March Goals | Spring 2021

February was a busy month for me. Although I have been using a daily and monthly habit tracker to keep track of my goals, it did not dawn on me to write a goals-related or monthly recap blog post. Now that we are well into the month of March, I am going to skip February altogether. I won’t bore you with a February recap, and March is pretty much a continuation of February. Overall, my goals have not changed that much within the span of a month.

March started off slowly as I did not have anything scheduled near beginning of the month. As the month progressed, my schedule got busier and I found myself with very little time to sit down, gather my thoughts, and write a semi-decent blog post that I was passionate about. Today, I feel like I do not have time to craft a blog post; however, anxiety is at an all-time high for me. Therefore, I feel like writing this blog post is not optional at this point. Right now, I am feeling very stressed with everything that is happening in my life, especially when trying to find work-life balance. I am grateful for the casual hours but I am still dealing with anxiety and feelings of inadequacy, nonetheless.

Re-grounding Myself 🌱

Today, I had to decline a shift offer which was incredibly difficult for me since I am a people pleaser. To make matters worse, I kept replaying the phone call in my head over and over again. This particular event has been on my mind all day which has hindered me from getting any productive work done. During times like these, I need to remember to re-ground myself and focus on the list so I can get out of my own head. I will show you my list for the month of March. My daily lists are very similar except that daily lists include mundane tasks like cooking and cleaning. So what does my list for the month of March look like? Here, let me show you:

March Goals 2021

Career Goals:

  • Continue picking up more shifts if it fits my schedule
  • If shifts become available for second job, try to bid on them
  • Complete 1-2% of UWorld each day ➡ Test date is April 26, 2021
  • Finish writing the 3-6 month learning plan

Personal Goals:

  • Publish 1-2 blog posts per month
  • Keep tabs on doctor’s appointments/pending appointments
  • Send some Easter snail mail ✔
  • Continue tracking monthly spending

Health Goals:

Don’t get me started on my health goals. My goal to make water my beverage of choice went out the window because I crave icy, sugary drinks these days. I am not watching my weight right now nor am I counting calories. I am not overweight so I am not concerned, but the amount of sugar I am consuming is a bit alarming. In happier news, I passed the glucose tolerance test (GTT) last month so I do not have gestational diabetes. My bloodwork also came back normal so I’m happy about that! It is hard to believe that I am in 3rd trimester already ❤ Grow baby, grow! ❤

I choose to believe that the quote by Roy T. Bennett is true. I have seen growth in my personal life because I continued to focus on my goals every day, regardless of how mundane they were. There will always be good days and bad days, and as long as you keep watering your plants everyday, you will be successful in life. I am curious to know if you use a daily or monthly habit tracker. Have you had success with your habit tracker? Are you building your dreams and chasing your life purpose? I am curious to know in the comments section below ↓

Thanks for stopping by!

great-vibes.regular (1)

Published by Hilary Tan

I am currently in the process of finding my inner goddess as I search for inner peace, find mental clarity, develop mental toughness, and crush goals. Come join me on this journey so we can live our best lives!

62 thoughts on “March Goals | Spring 2021”

  1. jarilissima says:

    Worthy goals! I hope you get to achieve everything you’ve set out to achieve 🙂

    I definitely keep track of my habits, because I can’t tell time. If I don’t study Korean for two days, that might feel like two weeks or a month, I can’t tell. I know, weird! So I use a simple, cheap calendar and different color inks for different goals 🙂

    Water is so, so good! I hope you get to drink more and have a wonderful, happy, healthy March! Take care 🙂

    Liked by 3 people

    • Hilary Tan says:

      Thank you, Jarilissima! You’re not the only one who loses track of time… it’s interesting that you mentioned that because I can’t keep track of time either.

      I wish I liked water – drinking water would be so much easier. I have never been a water drinker and really need to force myself to drink the H20. Thanks for stopping by! 😄

      Liked by 1 person

  2. ZeroSpace says:

    I’m always a little excited to see a post from you, because you post so infrequently. 🙂
    Regarding your anxiety and the thing about turning down a shift, dear lord Hilary, you are pregnant, honey. I hope you can try not to beat yourself up mentally. Shit girl, I’ve never been pregnant, but if I were, I’d kick back and act like a queen. Yes people, *do* open doors for me and carry all my things. Why no, I will not work after 6 months. Why yes, I will eat ice cream now and watch netflix.
    I can see it now – men carrying me around on one of those big things they carry royal people around on, fanning with palm fronds and everything.
    Although now it might be getting into fantasy territory.
    Heh heh heh. Be kind to yourself.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Hilary Tan says:

      I wish I could say that posting infrequently is my strategy to getting traffic, and in a weird way it seems to be working. Idk why I have a hard time writing and editing a blog post on a consistent basis. However, ask me to leave comments on other blogs and I have no problem doing that! Having intellectual conversations gives my life meaning, and reading the WP reader is something I look forward to each day 😊💕

      I don’t have a ton of shifts as it is, so I try to do what I can. It sucked saying “no” today…. “no” does not belong in my vocabulary. I felt bad but it’s impossible for me to find a babysitter who will take care of Rebecca at 0500 in the freaking morning. It’s just not feasible, and for that reason I had to pass.

      Liked by 2 people

      • ZeroSpace says:

        Well. That’s perfectly understandable so you were justified in saying no 🙂. On the accidental strategy thing, it’s just human nature. The whole scarcity / fewer resources thing. I have been known to unfollow bloggers if they overwhelm my feed with material – even fairly good bloggers. Which is funny because lately I post rather compulsively. But I don’t mind if people unfollow me for posting a bunch of low quality shit all the time, ha.

        Liked by 1 person

      • Hilary Tan says:

        I didn’t tell her it was because of my daughter/not being able to find a babysitter that could take her at that hour. I told her that my husband is out of town which sounds like a lame excuse….I don’t want to set a bad impression right off the bat 😓

        I noticed that you’ve been posting a lot lately, and bloggers who overwhelm my feed irritate me too. However, if I interact with these bloggers on a regular basis, they irritate me a lot less 😌

        Another thing that prevents me from posting on a regular basis is the risk of posting like you said, “low quality shit.” I’m about quality over quality but even that can be paralyzing because I never actually get around to publishing anything. As I like to call it, analysis by paralysis.

        Liked by 2 people

      • ZeroSpace says:

        Analysis by paralysis, I like that. I have to say – the fact that I have been posting and just running my brain lately in order to keep my sanity gives me some insight that a lot of other bloggers post excessively for the same reason. Now I feel kind of bad for all those unfollows, really. I find myself wondering why I think I need a clean feed. Can I not just ignore excessive posters? Since we have an anxious personality in common, I would wager a guess that it has to do with sensory overload. For real, I look at the kitchen pantry of my mom and sister and I am like “Uh, there are too many items here and I cannot find anything” (they are like food hoarders, both). So I kind of wonder if you do the same thing at that kind of huge overstocked kitchen pantry. And then my sister is all, “you just have to dig around” and walks over and grabs the green beans. Hahaaa.
        Regarding blogging, as I said I figure its fair game if people unfollow me since I have unfollowed so many others. I try to mitigate the issue by deleting a lot of highly personal posts within a week, sometimes within 12-24 hours. That way at least the people who only hop on every couple of weeks do not see all my crisis and brain dribble.
        And with that, I am likely going to post right now. Haha.

        Liked by 2 people

      • Hilary Tan says:

        I do research from the sidelines. I see similar flaws as the ones you see in other bloggers. I do not blame them for it – sometimes one cannot see the forest for the trees. What irks me is when people refuse to do their own research and continue spinning their wheels due to closed mindedness, and at the end of the day they still cannot figure out why their life sucks.

        I don’t think that we can ignore excessive bloggers. WP doesn’t seem to have the option of “muting” them yet. I’m very picky about who I follow (or don’t follow) and I follow 250 bloggers at any given time. Remember, you can always re-follow someone you unfollowed. My problem is forgetting what their handle or blog name is, making it difficult to find them again.

        I believe that the majority of people are anxious and that an anxious personality has become the “new normal,” especially in modern day society. Even though we may not be able to cure an anxious mind, [positive] coping mechanisms can help us deal with it.

        Liked by 2 people

      • ZeroSpace says:

        I do sometimes re-follow folks I have unfollowed when they interact with me about one of my posts and I find them interesting all over again. Do you really think everybody has anxiety issues? I’ve know very calm and self directed people who, despite whatever challenges in their life they may have, seem to me simply too chill to be like you and I.
        In thinking of you – also – I do wonder about that whole BPD theory you proposed on yourself. For a period of time it seemed you thought you might have BPD. Since I find you a bit interesting as a person and I admire your blog posts – I do wonder what keeps you from working with a therapist to determine if your suspicion of BPD is true? If it is true, I will tell you that it can be sort of empowering for your suspicions to be confirmed by a professional who sees this kind of thing and has expertise. This came up, although quite off topic here (sorry!) because I saw a post from around January 2020 on someone else’s blog where you mentioned you thought this might be a thing for you. And of course I know for a fact I have the condition and although you and I are totally different in many ways there are some similarities there.
        Anyway! Way for me to take up space on your blog post going everywhere in the free world with my thoughts!!!
        But I like your posts a lot and I always hope that you have as great a day as possible.

        Liked by 1 person

      • Hilary Tan says:

        A very detailed comment @Melissa I will try my best to answer your questions. I don’t think everyone has anxiety but I do think that the prevalence of anxiety has skyrocketed over the years. Mental health is talked about now whereas it was once considered taboo, which is why we’re seeing more and more people sharing their experiences online. I deal with anxiety even though it may seem like I [mostly] have my shit together.

        As for BPD, I haven’t really thought about it lately. I do believe that I push people away which reflects my inability to keep long-term friendships. The majority of my friendships are superficial which I simply don’t have time for, so I end up alienating myself from everyone as a result. I’m also a people pleasure so I’m afraid to say or do the wrong thing. However, people seem to leave regardless of what I do or don’t do. I place a lot of value on long-term relationships which probably explains why my husband isn’t sick and tired of me yet 😅 It’s a miracle that I’ve been with him since January 2013.

        As for therapy, it’s hard to find/start therapy sessions here. I was taking cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) until the pandemic hit, so I never did finish those sessions. As for seeking additional therapy, I just can’t be bothered. Much of it is laziness 🤷‍♀️ Same reason why I’m long-overdue for another dentist appointment. I attribute my lack-of doing to pure laziness as well as having the ability to deal with whatever life throws at me on a daily basis….for the most part.

        Liked by 1 person

      • ZeroSpace says:

        I feel like everybody has mostly superficial friendships in adulthood. I’m glad you met your husband. I looked at your about page and that’s a fabulous wedding photo of you and him. Well – I can understand about laziness. For me it’s also just plain irritating trying to find a good therapist. Or even dentist, for that matter! 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

      • Hilary Tan says:

        Heck, I am still looking for a good dentist in March 2022. I liked the dentist in the NW but then we moved, and now I have to start over again. Driving to the NW is out of the question because gas prices are disgusting right now. I haven’t been to a therapist since the pandemic started which is a shame because my therapist helped me. At least I have the summary notes as a souvenir 😁😂

        Liked by 1 person

      • Black Rabbit Tea Lady says:

        I think you should follow your body and go with it 🙂 If it’s No, then it’s No. You know best what you need. If you feel like posting every day, do it, if you feel like just reading other’s blogs, do that. Don’t beat yourself too much 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

  3. ashleyleia says:

    Lady, you’ve got a whole lot going on!

    My current favourite sweet but not too sweet drink is to keep a jug in the fridge with mixed strawberries/raspberries/blackberries that you can buy frozen, half lemonade, and half water. The berries add lots of flavour so the lemonade doesn’t taste diluted at all.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Hilary Tan says:

      I’m a big fan of citrus, and anything lime is my favoruite. I am currently drinking a virgin lime margarita. Even if I wasn’t pregnant, it would still be non-alcoholic. It’s just crushed ice and lime margarita base mix by Mott’s.

      I actually prefer really diluted juices like cranberry for instance, and your recipe sounds really delicious! I have some frozen fruits but they are a strange mix of pineapple, strawberries, grapes, and peaches. I was wondering how I was going to use these frozen fruits, which I might end up using for this drink. Thank you for the recipe, Ashley! 😄

      Liked by 2 people

  4. Jessica E. Larsen says:

    I’m feeling very lazy at moment and simply enjoy to read, but I somehow feel obligated to answer and not just like the post when ask haha 😀 Too much to say about my habit because I barely follow anything I want to do. I love the quote ❤

    Liked by 2 people

  5. Happy Panda says:

    Third trimester? Omg. Congratulations! ❤️🤗 Hope you’re feeling well.
    I was crazy addicted to soft drinks/juices in college. So I totally get it. It’s so hard to switch to water. I wish I had advice but I just one day decided to stop drinking sugary drinks and never went back to them. 🙈
    It’s been harder to follow through on tracking my habits since last year. But I’m trying to not nag myself and gradually get back to my old self. 😊

    Liked by 2 people

    • Hilary Tan says:

      Thank you so much! I am due May 28 and it’s crazy to think that the due date is quickly approaching. We found out that we are having a boy so my husband is pretty stoked about that! My daughter, not so much…. 😅

      Oh wow! I wish it was easy for me to walk away from the sugary drinks and call it quits. I can imagine that it has been quite the challenge tracking habits, especially during the ongoing pandemic. Hopefully things can go back to normal soon. 😷

      Liked by 1 person

  6. ashok says:

    I can well imagine your feeling bad after saying No!
    Work life balance is a must must for Abundant Life Hilary. Please try and read my book. I am sure it will help – 4 Pillars of Abundant Life

    I do write a journal but don’t write a separate mood tracker 😊

    Liked by 2 people

  7. ceponatia says:

    I’ve seen lots of evidence that quote is true in my own life. Good words to live by! In the immediate sense, having my planner filled out in the morning and in front of my face throughout the day leads to me getting everything done by 5 or 6pm. If I don’t have it out or procrastinated on writing in it in the morning, 9pm will roll around and I’ll have to pick the 1 or 2 easy things I can get done before bed. Not a great feeling!

    Liked by 2 people

    • Hilary Tan says:

      I feel like my entire day is wasted if I don’t get around to writing out a list or doing anything on the list. I also find myself doing simpler tasks just to say that I did something rather than productive tasks that will lead to results long-term.

      I wish I could say that I wake up at 9am every morning. Today I was so disappointed in myself for sleeping in until 11 AM! 🤦‍♀️

      Liked by 1 person

  8. Julie says:

    When I was pregnant, I dreaded the diabetes test because it was a long test and I could not leave the clinic. Though I eat healthy, I did worry about a positive result. Having a negative diabetes result was great news to me.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Hilary Tan says:

      It’s the hypoglycemic sugar crash that worried me after taking the glucose test. I experienced hypoglycemia an hour after the test and was scared to drive home. I don’t recommend going to the clinic alone in case you experience a crash like that! And same – in the back of my mind I still think that there is a chance I could have gestational diabetes. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂

      Like

    • Hilary Tan says:

      I am still not drinking enough water – tbh I thought I replied to your comments. My bad 🤦‍♀️ What I started doing is filling my 32oz water bottle with crushed ice at work. I have no problems finishing the entire bottle. It’s tap water that I have a really hard time drinking.

      Liked by 1 person

    • Hilary Tan says:

      I am still struggling to drink more water, despite good intentions. It’s very hard and I can totally relate! Right now, I am taking things one day at a time. Things are a bit stressful, anxiety is through the roof, and my overall mood is questionable. In terms of the list, things are the same as before. I am currently done 67% of the UWorld Q-bank and hoping to complete as much of it as I can this month since the exam is end of April 2021. Thanks for checking in on me, Tiani. <— this comment ended up as as a separate comment which explains why you didn't receive it!

      Liked by 1 person

      • tianiangelahibbert says:

        I’m a hugeeee iced tea drinker. I feel like I can’t go a day without it… I can totally relate on questionable moods lately. I’ve been asking myself wtf is up. Wishing you tons of luck on your exam! 🥰

        Liked by 1 person

  11. Pingback: March Goals | Spring 2021 – BABY CHOCO – CLUB FESTIF
    • Hilary Tan says:

      It’s hard to believe that it’s already April! It’s Easter Monday here. I am trying to do some studying but will try to relax today as well. Have a good week, Jenny! 😄

      Like

  16. missybeelondon says:

    Great goals
    I think for me in the UK this third lockdown has been the worse, as in has dragged on for so long. And just fed up.
    I’m not making goals like how I used to. Just stuck in limbo waiting for the new normal and freedom.
    The goals I want are the same as last year.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Hilary Tan says:

      Some provinces here in Canada have gone into a third lockdown as well. They refuse to go into lockdown where I am even though we really should…. COVID-19 cases and variants are up yet again. I understand your frustrations – try to find joy in the small things, even if things have slowed down majorly where you are.

      As for freedom, I have always been a bit of a homebody so not a lot has changed. If anything, I am saving more money these days and shopping for me is at an all-time low. I am curious to know what your goals were last year. If you have a blog post about setting goals, I will check it out. Thanks for commenting! 😄

      Liked by 1 person

    • Hilary Tan says:

      Hi Jacqueline! I posted a March recap a couple days ago. If you have a moment to read it, I would really appreciate it. Thank you! 😊 Right now, I am 32 weeks pregnant and it’s a miracle that I am still able to go into work 😅

      Like

    • Hilary Tan says:

      I was planning on writing a March Recap post but didn’t get around to it yet. I ended up working a lot this month, and when I’m not working I’m studying for an exam that I have to write in April. Much of March was a grind, and I’m hoping that April won’t be too bad.

      This pregnancy is getting really uncomfortable. I will be 32 weeks on Friday. It’s a miracle that I’m still able to work despite feeling like a whale.

      Like

  19. Pingback: March Goals | Spring 2022 – Sereneluna

Comments are closed.