DOING WHAT YOU LOVE

It was only a couple of months ago that I realised how little attention I paid to those four words throughout my life. Do what you love. In childhood, this manifested itself in hobbies; some children played football, some swam, some danced. Or if you were like me, you spent half your time playing sport and the other half reading. But although your parents may have shifted the balance towards you choosing a certain activity, it was your choice, and you chose to do that particular activity because you enjoyed it. This becomes even more prevalent when you reach teenage years and begin to drop hobbies - for those you carry on with are clearly those you have the most fun doing. I did synchronised swimming until I was 16 - competed in Nationals twice, with 12 hours of practice a week. You can only reach that level of commitment if you enjoy something. Children 'specialise' in fields of interest, and this decides what sort of a person they are and what they will be doing in later life.

Fast forward to the age of 16, when children have to decide their career. I know I seem fixated on career choice in my posts, but it was such an important realisation and journey for me personally that I don't want others to be stuck in the same position I was. So many people choose careers because they looked through a web page and spotted one they liked the look of, or looked at the highest-ranking salaries. But money is not going to seem like such of a pressing issue if you are bloody miserable earning it! A friend once said that although her dad earns a fair amount of money at his job, he dreads waking up every morning because he cannot stand his job. This is supposed to be a career lasting you 50 years, so why would you choose something that you hate? Life is supposed to be about happiness and fulfilling the short time we have, so why would you make yourself unhappy by making one wrong decision? If you always enjoyed leading groups and presenting in class as a child, be a teacher if that is what you want to do! If you wrote stories throughout your childhood and still have notepads full of them (ahem) then find a job where you can write for a living! If you are an incredible singer, bringing goosebumps and tears to those around you, don't listen to anyone telling you you are not good enough. Prove them wrong, and sing your way to the top!

I decided a while ago that my life is going to be focused around happiness. I will be around the people who bring out the best version of myself, and distance myself from the toxic ones. After exams, I will pick up the activities I always enjoyed doing - scrap-booking, drawing, writing, reading...the list goes on. I will set my sites on my end career goal, and do everything in my power to get there. Life is far too short to press pause and watch the replays, the best way to live your life is to LIVE! Have messy nights, travel, work night shifts, be completely and utterly spontaneous because that is the only way you can properly explore who you are, and from that develop where your future lies. University, a career and a family don't have to follow in quick succession, there is not a set path you must follow.

Do what you want, and don't let anyone tell you you're wrong.

L xx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vx2u5uUu3DE Bon Jovi - It's My Life

IDEAS AND INSPIRATION

Inspiration can be sought from anywhere. The unnamed hamlets you pass through on a train journey. The people strolling past you in the park, content in their oblivion. The harassed parent with the screaming child on the supermarket floor. If you look closely enough, if you pay enough attention to the minute details, you have the potential to find that spark of inspiration that will later ignite and begin a scorcher of a story.

That's why I always carry a notebook with me. I seem to have an unhealthy obsession with notebooks; with far too many floating around my bedroom. I am transfixed by their designs, textures and quotes, not to mention the endless pages of fresh, new white paper. I am drawn to the stationary isle of any supermarket, to the Paperchases and Rymans' of the High Street, to the quirky boutiques of Camden. When I find a notebook that is just right, it then holds all of the memories of that trip in which I can immerse myself whenever I turn the pages.

It's my safety net. If I am in brand new territory and am seemingly lost, as long as I have a notebook, I know I can sit myself somewhere, and just write. Writing is what I do best. And if I can't write, I draw. As soon as I sit myself in a library, a coffee shop or a park, with people to observe, sounds and smells to stimulate my senses, I open my notebook and write.

I am going to challenge you. I challenge you to go to a new city or town, somewhere you have never been before. Buy a notebook; whether it's a 99p ringbinder from the supermarket or a leather-bound pad from a High Street boutique, the choice is yours. Purchase a pen; fountain pens are a personal favourite but a Biro will do just fine. Locate a local coffee shop, park or even a bus stop. Then just sit still, and breathe in the smells of coffee beans, petrol fumes, freshly mown grass. Listen to the people around you, the cats fighting in the back alleys, the water fountain trickling steadily. Find your own source of inspiration, and just let the words flow from the barrel of your pen onto the crisp, white paper. Appreciate the world you live in. That's where true inspiration comes from.

SPRINGTIME

Spring. The first full season of the new year. When I think of spring, I think of all of the clichés surrounding it; small, fluffy baby animals, vibrant yellow daffodils, the beginnings of new buds on trees. But for myself, the idea of a 'fresh start' that spring brings, also gives me hope that the coming year will be the best one yet. And that is what has happened. Every year, I experience new places, people and things, and achieve more than I ever thought possible. Because of this, for the last few years, on the first day of spring (in 2015 being 20th March) I have created a list of all that I would like to accomplish in the coming year. Now the items on this list are not typical "bucket list" items, such as go skydiving, go on a road trip or visit a festival. Instead, they are tasks which I need to complete in order to ensure that I achieve everything in the future that I want to. So, I am going to share with you all that is on my list, for the year of 2015.

1. A-Levels.

In summer, I will be completing my second year of A-Levels in Biology, Psychology and English Language. At the end of my first year, I achieved CBA respectively, which, if I am being completely honest, was a disappointing result. This year I am working harder and longer than I ever have before, to achieve my goal of BAA. Despite not going to university, results like these will land me in good stead for other opportunities, and will also provide me with a platform for leverage should I ever want to go to university. Evidence of talent is useful, but every employer likes to see a high quality array of three letters on a piece of paper.

2. Get an internship.

This next point sort of goes against what I have just said, but if a balance of the two is considered then you will begin to get an idea of what I am going for. For a career in journalism, or writing, most employers will look to those with a degree first, this is true. However the factor which is just as, if not more important is evidence of your ability. By getting an internship at a magazine or online platform, even though I won't be paid I will be mixing with the right sort of people and will be able to begin putting my writing out there. I am aware that long hours will be spent fetching coffee and taking notes, but what else am I to expect when I have decided to take the hard way in? Working out how a magazine enterprise works will allow me to work my way up in their estimations, and get advice from the best on how to make it big.

3. Get a full-time job.

Due to not being paid, a full-time internship would not be appropriate. I will be an 18 year old girl living with her parents, hoping to travel the world solo in 2016. For this to work, I need a job. Now I currently have two jobs, both lifeguarding at a leisure centre. However for a full-time position I will be looking for a job in retail in the city of Bath. Bath is a city of opportunity and class, and so I hope that working there will give me the inspiration I need when writing and finding a suitable internship. I am aware that points 2 and 3 will not give me much spare time, but by filling up my schedule I will ensure that as little time as possible is spent doing nothing. Because at the end of the day, where is that going to get me?

4. Work harder on my book.

As some of you will know, I began writing my first novel last summer. I am 50 pages in, and have not written a single sentence for it in 6 months. This upsets me, as during the summer I would spend hours drafting and redrafting - it was my creative outlook. Therefore when I finish my A-Levels and have much more time to think and be stress-free, I would like to begin to work very hard on it in my spare time, and hopefully at the same time as being something to do, it will allow me to hone my writing skills and impact on my blog, and everything else I am up to.

5. Write more regularly on 'Welcome to my reflection.'

This is the third blog I have written on since learning about the activity. At first I had a fashion and beauty blog, and then was asked to write for a lifestyle blog, and then began this one. I have not written as much as I would have liked to while I have had it, and am putting this misdemeanor down to the stress of exams and coursework. It was my creative outlook, my little piece of the internet. My baby! So following results day I would like to up my frequency of posts to at least one a week, in order to build my online portfolio, as it were, in anticipation of potential writing positions!

Next spring I will revise this, and can see what I have and haven't managed to achieve in 2016.

L xx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LanCLS_hIo4 Bob Marley - Three Little Birds(because no one holds more optimism about the future than Bob, right?)