by mills

As lockdown continues, I’m trying to stay as motivated and productive as possible (shock), and one way I’m trying to continue this is with setting myself some goals. I like to set out my weekly goals but am ready to set out something I can monitor over a period of time. I do track my habits with my habit tracker in my planner, but I never properly set goals so today I am going to share them and at the end of the month I will look back on them and see if I have achieved them, and if not, I will carry on working towards them. goal one- to keep my mental health up It is fair to say my mental health has took a hit recently, so I’m hoping to keep it up this next month by staying happy and productive, as well as finding a balance and taking some time to care for myself. goal two- improve my fitness At the start of April, I kept pulling my shoulder so I struggled to complete a lot of exercise, meaning I just had to call it quits. But I’m noticing that I don’t have my pre-lockdown phys...

As most people know, I am a very productive person, and taking days off is something I really don’t like doing. The day I’m writing this I’m recovering after having a very rough day where I was stuck in bed all day, where I just slept and watched Riverdale all day :(( So today, I am motivated to get back to it, but am resting too! These tips are for a perfectly productive day, with minimal distractions! These small tips really help me to enhance my productivity, and I’m hoping they can do the same for you!          have a planner and plan the week before As previously mentioned, I use the Yearly Planner from Ink Outside the Box, and I love this to plan out my weeks! Ideally, every Sunday I write in my blog work for the week, any academic work I want to get done, as well as any shifts I have in my part time job. This helps to give an overview for the week, and helps me see what needs to be done. As well as this, on a Post-It note, I write down my goals f...

I think everyone at this point has binged Netflix A LOT during this lockdown period, and it is fair to say I am the same, however, I have only had Netflix for a couple of months (I’m behind the times I know) so I want to share some of my top picks! I know a lot of series are popular at the minute so I am going to recommend some shows that you maybe haven’t heard of/seen before. Elite My first pick is Elite, a Spanish thriller teen drama series, that follows 3 working class students in a high ranking ‘prep’ school. I managed to binge 3 series in 3 days which I think is very impressive, as I was honestly hooked from the start. One thing to bear in mind though is if you can’t deal with dubbed English, you most likely won’t enjoy the show! Dynasty One of my top picks that I have been watching for years now: Liz Gillies (Jade from Victorious as most will know) stars as Fallon Carrington, a business-savvy woman with a dynasty to uphold. This is a remake of the 80s show of the same na...

With Mental Health Week being last week, I thought this post couldn't come at a better time... Isolation can be a stressful time for some, and don’t get me wrong, I haven’t had the easiest time with my mental health during this time, particularly at the end of last month. I am happy to say my health has improved a lot since then and I’m here to share some of my tips for anyone is struggling. As always, my messages on Instagram and Twitter are always open for anyone who just wants someone to talk to, as I know isolation can feel lonely. As always, these tips may not work for everyone, but these personally worked for me when I was going through a rough time! 1         Keep Distracted This is a key one for me. If I just binge Netflix all day (as appealing as that sounds), it would just allow me time to think about how bad things are. By keeping productive, it is a way to keep your mind distracted from a dark place. Just writing a small list every day keeps your moti...

I am such a sucker for a bit of retail therapy and I am always on the lookout for some bargains, so I keep a lot of wish lists on the fashion apps I have on my phone. I’m hoping one day I can buy all of these, but I’m really trying to save for university at the moment! Lockdown isn’t doing me any favours though, as I cannot stop spending! That being said, I have just returned 2 items as they didn’t fit very well :(( I have picked 3 items from 3 of my favourite shops, so if I decide to do a part 2, they’ll be a few more shops and items I can happily talk about! urban outiftters ·         adidas originals 3-stripe pants I loveee these, and for someone who lives in comfy clothes, these would be perfect! I love the logo and 3 stripe detailing down the legs, and I live in black so honestly these are amazing! ·         iets frans… cream panelled rugby top iets frans is one of my favourite bran...

As I have discussed on my Instagram in the past, I have a big love for music, and I spend a LOTTT of time on my Spotify account. I have recently found some new songs that I am really enjoying so I want to share them! My music taste really varies but at the minute I would say I’m quite enjoying rap as a genre (which I usually don’t). You will find that all of my songs are very upbeat, as I always like to be in a happy mood! power is power: sza ft the weeknd & travis scott This was on my fave artists playlist, and when I listened recently, something about the song just made me turn the volume up fully (probably because the weeknd is in it). The word power in the song really does make me feel powerful and the combination of artists is amazing! boogie: brockhampton Despite all the allegations and drama that this band have caused, I am still very much a fan of their music! It really does pick me up and their sound is so unique. This is my current favourite from...

It is fair to say my routine hasn’t stuck since going into lockdown, and I have been sleeping in a lot later and going to bed later. BUT… I’m still productive (at least on most days). How does this work I hear you ask??? Well I’ve got some tips that will help you stay productive and motivated as well as enjoying a lie in! I do understand that not all of these tips will help everyone but these are the ones that personally work for me! -         find your most productive hours This does take some time to understand, but since I have been lying in, I don’t get a lot done in the mornings, so will be most productive in the afternoon. This is because I spend some time getting ready, even though I don’t make loads of effort every day! I use the afternoon to get the majority of my tasks done, and if not all, the most important ones of the day will get done in this time. I will continue into the evening if need be, but I will leave the smaller tasks t...

The day this post goes live would have been just under a week before I would have sat my first A-Level exam, but obviously due to Coronavirus, they have cancelled all exams this year and being one of the affected years means I am unsure as to what the future may have in store for me. As I’m writing this, I am in the process of finalising all of my non-exam assessment for one of my courses, but once that is done, I will be finished with all of my A-Level work, which is a scary thought. Most people in my year believe the last 2 years have been a waste, but that isn’t the way I see it. A lot of my friends, classmates and people online are taking a degree or going into further work relevant to their A-Level choices, meaning that all the information and course content they have learned is going to help them and will be the foundations to degree learning. I find it unfortunate that a lot of people only see the negative side in such a stressful time, as the positive should be the wa...

People born in late March, April, May and potentially June have it really rough, as they are unable to celebrate their birthday anywhere other than their own home. I was lucky to celebrate my 18 th at the beginning of March, however, since lockdown, we have seen 2 birthdays in my household, in which we had different celebrations for. I’m writing this post to share some of the things we have been doing to celebrate birthdays as best we can in the house, rather than moaning we can’t do anything! The first idea is a simple one but a good one: get dressed up. I don’t necessarily mean fancy dress (unless you want to), but dress up nice, do your hair and makeup as if you were off out for a meal, and put on a nice dress, jeans and a top or playsuit as I did. This is a new playsuit that has been featured in my recent Urban Outfitters Haul , and I loved wearing this for my sisters 16 th birthday, even if we were just ordering a takeaway! In my opinion, there’s something really motivati...

Quarantine has really shown that I don’t dress up that nice when trapped in my own home! That being said, I do still make an effort and don’t just wear pyjamas every day, as I have to get dressed if I at least want to feel a slight bit productive. I’ve decided to post a what I wear in a week to show my quarantine looks, as they are simple but comfy, which is the main goal of a quarantine look in my opinion. Monday Top- Monki Bralette (not that you can see it)- Gilly Hicks Joggers- Primark  This is one of my go-to comfy looks, I am pretty much always wearing these joggers as they are so comfy, and I do love the top as it’s just simple and works well with the joggers! Tuesday Bralette- Primark  Top- Quiz  Trousers- Primark  I am loving this all black look recently after wearing it when we first started in lockdown! I love tucking tops into bralettes as an alternative to tying up tops which prevents it creasing and turns it into a cr...

Don’t get me wrong, UCAS and applying to university is a scary process, one that most fear when it gets to this time of year. Obviously, this year is a little different as due to COVID-19, a lot of open days and summer schools have been cancelled (I feel this pain this year as my Summer School is under review for the end of June, I’ll be gutted if I can’t go!), but I’m here to explain my experience and what I did to help decide on which university to attend and what course to do next year, as well as offering tips and advice. Just to make people aware in this post, as of (hopefully) September, I’m moving to Newcastle University to study Psychology & Sport and Exercise Science as a Joint Honours course. So, I can’t apply my knowledge to all subjects, but I will try to give advice based on the general process! This time last year I was looking into a variety of sport courses, at a wide range of universities. The UCAS website is very useful in looking at courses, what they ...