Reflecting on 2019 and what I want for 2020

2019 seems to have flown by but also feels like it took an eternity for it to finish. Every year people 

say 'this was both the best and worst year of my life', but this was true for my version of 2019. There 

have been many life changing events that happened all for the better, even if it didn't seem like that at 

the time. For the first year ever I managed to complete all of my goals except 2, which is amazing! I 

usually set a bunch of unrealistic expectations for the year and feel pressured to complete them, but 

this year I kept it realistic and it worked out for the best!

August 16th 2019 - we got engaged

What were my 2019 goals?

- Work with 3 brands for my blog/Instagram

- Go on some weekends away

- Go abroad

- Loose weight

- Try going vegan for a week

- Get facials to sort my skin out

- Start therapy/counselling again

- Get my moles checked out

- Buy my blog url 

- Buy new blog template and header

- Get my panther tattoo

- Post at least 3 times a week on my blog

Blog goals

Even though I've been blogging for 4 years (5 years now) I knew I wanted to step it up. I wanted to 

have a makeover and buy my domain in order to present myself more professional and serious. At 

first I purchased a template from Pipdig, but decided to repurchase from Georgia Lou Studios. 12 

months later I still love how my blog looks. This was the first year that I worked with brands. I set 

myself a goal of 3 as I didn't want to over achieve. By the end of the year I have 36 different brands a 

total of 48 times. Whether thats from gifted or sponsored posts to paid content. I have exceeded my 

goal by 1200% which is more than I could have ever imagined! My last goal for my blog and social 

media was to carry on posting as often as I have been. With the odd exception I continued to post 3 

times a week on my blog, not as much on Instagram but still a total of 136 times throughout the year.

 April 2019 - Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria

July 30th 2019 - Polaberry, Amsterdam

Travel goals

I'm not a huge traveller but I do enjoy visiting new locations and parts of the world, even if they are 

in the UK. I wanted to do some more weekends away, as it's often nice to just get away for a few days 

without the pressure of a full on holiday. We were lucky enough to win a 2 night stay at a hotel in 

Norfolk in February, and decided to go around Valentines Day. We also booked to go away to 

Amsterdam for a few nights for our 3 year anniversary, which was one of mine and Liam bucket list 

destinations. I did an in depth blog post on our time in Amsterdam and what we got up to, which you 

can check out here. In 2018 we didn't go on holiday abroad, and we missed that, so when my parents 

invited us to go to Gran Canaria with them we took the opportunity and went away in April. It was 

our second time going and our second 'big' holiday together. We made some treat memories that we  

will remember for a life time all whilst having some much needed relaxation time. I have also done a 

guide to Puerto Rico featuring some beautiful places to visit whilst there, which you can read here.

Health goals

2019 was the year I decided to finally focus on myself. Whether that be bettering my skin or starting 

counselling again for my mental health. I wanted to do this anyway and considered paying privately, 

however due to some personal reasons, the doctor referred me to my local hospital for some sessions. 

I was finally discharged at the end of November, and I'll be speaking more about this in a blog post 

coming in the summer. The only 2 goals that I didn't reach or complete were loosing weight and try a 

vegan diet for a week. I always add loosing weight to my list of goals, and I did loose a few pounds. 

However I was diagnosed with PCOS at the end of 2018 which makes loosing weight very difficult. 

I've come to learn more about this and understand that my body isn't going to change and become 

how I want it to be, no matter how much exercise I do or how healthy I eat. The vegan diet and 

society has become so popular and after hearing some of the incredible health benefits that go along 

with it, I decided I wanted to give it a go. Not because I wanted to become a vegan, but because I 

wanted to see if I noticed any differences in my body, mood and how I was feeling overall. A lot of 

vegan meals are expensive, and money has always been a bit tight, but even more so throughout 

2019, so I never got round to doing it. I also am a really really picky eater, which makes changing 

my diet and making adjustments really difficult for me.

Miscellaneous goals

One of my biggest personal goals was to get facials to help sort my skin out. I've done a blog post on 

my skin journey with before and after photos of my results with microdermabrasion. By doing only 3 

treatments I've noticed a huge difference in my skin and am excited to go back for more this year. A 

very random and questionable goal on my list was to get my moles checked out. This was something 

I'd been putting off as I was scared that I'd need them removed. I ended up getting them checked out 

at the beginning of the year and being referred for further tests, however everything came back 

positive. If you are putting off getting something on or with your body checked, then this is your 

reminded to go to your doctors and get it sorted. Ever since I've turned 18 there have been few 

months that I've gone without getting a tattoo. So I decided to finally take the plunge and get my first 

big tattoo, which was the panther on my thigh. I'm in love with this and it turned out exactly how I 

wanted and I'm very thankful, because Liam paid for me to get this done as a birthday present.

What are my 2020 goals?

- Hit 6k on Instagram 

- Go on a press trip

- Get 2 more big tattoos

- Read 52 books

- More UK holidays

- Write a book

- Meet new people

- Post more often on my Instagram stories 

- Upload between 150-250 posts on Instagram

- Work with brands on more paid content

- Work with Pixi, Love Honey, Boots, Cult Beauty, Boux Avenue,

Charlotte Tilbury, Lounge and Waterstones

2020's goals are a lot more work focused, and I've aimed a lot higher than I usually would. Not 

because I think I'm going to achieve them necessarily but because it gives me that motivation to 

always aim higher and push myself more than I usually do. I don't think I'm going to hit all of them or 

even most of them for that fact, and a lot of them are number based (which some might disagree with 

or not like), however I benefit from visual outcomes which is why numbers and digits in this industry 

work really well for me. I'm hoping this year is a lot better than last year and it only gets better.

Here to 2020, a new year and the start of a new decade.

xoxo

Lea-Mai