Hello from ROME! It is precisely one million degrees and has been since I arrived on Thursday night, but I've been having a glorious time frolicking about makeup-free, taking photos, eating various pastas and sweating more than I ever have in the rest of my life combined. I thought it would be prudent to pop in and say a quick buongiorno because although I'm leaving here tomorrow night, I'm then heading off again pretty much as soon as I get back to London (this time with William, which will be fab because we've both had a minor codependent meltdown over this extremely brief separation). I haven't got any posts scheduled and I don't particularly fancy leaving you sweet, precious angels at a loose end until my gallivanting has concluded, so let's have an impromptu monthly catch up.
Reflecting on July, I did a pretty 50/50 job with my goals, primarily because I underestimated how hectic it was going to be, and also because I've had a slight shift in priorities. In any case, in terms of taking advantage of London I did great. Visited several museums, did a lot of walking, worked in cafes most days and caught up with as many people as I could handle given the very un-British heat. The 'London List' I wrote up for myself of things I want to do or see is looking healthy, and I even ticked off the West End show, thanks to an evening at The King & I with my friend Sophie. I've taken lots of photos, walked considerably more than usual, been keeping a travel journal consistently and have a pretty organised idea of the different content I want to be creating over the next month or so. Won't get into any more detail about my Londinium escapades because it'll all be coming up in separate posts A$AP, but on that front I'd give myself an A.
Conversely, I did literally nothing work-wise, which is like honestly mea culpa etc. but I'm not actually that sorry because I was filling my time well and I'd rather take advantage of London (and Rome) while I can. Actually looking at my to do lists I did do a bit of work, in that I planned my on-site blog posts, started on my supplementary content and now have a loose marketing plan, it's just all behind the scenes stuff you can't really see so I don't feel like I've done anything. Which has made me slightly stressed tbph with u but we'll get to that in a minute. The book writing is going well. I ended up writing just under 6,000 words, but I'm surprisingly really happy with that. Since writing that much I've realised I want to switch it up and write in first person instead of third, and as soon as I started rewriting things that shift made a massive difference in terms of how easily it's coming together. Feeling content on that front and also optimistic about actually writing 10k in August.
Looking towards August, I've decided to change gears a bit and focus more on my state of mind than individual tasks to get done.
I'm in a pretty good rhythm in terms of hitting my basic marks, but I think being so productivity-focused has put me on a bit of a goal-oriented autopilot and I need to backtrack slightly. Over the past week I've felt a bit burnt out and hazy, and found it incredibly difficult to organise my thoughts properly, which was unexpected considering I'm in literal Rome. Usually when I'm in Italy I feel excited and inspired, and I am incredibly happy to be here but there is definitely some sort of mental block going on that needs dismantling. It's not anything serious and luckily I still feel as though I have my priorities and goals completely ironed out, I think I just need to consciously unwind. Being back in London after 6 months away has been a LOT, and July was a weird mix of constantly doing things while simultaneously feeling as though I wasn't not doing enough, which I think has left me a bit burnt out. I know what I'm working towards, I know what I need to do, I just need to accept that and give myself time and space to switch off for a couple of days so my brain can start functioning creatively again and scheming freely.
AUGUST GOALS
Be present and appreciate my circumstances
Take advantage of travel
Manifest, journal, listen to my intuition
Keep things in perspective, don't stress
Roll out on-site blog content
Finish creating supplementary pieces
Create travel-based content
Write 10k more words of novel
Visit a museum/gallery a week
Continue my travel diary
Focus on personal growth
Read every night
Walk as much as possible
Quality time with Will
Visit the Cheese Museum
See Mamma Mia 2
Finish ticking off my 'London List'
Make time to unwind every day
Paint more
Stay in a good routine
Slightly different vibe from last month, but there's no point setting myself a bunch of tasks if my head isn't in the right place. I'm not in a bad headspace at all - like I said, I'm loving being back in London and obviously currently in Rome - but I am finding it hard to process different kinds of productivity as equally valid, and there's definitely some sort of epiphany on the horizon that my subconscious is trying to push me toward. I am so frickin excited to see Will tomorrow night, and I'm double excited for us to go away for our anniversary this weekend, and I can't wait to put together all the different blog posts I've been working on piece by piece. Things are really good right now, and talking to Will's parents - particularly his mum who created her business completely on her own - while they were in London last week helped me put my own work situation in perspective a bit. Basically I just need to chill out, and considering that's historically one of the things I do best, I'm looking forward to August. Apologies if this has been mildly incoherent, it's 2.35am and I've been scuttling around in 36 degree heat all day. Realistically I planned on going to bed several hours ago, but here we are. I will likely next check in after our weekend away, so expect a rendezvous mid next week.
For now, arrivederci. x0x0
