Behind The Desk August – Going Brunette, Graduation, Photoshoots and Secret Projects

 

This month has been awesome because it feels like a lot of things are wrapping up and I’m moving in to a slightly different stage in my life now. 

I change my hair to brunette, graduated my Masters of Advertising, had an awesome photo-shoot and have been working on some secret projects under wraps. Not only that, but this blog got a bit of a refresh as did my business. So much newness and it's all very exciting.

Going Brunette 
Well firstly, I feel like a bit of a new woman because of the dramatic hair change I underwent this weekend just gone.

Diets Suck - Why You Should Be Worried If You Are On One

Diets suck and not just because they are hard to stick to but also because they aren't good for you and can have long term health effects...

I don't mean 'diet' in the sense of what kind of eating habits you have but rather the restrictive fad diets that say '1500 calories a day', 'no carbs', 'no fruit' etc. Why? Because it's not sustainable, amongst many other reasons, but let's start with that...

Books I've Read Lately #5 - 30 in 2018 Challenge

AND I’m back again to share some recent reads! All as part of the challenge I set for myself at the beginning of the year to read 30 books in 2018! 

I’m current reading my 22nd and 23rd book at the moment but let's get into my previous 4 reads. We have some good ones!

Healthy Snack Ideas For Food Obsessed Gals Like Myself

I get it. I also LOVE food and often have to balance my mentality of "I eat what I want" with "I should treat my body like a temple". Sooo there has to be a happy medium in there so that I can continue to look my best and feel confident because of that. 

You're making the effort to work out and spend hours in the gym each week so it only makes sense to support your active lifestyle with a healthy diet. BUT eating healthy doesn't have to be boring. Here are some of my favourite healthy snacks that allow me to eat things that taste good while maintaining a relatively healthy diet. You will not hear me say the word "salad" anywhere in this post, I promise.

My Experience Micro-Needling for the First Time – Where Pain is Beauty

Today we’re going to be talking about the at home treatment that has you stick hundreds of tiny needles into your face and why I like it. 

Now before we get started, don’t think I’m one of those weird people that was actually excited to try this highly talking about skincare product.

The idea of putting needles into my face scared the sh*t out of me and this fear was only amplified when I rolled the device on the back of my hand to find it did actually really hurt – no shocker there.

But I’m all about trying new things at least once and TACTICS so I used my ice roller (yes the one I keep in the freezer) to numb my face before micro-needling for the first time – genius move in my opinion.

Life Update ♥ Graduating University, My GPA, Becoming a Uni Teacher + Big Upcoming Projects

You may have already caught up with some of what I've been up to lately in this months behind the desk but I have filmed a chatty video to catch up face to face with you! 

We have a lot to catch up on girl! I've graduated Uni now, I share my GPA, I've started my tutoring gig at Uni and I have some HUGE major projects in the works TBA very shortly. 

Don't feel like watching but missed the latest behind the desk and still feel like seeing what I've been up to? You can give it a read here.

The Best Content of 2018 on Weight Loss, Career, Finances, Depression / Anxiety, Productivity and Self-Love

You don’t want to miss this post – it’s like the glossary of JBS highlighting only the BEST content so far this year for weight loss, productivity, career, finances, depression / anxiety and self-love! 

We work through a lot of content together here on JBS don’t we?! Posting so regularly means it’s super easy for you to miss a post so I have gathered all my faves from the first half of 2018, categorised them, have given you a scenario in which it might help you currently and linked ya!

I got you girl - you’re bound to find some answers with whatever you’re struggling with somewhere in this plethora of content.

Growing My Hair Quickly - My Haircare Routine

If you know me well then you understand while I’m a huge sceptic – I’m always willing to give something a go. You’ll never see me talking about diet teas or waist trainers because I don’t fall for crap and I hate hype.

But when it comes to claims the beauty industry makes – throw it at me and I’ll put it to the test!

So when I was contacted by a company that claimed to grow my hair quickly in just 6 weeks – I wasn’t sure what to expect. That was about 2 months ago and after using the products consistently my hair has never felt healthier and thicker. While yes, it is NOTICEABLY a lot longer.

I have quite slow growing hair so I know it is definitely due to this haircare regime I have been following from ‘Bondi Boost’.

Get all the deets in my latest video below or head over to www.bondiboost.com.au

I want to get some sick before and after picture to be patient with me so I can really do the product justice and show what a dramatic effect it can have.

How to Be a Boss Babe Even When You’re Sick

I’m the kind of gal who is in “go” mode from the moment I wake up to the when my head hits the pillow at night. Giving 100% at everything I do, all day, ERRYDAY means that in a rare moment when I do stop to rest – sickness hits me. Anyone else or is this just me? 

It’s like my body holds up just long enough for me to get everything I need done and then it’s like “okay germs we have the green light to be sick, man your stations”.

Anyway, this just happened to me this week when I finally breathed a sigh of relief after getting my final grades back from Uni, felt like I had officially gotten our new home sorted, began a brand new fitness routine, started trying a new diet, was on top of everything at work, making MAJOR progress on a huge project I have coming out shortly and a million other things, you get the picture.

But basically I felt like I had my life together then…BAM…hit with the flu…like legit the flu-flu and not just a cold. Next thing I know I’m shivering under 863 blankets and feel like I’m on my deathbed. The doc tells me symptoms last 2 weeks so that…just great. Get your flu shots ladies! Your homegirl over here was sooo confident she wouldn’t get the flu I didn’t bother to get the shot.

Anyway, this post is all about how to be a boss babe even while being sick. Yes, it’s somewhat possible. Let me explain what’s been helping me this week:

How To Avoid Burnout and Stop Feeling Not Good Enough

Do you ever have a huge goal in mind? Something so huge that is seems unachievable…until it’s done. Then you just move on to the next thing, the next goal…without acknowledging how you succeeded in reaching the goal you just did or stopping to celebrate your accomplishment. 

I like to compare this to being on the money bars, swinging from success to success until you eventually fall off in an exhausted heap and have to climb your way back up again (also known as burnout). 

If you’re not going to stop and pat yourself on the back then who will? For me, without that positive reinforcement for a job well done I’m unlikely to feel fulfilled and I risk burnout. This is because without stopping to tell myself “hey, good job” (which I’m the first to admit, I rarely do stop and do this) then I always feel like I’m not doing enough or performing to a high enough standard.

The risk here is that the bar just keeps being put higher and higher so that every time you reach it, it moves from your grasp again. This constant state of struggle can fuel insecurities and keep you in a constant state of feeling “not enough”.

I’ll give you an example of this in my own life. When I graduated my bachelor from University, I hardly stopped for a moment to celebrate my success before I was already enrolling in my masters and aiming higher. Now it’s not a bad thing to want to be more and do more but it can be detrimental to burnout achieving so much only to throw yourself right back in there with no stopping to smell the roses.

So what do we do? In this post I’m going to be talking through some ideas of things we can do to celebrate our successes instead of keeping us in a state of being perpetually unsatisfied with our achievements. I’m not only writing this for those of you who struggle with the exact same thing but also for myself, as I am still learning to deal with this personality trait of mine.

5 Books I’ve Read Lately #4 - 30 in 2018 Challenge Update

Well let’s see here. It’s that time again where I run you through the books I have read lately. My aim is to not only give you the down-low on if they’re worth the read but also share the key takeaways and lessons learned from me reading the book. 

So we are now half way through the year and I am kicking goals on my aim to read 30 books in 2018 because I’m already at 20! I’m shocked that I’ve read that much this year but at the same time, I feel like I’m always reading and numerous books at once so I suppose it only makes sense. Either way, I am really happy to be reaching my goal to read consistently and I can always feel the incredible benefits reading has brought to my life this year.

How to Realistically go to the Gym Everyday – 25 Classes in 30 Days

If you caught up with me on my latest ‘behind the desk’ update you would know that this month I have enrolled in a challenge with my gym to complete 25 classes in 30 days. 

Essentially requiring you to attend the gym every day, having only Sunday off for a rest day. We’re currently about a week in and so far so good.

Before you think I’m some crazy gym nut let me say this – I’m not an exercise fan and it takes me some serious motivation to get my ass to the gym normally. So this is a real girl guide on how to get your butt to the gym daily, because it ain’t easy!

There are still mornings I struggle to get up at 5am for my class and my boyfriend is nudging me awake trying to motivate me – getting up on dark and cold winter mornings is not pretty.

I’m also perpetually sore because my muscles aren’t over the pain of the last workout before I subject it to the next. Although I’m pretty sure this is a good thing - just not comfortable.

But anyway, here is what IS working for me right now.