Hello 2016!

Hi everybody and welcome to the first Berrysmiles blog post for 2016!

I always love the start of a new year as it does feel like a fresh start. Everything that happened in the past 12 months is now fully in the past and you've got a full new 12 months to look forward to. It feels different, even though it is just the start of another normal day. With the build up to the new year and since it's turned 2016 I've been thinking about the year ahead, what I want to achieve and what my plans are and I'm hear today to share them all with you. So here goes...

January to March

I'm very excited for the first three months of the year. Although work is going to be busy, and I have an exam coming up in March, there's some fun stuff happening too. I'm starting a new contemporary dance class this week which I'm really looking forward to. I love contemporary dance and can't wait to meet some new people and learn some new technique. It's also my Dad's and Mum's birthdays in the first 3 months of the year. We're already beginning to plan the celebrations for my Dad's birthday which I'm really looking forward to, and I'm sure we'll end up with something exciting for my Mum's too when we get to it. It's also Valentines day coming up and I'm hoping to do a couple of posts in the lead up with some ideas and inspirations for dates, presents and food. And finally, to finish off the first quarter of the year, I'm heading off to see Shane Filan in concert with my Mum. The tickets were part of my Christmas present and I can't wait to go. His last concert was amazing.

April to June

April starts the countdown to my final CIMA exam. I'll be back at college studying again ready for the final exam in May. It's probably going to be a very quiet few months as I make sure I pass that last exam, but once it's over I get to enjoy myself. The plan is once the exams are over to go to the Harry Potter Studio Tours. Harry Potter has been such an important part of my life for so long I can't wait to go and visit the studios. I'm also hoping to do a series of tips and tricks for exams and assignment writing as I know a lot of readers out there will be going through some really important exams around this time.

July to September

I love this time of year as it's summer and that means it's my birthday! I'll be 25 this year....which is a very scary thought. It's also Omar's birthday a few weeks before mine which means we get double celebrations. But firstly we have to survive July which is when I find out the results to my CIMA case study exam. I'll either be delighted or devastated! Fingers crossed for the first one and then I'm free. I'm also thinking about having a little trip to Leeds in the summer for a dance summer school. I love the idea of a week long intensive learning technique and routines but it's all dependent on cash and being able to get the time off work at the moment. I've also got some ideas planned for some blog posts on life after university and what to expect when starting university.

October to December

This seems so long away now but I'm sure it'll come around quickly. At the moment I have no confirmed plans, I'll be just getting ready for the build up to Christmas. It'll be mine and Omar's 6 year anniversary in November, we didn't get to celebrate our 5th anniversary very much last year as there was so much else going on, so hopefully we'll be able to celebrate this year. And it's also my best friend's birthday in November too, so another celebration to look forward too. If I get myself organised, I'd love to participate in Blogmas this year. I really enjoyed reading everyone else's blogs and have some ideas I'd love to do for this Christmas.

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As I said the other day, 2015 wasn't a good year for me but I have learnt a lot, and I want to carry some of what I learnt forward into 2016. I want to stop putting myself under so much pressure and getting so worked up over everything. 2015 taught me it's ok to admit that things are getting too much, and to ask for help rather than struggling through. I want to make sure that I keep pushing myself to achieve more, but that I don't let people take advantage of my willingness to do more and to help.

In 2016, I want to achieve everything on my 25 things list and I want to enjoy myself. I want to get back into my gym routine and healthy eating that I did so well with last summer and get back feeling confident and comfortable in my body. I want to save some money to be able to afford nice new things for my house, but not restrict myself by missing out on things with my friends and family. I want to read more books, see my films and catch up on all my TV shows.

I want to grow my blog over the next 12 months, build up my following, post more regularly and come up with some new content. I want to be more engaged in social media and start to interact a lot more with my readers. I have some ideas for content already in the pipeline, and I've shared some of them above, but if there's anything you would like me to blog about, please let me know in the comments below.

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So 2016, we've got a lot to do this year. Let's work together and have a good year. Let's make this one of the best years we've had.

Sarah x

8 Tips for Surviving Exam Day

I've lost count of how many exams I've done in my life, and as I get myself ready for my next one I thought I'd share with everyone my eight simple tips for surviving exam day.

1 - Pack your bag the night before

To avoid a last minute rush, and risk forgetting something important, pack your bag the night before. You may only need to take a pen with you, but the last thing you want is to get up on the morning of the exam and not be able to find a working pen.

Here's what I've packed into my bag in case you're struggling to think of what you might need:

From top left to bottom right : Purse (so I can pay to park my car), ID (so I can prove I'm me), pencil case (to keep everything together), revision cards (for last minute refreshers if I think I need them), Exam Entry Form (so that I can sit my exam), Erasers and Pencil, Highlighters, Glasses, Pens (Always take a spare, just in case), Ruler, Calculators x 2 (I once had a calculator stop working on me in the middle of an exam, since then I always take two).

A bottle of water is also a good addition to your bag.

2 - Set your alarm

Sleeping in on the morning of an exam is one of my biggest fear, so I always have at least 3 alarms set. You may only need one to get you out of bed but if you often sleep in, you may want to consider more than one.

3 - Have an early night

Going into an exam tired isn't a good starting point. Have an early night to make sure you're refreshed and ready for the big day. If you worry too, the earlier you go to bed the better, you're more likely to fall asleep at a reasonable time rather than being awake until the early hours of the morning.

4 - Arrive early

Give yourself enough time to get to the exam room. If you have to get a bus, take a train, or drive, factor in for traffic or things running late. Aim to be there at least ten minutes early so you can go to the toilet, find your seat and get settled before you start.

5 - Relax

This is easier said than done, but do try and relax. Take a few deep breaths before opening the paper to settle yourself before you start. If you start the exam panicking you might miss something important in a question or rush and make a very simple mistake.

6 - Read the question carefully

If you're rushing or panicked there's a chance you might mis-read the question and answer it the way you think you should and not the way they're asking. I've done this so many times in practice questions. It's easily done and you do risk loosing marks for it. Take two seconds longer to have a second read of the question.

7 - Don't panic

Again, easier said than done. If you see something you don't understand, don't panic just spend a minute trying to think of an answer, if you can't move on and come back to it. If you still can't figure it out just write down something, a guess has a higher chance of being right than writing nothing does.

8 - Try not to overthink what just happened

When you've finished the exam try not to overthink it. Don't walk out and start questioning yourself, you'll only make the wait between sitting the exam and getting the result torture. You did your best and that's all you could do.

Good luck to you all for your exams, hope this helps! I'm going to follow my own advice now and go for an early night.

Sarah x

100 Happy Days...Day 78

Day 78 - Having an end in sight

It's nearly here, exam day is nearly over. Only 5 more days and it'll be over. I can't wait to get back to a normal life, back to the gym, back to reading fun books, back to spending time with my friends without having to think about all the revision I've got to do once I've seen them.

5 more days...

Weigh in - 28th April

I am very pleased to announce, another 1.2 lbs loss this week. I'm now pretty much back where I started at the beginning of the month, but I'm not going to complain because that extra weight I ate from feeling sorry for myself is now gone and I'm looking to the future and not backwards.

I was back at dancing last week, training hard for our performance. It's amazing how much progress the ab challenge has helped me make at class. Our core ab exercises are a lot easier now than they were in January and it's definitely helping with my technique. I've still got a long way to go though, but thankfully I'm feeling quite motivated.

After coming up with 101 reasons why not to go to the gym on Thursday, I talked myself into going and managed a 20 min cardio workout and some leg presses. My head wasn't in it so I didn't fully achieve what I should have done but an 8 min run non-stop was good. I'm getting closer to that 10 min run, it's just taking longer than I'd hoped for. (I'm still not falling in love with running).

I'm now in the 4 week lead up to my exam which means there's going to be less working out for the next few weeks and more studying. I'm still going to aim to dance once a week, and one gym session but work has to take priority for a while. My weakness is going to be snacking. I like to eat whilst I study and I normally just grab chocolate/biscuits/cakes etc, but I'm going to keep my goal in my mind throughout and opt for the fruit option as best I can. I'm determined this study session wont put weight on my, if I have to I'll maintain but I'm still going for a loss.

I now have only 2 more days to go on my 30 day challenges. I'll take the last progress pictures on Thursday morning and when I do my monthly round up we'll all be able to judge if there's a difference in the photographs.

Happy Monday everyone!

100 Happy Days...Day 63

Having a lightbulb moment. In preparation for my exam I've been studying today and finally had that 'ding' moment when calculating NPVs on projects, including tax & interest rates. The concept behind it is all finally making sense, and I'm actually kind of excited to do some more. Yes I know it's not the most exciting topic but as an accountant, I'm allowed to get excited over such things.

Study Tips

It’s that time of year again where a lot of people end up locked in a room, forcing themselves to study. I’m one of those people. But after being in this position for over 9 years now, I’ve learnt a few tips and want to help those out there who may be struggling.

Work out a timetable

If you know the dates of your exams use this as a starting point to work out how many days/weeks/months you’ve got to revise. Then budget this time out to cover all the topics in the exam. Try not to leave everything till the last minute, cram revision doesn’t suit everyone and may make you panic more than prepare you.

Just remember not to push yourself too hard and budget for breaks, exercise, making food, seeing friends etc. Yes you may have to cut back on fun time for a little while to make sure you pass, but don’t cut all the fun out of your diary. 

Find the right time/surroundings to revise

Some people revise better first thing in the morning, some last thing at night. Some prefer silence, whereas some people prefer some background noise. No two people are alike so find what suits you. If you’re uncomfortable or there are too many distractions you would work as hard as you may need to.

I can’t revise unless I’m fully awake, feel clean (I have to shower and wash my hair to be comfortable), have the TV/radio on in the background, and have put my phone on silent and removed it from the area I’m in. If I’m doing paper revision I remove my laptop too so I don’t get distracted. When I was at uni and was struggling to keep myself concentrated on my assignments I ended up blocking all non-educational sites from my website.

Make notes

Start by making notes of the key facts/points/formulas you need to remember. Spider diagrams are a great way to do this. Don’t worry if on your first attempt at looking at a topic you write down hundreds of key points. Writing things down is more likely to make things stick in your mind than just reading it. Over time test yourself to see how many of the key points you can remember, re-write the ones you can’t remember and repeat the process. They should all be memorable after a few attempts.

Highlighters are a great way of adding more depth to your notes, colour coding related points or topics and making extra important stuff easy to spot.

Practice with past papers

Many exam boards provide past papers and there answers for students to look out. If you can get access to some use these to familiarise yourself with how questions are written and what the exam answers are you’ll be more relaxed and confident on the day. You may even be lucky and find some of the exam questions you’ve practiced come up again.

I’ve found with some of my accountancy exams that the questions given to me in the college textbooks are completely different in the way they’re structured and what they ask for to what the exam board questions are. For one of my last exams I didn’t look at any past exams, only used college books and was panicking because I thought they were really hard and I was convinced I was going to fail. On the day, the exam questions were much more comfortable to work from and I ended up passing.

Food and drink 

Like anything, it’s important to keep your body energised and hydrated whilst you’re studying. Avoid eating a big meal and studying at the same time. Use your lunch/dinner times as a break time, but keep by you a bowl of fruit, or sweets that you can munch on as and when you feel the need. Make sure you remember to keep drinking water too. 

Ask for help

If you don’t understand something, don’t suffer in silence. Ask for help. It doesn’t have to be your teacher, ask your friends or family if they can help. Check out forums online to see if there’s anyone else having similar problems. If you’re really struggling see if you can find a personal tutor to explain things.

I’ve found that some of my accountancy exams didn’t make sense when I tried to work it out myself, or when my college teacher explained it. My boss sat me down one day and taught me the theory, applied it to something I was doing it in my job and all of a sudden I understood it completely. Sometimes a new voice telling you something is all you need. 

Relax

I must admit, I’m the worst person for doing this, but it’s important not to panic. The more you panic the more stressed you’ll become. Take a few deep breaths whenever you feel yourself getting worked up, walk away from what you’re doing if you have to, and just remember it’s pointless getting stressed.

From my experience, being stressed tends to make you less likely to remember things and preoccupies your mind in the exam making it harder to find the information you need. It can also lead to a very negative outlook before you’ve even sat the exam, which doesn’t help.

It can be hard to remain positive and relaxed if you’re a natural born worrier, like I am. But just remind yourself why you’re doing this and how good you’ll feel when it’s all over.

Good luck all, I hope it does well.