Starting a New Job | Lifestyle

So I am nearly 5 months into my new role and I guess I just wanted to start some things I have learned about myself since I started. I am so happy at my new place, the team are great, our clients are great, the location is great but sometimes that impostor syndrome follows you around so lets start with...

I don't take mistakes very well - we are human, we make mistakes but when I do it I don't take it so personally I almost feel physical pain. I messed up on a call and whilst it wasn't the worst thing I could have done I absolutely obsessed about it,

I do actually know some stuff - after being in a company that basically told you, your opinion isn't valid to go to somewhere else where people want to listen to what you say is an adjustment! Turns out, I do sort of know what I am doing!

Work flexibility means a lot - so when it was super hot a few months ago, my trains were fucked but I had no pressure at all to try and come in! I didn't feel like I was gonna be given a warning if I couldn't come in which is a massive difference to the experience I have had at other companies. 

I really love nurturing a team - my favourite part of my role is problem solving client drama for my beautiful team! I love helping them understand different elements of client relationship management, I enjoy being the person they can vent to and then we come together with a solution to make it easier. 

There we have just a few things that I have learned since starting my job, its definitely been a welcomed change in pace and I know now more than ever what I actually like to do and where my skill sets are! 

Curated Social Media | Opinion

Since my post on "fair weather activists" I have done a lot of thinking about just how much social media has the ability to effect our mental well-being. I follow a variety of bloggers and influencers, both my Instagram and Twitter are linked to my blog and when I first started them, I went through a wave of following almost any blogger who on the surface was like me, which is basically a female blogger! I loved it, I had this little network of people who I could chat to about things that were relatable!

Fast forward 4/5 years and all of a sudden I'm finding myself increasingly disgruntled with both the platforms, I mean I lost the illusion of Instagram a long while ago but one thing I didn't do was mass unfollow. It's only since my last post that I realise I actually have control over what I want to be consuming online and if I don't like someone's opinion, I can hit unfollow and be done with it. I do think there's a danger with only following people who share the same opinions because you get a very one sided view on the world but you can definitely differentiate between someone who is an absolute moron and someone who shares the fundamentals but sees things from a different angle to you.

In the last year or so I have found myself caring about a lot of different things, I don't eat meat anymore but all of the foodie accounts I followed were all juicy burgers and delicious meats and while there is no denying I did like meat and I did enjoy the taste, I should not be following these types of accounts, instead I should be looking for veggie or even vegan options to think about new dinners and meals for me. Honestly just by following a few new veggies accounts all of a sudden I am cooking different meals stuff I love but just didn't even think about before. I have stopped following accounts that I don't have a distinct reaction about, instead I am following account where people may give advise on eco-friendly ways of living that are useful for someone like me who is trying. I want to follow accounts I not only relate to but also can learn something from, no matter how small. 

I have been passively consuming social media accounts for years now and I am finally starting to consider the subconscious impact that could have on me, so I am changing the content I consume to be something I genuinely care about or something that makes me happy.

Florence, 3 years on | Lifestyle

At the start of this year I had a yearning to go back to Florence so me and the boyf decided that we should go back for my birthday. I haven't been there since I left over 3 years ago so I was excited to see what had changed, what had stayed the same and how I felt about the place! I know you're probably thinking, "oh she was only there for just over a year" or "it hasn't been that long since I lived there" but the reality is, when you move to another country, on your own, without knowing a single soul it changes your life entirely so of course, I have this emotional attachment to the place. So let's start with...

The Pisamover - This was brand new! Just 3 years ago, you had to get a coach to Florence or get a taxi to Pisa train station and then a train to Florence! In all honesty it was a right faff so this new, easy option was brilliant!

The Galleries - I made sure that this time I did a bit of touristy kinda things including visiting galleries.  Once we went to was called Uffizi, it's probably one of the most visited galleries in Florence and showcases lots of pieces from the Renaissance. We saw the Botticelli painting The Birth of Venus  which of course was stunning but ones I personally loved were the paints of unknown people, there's something about them.

The Food - the first thing we ate when we landed was pizza with bufala mozzarella and it was DIVINE! I found myself eating everything (including a little bit of meat), I just don't know how the Italians do it? if you offered me bruchetta topped with tomatoes in the UK I would turn my nose up, but you offer it to me in Italy and its an entirely different thing, the tomatoes genuinely taste better!

The Beauty - In all honesty, I new that when I went back I would fall in love all over again, I mean it's hard to describe because of course Florence is beautiful, the architecture of the Duomo is enough but the thing I really like is the simplistic beauty of Florence. The small, narrow streets, the little pockets of residential living with the buildings are close together as if they were sharing secrets! Everything, just stunning! 

It was lovely to be back, if even for a brief weekend! The way I think of Florence is like a relationship, I am married to London, I adore London but Florence is a love affair that's over but my mind still wanders from time to time!