Welcome to my Public Journal- this is a new feature of the blog where I will post updates on what I’m working on, thinking about and trying to improve upon. Today I wanted to talk through my goals for April 2021 in the hope that it will make me more accountable and likely to achieve them. At the end of the month, I will post again and run through how they went. Enjoy!
Academic
1. 🇷🇺 Complete Russia module and end of topic assessment
Last year, I decided to study A-level history semi-independently, so I study units on the USSR (1917-91) and China (1946-76) by myself and with an online tutor, and attend the lessons at school for unit 3- Parliamentary Reform in Britain (1780-1928) and the coursework. This has been tough but enjoyable and I feel like I have made good progress throughout year 12. This month, I want to finish off the Russia topic and complete the end of topic assessments, with a view to start China before the beginning of May.
ACTION- finish the Russia topic and complete the end of topic assessments, and start China before the beginning of May.
2. ➕Make sure you are okay with all maths topics done so far and address any weaknesses
I am also studying A-level maths, which has been really challenging but I feel like I have improved a lot over the year. I want to try and address some of the areas that I’ve found harder over the Easter break and start doing some revision for assessments at the end of May.
ACTION- look over weaker topics over Easter and do another practice paper
3. 📚Start making revision resources for History and English Literature
I want to organise my notes and start creating revision resources- mind-maps, flashcards, essay plans etc. – for History (Russia) and English Literature, where I’ve studied units on modern poems, Dr Faustus, Frankenstein and the Handmaid’s Tale.
ACTION- create some revision resources (mindmaps, flashcards, essay plans) over easter for History and English
Health/ sports
1. 🏋️♀️Get fit for rugby through regular running and workouts
When I returned to rugby training this week, I noticed the sharp effects of my lack of activity over lockdown. As we approach a return to games in May, I want to get fit and strong again through regular running and workouts. I might also try and involve my brother Tom as he is working towards the same goal.
ACTION- running 5x per week, workout 5x per week
2. 🏌️♂️Get back into golf
As golf courses and driving ranges reopen in England, I want to get back and practice my skills. Before lockdown, I was making good progress after lessons with a local professional and plenty of regular practice. I recently received a set of new clubs as an early birthday present from my dad, and I plan to put these into action as much as possible in April.
ACTION- go to the driving range at least 1 or 2x per week and play some rounds again
3. 🧘 Start meditating at a regular time each day
I have dabbled in meditation on-and-off before, but this month I want to make it a serious habit. I usually feel better when I meditate and I want to incorporate this into my life much more now.
ACTION- set a regular time to meditate each day and commit to the habit
4. 🍏 Improve my diet
My diet is not really all that bad- I usually eat three healthy meals per day with the occasional takeaway (kebabs are my favourite) but my main problem is snacking between meals. This is likely a consequence of being at home more, but I still need to do it less.
ACTION- try to eat more at meals and have less snacks, but if I need to then have something healthy
Personal
1. 📝Act upon sections of ‘March Drafts’ page
I might write a separate post about how I use Drafts and Notion to record my thoughts, but essentially Drafts is a quick notes app where you can rapidly note down what you’re thinking. I usually do this on my phone whenever a thought, question or idea pops into my head and it syncs automatically to my computer, where I can copy over the notes to a page in Notion (I use this for practically everything). I am developing a page for each month and I have lots of ideas, questions and topics for further research that are currently unanswered. By the end of April, I want to have dealt with everything on my March page.
ACTION- act upon the notes ASAP
2. ✍️Publish at least 6 blog posts
Up to now, I feel that I have been too inconsistent with posting on here. For April, I want to post at least 6 posts and hopefully more. I believe that this new ‘Public Journal’ section of the blog will allow me to share more unrefined and informal content, and will therefore help with consistency.
ACTION- publish posts regularly (at least 1 or 2x per week)
3. 🖥 Make sure to do Brilliant courses more regularly
Last year, I got a subscription to Brilliant- an online platform containing interactive courses in maths, science and computer science. I mainly got it to improve my maths skills, but also to dabble in programming and the natural sciences. So far I have completed ‘Mathematics Fundamentals’ and I’m currently working on ‘Computer Science Fundamentals’. This month I want to study the courses more regularly and try and do a bit each day.
ACTION- study on Brilliant every day
4. 📈 Read the Economist more regularly
I have had a subscription to the Economist for a few years now, and it is a great newspaper for quality, balanced and interesting global news. I have a digital subscription and though it is good, it is also very expensive. I want to read the articles more regularly, ideally most days this month.
ACTION- read some articles on the Economist every day
5. 🧠 Start the Wisdom Quest
This is something I will talk about in more detail in a later post, but essentially the idea is to learn the fundamentals of all major academic subject areas and of any other areas that interest me through reading books, online courses, and general research. Examples of areas I want to look at include computer science, philosophy, economics, politics, botany, evolution and physics. There isn’t necessarily an end goal for this because it is a lifelong intellectual pursuit, but really I just want to expand my knowledge of the world and the various disciplines that constitute an understanding of it.
ACTION- write a blog post on the idea, purchase some resources, commit to the learning
6. 👨💻 Learn basic programming
This will likely be a part of my Wisdom Quest, but I’m putting it as a goal in its own right. At school, I haven’t studied computer science or programming since year 9- but this because I chose other subjects like business and drama instead, not because I didn’t want to do it. However, I’ve decided to try and explore the area on my own, starting off with the courses on Brilliant that I’ve already mentioned. I’ve also got a few friends who do Computer Science A-level so I might try to recruit them for some help. In the next few months, I want to try and learn Python and look to apply this to projects such as designing an algorithm for fantasy football and possibly re-designing my website.
ACTION- complete some brilliant courses, learn basic Python
7. 🐦 Start using Twitter more regularly
I often find really interesting quotes or ideas in the things that I read and consume, and I usually keep them to myself. However, I want to start putting interesting stuff that I find on Twitter more, as this will let others see it and allow me to develop a bank of quality content. The link to my account is at the bottom of the page if you want to follow me.
ACTION- start regularly posting on Twitter
8. 🎓 Start considering post-18 options
This is probably one of my toughest goals for this month. I am almost 17 and my last year of school begins in September. My school are now starting to talk about post-18 options, UCAS and university. While this an exciting period of my life to be going into, it does feel very sudden and quite overwhelming. One of my biggest problems at the moment is what to study; English Lit, History, Law and PPE are all on my radar and I am not sure how to narrow it down. This month, I want to start doing serious research on university, GAP years and other post-18 options and try to collate some notes in order to gather my thoughts.
ACTION- collate notes on various university courses and write pros, cons and general thoughts
As an ancient grandparent , I am tremendously impressed by all these plans. I wonder if there can possibly be time to fit them all in. It will be interesting to see how you get on with attempting to do so. You don’t want to end up with too little sleep, too little time for friends etc, and in an anxiety because you can’t do it all. I’m glad there is a meditation slot!
There are lots of people who never get round to making plans at all, but, though I don’t think I was ever as ambitious as Harry, I certainly go in for planning each day, if not each week or month.
How are th plans going H?