Ins and outs for 2024
What I want more and less of this year...
Hi friends,
Happy New Year! I hope you all had a lovely time whether you were toasting champaign on a night out or tucked up in bed. I was somewhere in the middle - on the sofa with Dan, watching movies and pausing for a quick cheers of our elderflower presse and a kiss at midnight.
As many people are gearing themselves up for the return to work, I’m staying in limbo a little longer as I booked this week off work. I must admit, I’m enjoying the break so am glad it isn’t coming to an end just yet. But I am fully in reflecting mode as you may have gathered from my last letter. For this letter I wanted to jump on a trend I’ve seen doing the rounds - ins and outs for 2024, as well as some things that are staying and a few favourites from the year.
In:
Short story writing (I really enjoyed the course I took recently and feel inspired to have a go at entering some competitions this year).
New experiences with people I love (this is something I realised brought me a lot of joy in 2023, so I want to keep this front of mind for 2024).
More travel (one trip already booked in Feb and hopefully a big trip coming in October…)
Bringing swimming and walking back into my movement routine alongside Pilates (this is being spurred on by the half-marathon charity walk I’m doing in January).
Out:
Letting work take over (I got very close to burnout last summer and want to be mindful of getting consumed by work this year).
Isolating myself (I have a tendency to hide away in my bubble at times, this year I want to be more aware of this and ensure I’m reaching out to others more).
Getting caught up in the web of other’s drama (this one is all about boundaries).
Waiting for things to happen (this year will be one of positive momentum - onwards).
Staying:
Learning Spanish (I’ve just hit my 100-day streak on Duolingo and am excited to keep the streak going).
Beat volunteer work (I’ve been doing this for three years now and still get so much out of it).
Coffee dates with Dan (our favourite pastime).
Favourites:
Book: Tomorrow, Tomorrow and Tomorrow (I want to read it again, again and again).
Film: Marcel the Shell with Shoes on (we watched this last night and it was the perfect way to bring in a new year).
TV series: The Bear (season 2 was a masterpiece).
Purchase: Pilates classes (I wince every time I pay for a new block of classes, but my pain-free joints are thanking me).
Moment: There were two. One: playing card games and laughing with friends in a cabin, two: canoeing on a lake with Dan in the Cotswolds. Oh actually, celebrating the launch of the Happiful podcast at a fancy restaurant was pretty lovely too… It’s bee a good year!
OK, I’m going to leave it there for now. One final thing I could add to the ‘in’ list though is sharing online. I’ve taken some big breaks from sharing this year and while they have felt mostly good, part of the reason behind it has been me isolating myself a little and I have missed the connection that comes from sharing. So, I would like to get back into slightly more regular sharing here and on Instagram and TikTok… without putting pressure on myself to do so. This will be a very lightly held intention.
What are your ins and outs for 2024? Let me know in the comments and I hope this year brings you contentment.
Speak soon. Until then, take care.
Kat x
Will be lovely to see you sharing more, Kat! I always enjoy your words. And I'm loving this ins and outs trend...which I might hop onto if I have the space. Wishing you a happy new year 💫