Why does it always feel awkward to blow our own trumpets? I have been recently nominated, for the LGBT+ Positive Role Model award in the National Diversity Awards. This is an incredible honor and achievement; I am extremely proud. However, I have been finding it hard to post publicly about it. Every time I do, I feel embarrassed. Why is this? Why am I embarrassed about sharing my accomplishment and pride?
A New Year tradition of mine is to share my personal review of the year gone by. I realize of course that 2020 was on the whole a pretty bad year. However, nothing in life is black and white, in every bad event there are positives to be found. I shared in a recent blog how we can find the positives, by using tools for reflection. In this blog, I want to share my own reflections and positives, my personal highlights of 2020. These are my most memorable moments, and my business and personal achievements from 2020.
In December of 2019, I received the wonderful news, that Jessica Kingsley Publishers wanted to commission my first memoir. In January 2020, I signed the contract for my book deal and my dream became a reality. I am soon to be a published author! In this blog, I want to talk about how I got here, how it happened, and what’s ahead as I finalize my manuscript ready for submission.
I am a huge advocate of taking time for self-reflection. Self-reflection, when done in a balanced way, is highly beneficial for our mental health. Moving into a new year is one of my favorite times to reflect. I enjoy looking back on all the experiences I have had, and all the things I have achieved. Let us travel back through 2019 together!
Recently, I had the honor of standing on that iconic red dot of the TEDx Stage, delivering a talk on mental health, for the Open University’s first-ever TEDx event (no pressure!). Having now had time to come back down to earth, I want to take some time to reflect on this amazing experience. In this blog, I will share the entire process, from first applying to be a TEDx speaker, through the rehearsal process, and a reflection on the delivery of the talk itself.
A little while ago, I decided I wanted to explore the option of writing for a living. Since that time, I have been on an incredible self-employment adventure! In today’s blog, I want to reflect on the goals I initially set and evaluate how things have turned out. Although this blog is more of a reflective piece, perhaps sharing my process may also be useful to someone who is in a similar position*.
I am pleasantly surprised at the speed of progression since I began to explore The New Enterprise Allowance. Directly after attending the NEA introductory workshop, I asked for an official referral. I had expected to wait a while for an appointment because it was so close to Christmas. Surprisingly I was offered a meeting for the following week, the 5th of December.
I currently receive Universal Credit, as my mental health challenges have made it difficult to do paid work. In beginning to explore the New Enterprise Allowance, as part of my plan to gradually withdraw from Universal Credit and become self-employed, the first step is to attend an introductory seminar. After meeting with my work coach a week earlier, I received a date to attend on the 5th December.
Reflecting is a habit I enjoy and is a key tool for managing my mental health. I find it useful to look back and see where I’ve been, to better understand where I’m going. Reflecting at the end of a year helps me to acknowledge my achievements, big and small. Spending time reflecting in a constructive
As most of you know, this year I have been exploring new ways to return to paid employment. Specifically, I have been considering the idea of self employment. My biggest passion is mental health recovery. I love sharing my story of gender transition and recovery from addiction. Inspiring people to make changes to their own lives gives me great joy. I wanted to turn what I love doing, into a way to make a living and I have spent 2018 exploring how exactly I might do that. (Thank you for your patience with me!)
Today’s post is a bit of a ‘thinking out loud’ piece, reflecting on the ways I am developing my blog. In the six years since I first created it, this blog has been changed so many times, as I struggled to find a focus for it. Recently, in moving my career concentration over to writing, this, at last, gave me a purpose. In deciding to use this blog as a place to showcase my writing styles and abilities, I felt excited as I began to fill it regularly with content.
However, I am finding myself with a lot of frustrations and questions and am feeling rather unsatisfied and unsure if I am doing things in the best way.
Flexible working and studying plays a key role in managing
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