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Sunday, 8 January 2017

Focus in 2017



So I'm thinking you can guess what my resolution will be then? Not so much a resolution, but a mantra that I think will be necessary for me to get through the next 8 months. You see I'm now in my final year of my training programme to become a qualified Clinical Biochemist. If you would like to read more about this here would be a good place to start.

Its a bit dry but will give you an idea. I am now two years and three months into my training which all needs to be finished by August. Whilst the majority of the training is on-the-job I also have to do a Masters degree, the dissertation for which needs writing up ASAP (in actual fact it should already be finished...), followed by more exams in April. As you can guess then I have a lot to get done. Likely more than I actually have time for.

Pre-Christmas was very stressful. I was doing a lot of travelling (including for three interviews at which I was unsuccessful), I got ill for 2 weeks and to top it off had to get a new car on the 23rd of December to drive the 300 miles to be with my family for Christmas. I am now finally feeling more calm, but know that now is the time when I really have to knuckle down and focus. Focus on completing my work-based competency assessments, focus on finishing my dissertation this month, and focus on finding a job for when I qualify in August. 

Whilst I know that I work best when I have a little bit of stress on me, I know that this makes me unhappy, so I would like to start 2017 focused on getting the work done, without getting stressed and in a muddle such as at the end of 2016. 

I'll let you know how I get on but I aim to designate 'work times', an hour here or there where I will just work, and get a job completed. No chat, no checking of my phone, no getting up to make endless cuppas. My main problem is that my brain will not focus for any length of time. Whenever I am carrying out one task I am always thinking of another, and another, and end up flitting between them all, leaving three, or often more, tasks unfinished. This brain clutter is driving me mad and its something I really want to focus (ha!) on this year. My boyfriend is even hoping I will be able to watch a film that is longer than an hour and a half with him! I can't even do that currently. Even as I write this I am resisting the urge to edit a couple of photos to add to this post (isn't Marina the tabby cute?). So far so good......

I also want to apply more focus to my crafting. To this end I am trying to only have two projects on the go at any one time. One a shorter, more satisfying project, and another, slower paced project. One for when I'm tired and need something simple to work on. As well as the mental clutter the physical clutter is getting me down too. I have been limiting my projects for a month or so now and its definitely helped. 

Over Christmas I got my first Etsy sale. Whooop! After I have finished this post I will be having a little rejig of my Etsy store, getting rid of the Christmas stock for more designs. Please do let me know what you think. I would like to focus a little more on this in 2017, but know that ultimately my day job must come first this year.

Have you made any resolutions? Or have you, like me, chosen a word for 2017? If so I would love to hear what you have chosen. Happy 2017!


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