course has been the last few weeks to think about and plan for more prayer.
Health
Running continues very well. I missed quite a few days early on in the month, but more because of having other commitments that were higher priority than not feeling like it, and I caught up the distance gradually over the month, finishing with 127 miles (against my target of 125) with a bonus day off on the 31st. I've been enjoying it quite a bit more than I did in February, partly because I'm measurably improving, which is always nice, and I think partly because the weather has been nicer. I'm aiming for another 125 miles in April, and got off to a good start with a 13 mile run on the 1st. I ran 5 Parkruns, taking my total for the year to 13/40, so comfortably ahead of schedule. I also got two PBs, going from 22.52 to 21.53, and then down to 21.21. Strength goals are still on hold. At some point I'll pull back on the amount of running I'm doing and switch focus to strength.
Hobbies
Take (and pass!) Grade 5 piano - tick!
I'm not really managing to do music practice every day, or even nearly every day. I think honestly I'm probably not going to turn that around this month, although I'll be spending more of it in London with a piano, and I'm making things happen with St John's Singers, so it's not completely falling by the wayside. Writing dreamwidth entries is going a bit in fits and starts, but it is happening. I hosted two readthroughs in March, and have a to-do list entry to start planning another (small) one after Easter. I only cooked one new recipe, but this is another thing that should be easy to do more of in London. I saw two plays, have one in the diary for April (plus an opera in May, which I think counts), and I've got two more trips planned, just waiting for people to get back to me about dates. I visited Cambridge once, and have another trip planned in April (for Easter). I haven't hosted any dinner parties, and nor are there any in the diary, so I should get on that.
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