Tag: FullMoonGoalsUpdate

Completing crafts & updating webpages: reflections on Pisces Full Moon Goals

Oct

2021

So the moon will be entering its latest full moon stage either tonight or tomorrow night (depending on where you are in the world—here in the US, it will be tomorrow night). That means after this full moon—there are only two full moons left in 2021, it also means that there are only 73 days left in 2021. So before looking ahead to the Aries full moon, I should look back at the goals I set for the Pisces full moon and see how I did with each of them.

The goals that I set for the Pisces full moon included:

Continue working on my third cross-stitch project, and then also start working on creating some jewelry (bracelets and necklaces to start, but maybe also some earrings).
Start reworking various pages/tabs on the website. I have a general idea of the direction(s) I want to go in, and some of the pages will be combined, others will stay the same, and the others will be renamed and/or reworked.
Personal/professional development and self-reflection

So how did I do with each of the goals?

In terms of the crafting goals, I finished my third cross-stitch project and have started a fourth.

The third one followed in the direction of the other two–more abstract in both design and color.

The fourth one that I’ve started will also be semi-abstract but nature based (I figured cactus should be a somewaht easy botany subject to mimic with thread).

I’ve got a couple of ideas in terms of jewelry—I just haven’t tried to sit down to design them yet. I also realized that I need something to put the necklaces, bracelets, or earrings on to showcase them.

In terms of reworking various pages on the website:

I’ve started reworking the blog/website over the past few weeks. I’ve combined the birding photography tab with the normal photography tab. The ‘normal’ photography tab is a sub-tab within the birding section. While most would have done the opposite (birding a sub-tab within the normal), due to the number of pages I already have created—you couldn’t see the individual bird pages that way when scrolling down through everything. I’ve also renamed the fitness tab—health and wellness, with the fitness tab being a new ‘sub-tab’ of this section. I’ve kept the travel tab, added a personal development tab, and still need to ‘rework’ a couple of the main tabs.

For personal/professional development and self-reflection:

I’ve been doing self-reflection and working through some different personal and professional development courses. The one major thing that I know I need to work on is creating a daily schedule that allows me to focus on different things without feeling like I did not get anything accomplished at the end of the day.

With only setting a few goals for the last full moon, I was able to full meet one of them (finished my third cross-stitch project), start in on one of them (reworking various pages/tabs for the website), and the personal/professional development with reflection is always going to be an ongoing, never totally finished goal.

One of the things that I learned in a personal development course earlier this year—is that it is perfectly fine to ‘slow down’ and take things easy every so often. Though this goes against the ‘hard-working, hustling, mindset’ that is getting pushed more often these days. That is what I’m trying to do—slow down so that the anxiety remains under control and I can be actually get something accomplished during the day/week/month and not feel like I’m also not heading into an anxiety attack.

Small steps are what lead to continuous progress—as long as one has more ‘forward’ than ‘backwards’ steps—it doesn’t matter how slow or small they are—just keep moving forward.

How are you ensuring that you’re moving forward toward your goals?

jessimatts No Comments AstrologyFull Moon GoalsPersonal Developmentprofessional developmentReflections craftscrossstitchingFullMoonGoalsUpdatepersonaldevelopmentPiscesFullMoonUpdateprofessionaldevelopmentSeptemberFullMooninReviewslowbutsteadyprogress

Two Full Moon Goal Reviews–in One

May

2020

So the moon will be entering the full moon phase over the next day or two (depending on where you live), and it will be the last super moon for 2020. I’ve realized that with the way my mood was last month—I didn’t post my review for my goals for the March full moon, and I didn’t post my goals for the April full moon. So I’ve decided that I would do a duel review—how I did with my goals for March, and what goals I would have set for last month (since I never really got around to finishing that post).

So in March, the moon was passing through the Virgo constellation (which if I go with my rising sign, it highlighted my 11^th house or my friend zone). During this time I set only a few goals: meditating, trying to set up a daily schedule, and networking more effectively in terms of both job searching and trying to set up informational interviews.

In terms of how I felt I did with each one of them:

In terms of meditating nightly, I’m getting better at it. I’m trying to set aside time roughly around 9pm to sit and just “be”. This usually allows me to quiet my thoughts (or at least the ones I’m conscious of making) and slowly relax for the night. I am also trying to reframe negative thoughts (again at least the ones I’m conscious of making) into positive thoughts—though this has been a little more difficult during the pandemic.

In terms of setting up a schedule—I think I do better when I have a to-do list with things broken down on that. As I haven’t really been planning out the past several weeks—I do like having to-do lists where I can check or mark something off as done.

In terms of reaching out and networking more effectively—this is something that I’ve fallen down on the past month. This is mainly because I’m back to being somewhat indecisive of which direction I want to be going in terms of my industry transition. It seems that the guidelines are that companies want “experts” and not “jack-of-all-trades” in terms of knowledge areas. I’d be almost fine with that but once I feel like I’m an “expert”—I want to move on to something else, but if I’m a “jack-of-all-trades” and constantly learning on the job—I’m happy. So this is my sticking point—how to find something that will let me seem to be an “expert” while also being a “jack-of-all-trades”.

So I managed to start getting back on track for certain things (namely meditation), and realized that I’m still feeling slightly uncomfortable with a job transition that would require me to only show part of who I am (the “expert” side, and not the “jack-of-all-trades” side). I also realize that I like to-do lists better than schedules as the to-do lists can be done in any particular order and at any time of the day, and even possibly merged with another task as well.

Last month the moon passed through the Libra constellation (which is highlighted my 12^th house, or my secret zone). It also had a couple of questions that allow for reflection. In terms of the questions:

1) Have I been too concerned with appearances in general?

I’ve never been one that has kept up with the latest fashion. I’m usually happiest wearing nice comfortable clothing (jeans, leggings, sweatshirts, t-shirts, tank tops, sweats) instead of being dressed to the nines (I really don’t care for wearing nice clothes unless I absolutely have too). I do realize that moving forward with my job transition (either starting freelance and moving into industry or vice versa) I will need to start dress more “professionally”, and am actually in the planning stages of both reducing my wardrobe (because I’m pretty certain I don’t really “need” over 40 different t-shirts), and creating a basic multifunctional business wardrobe.

2) Have I been thinking too much about others and neglecting my own needs?

This is a slightly difficult one to answer—my thoughts have been preoccupied with what is going on in the world (global pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV2 virus), and I probably have been neglecting my own needs over the past month mainly due to feeling really indifferent about everything.

3) Have I been too easily influenced, gullible, or unable to decide for myself?

This depends on the topic—yes, I’ve been unable to decide which direction I want to go with my transition, but only because I’m uncertain of what I want to be showcased as an “expert” in and then what areas I want to be showcased as a “jack-of-all-trades” in. I am also feeling a little uncertain due to other things (mainly anxiety, stress, and depression—three things that while I haven’t been “officially” diagnosed—I know I suffer from them due to both family history, reading on the topics). All three can be treated without medication (if you feel like you have any of the three—anxiety, stress, or depression—I strongly urge you to talk to a medical professional), but it will take time and constant work.

4) Have I been living my life through someone else?

Do fictional characters count?? Right now I truthfully have no idea of what I’m wanting from my life (career, where I live, relationship status, and so forth)—which is why I resigned from my job back in December and decided to take a reboot break. I did join an accountability group to help in the job search (which has given me several ideas to now pursue in terms of figuring things out). But truthfully—I’ve been living my life lately through fictional characters.

5) Have I spent enough time beautifying my life?

Yes in a way I have—I’ve decluttered my room, got some new storage units, and finished my latest afghan. I’m going to be teaching myself how to cross-stitch over the next few weeks, and then also doodling and possibly ordering the supplies to turn one of the doodles into a painting (or maybe I’ll turn it into a cross-stitch pattern).

The Libra moon was also going through my 12^th house (the secret zone), which is where we should try to take time for ourselves—meditating, yoga, or doing something else that allows us to find some balance in our lives.

I never actually made any goals for the Libra moon last month, but did try to continue with meditating nightly (and I usually managed about four to six nights out of the week). Basically what I need to do is make both a schedule and to-do lists so that I can become a little more productive than what I’ve been the last few (say four to seven) weeks. I know that I need to work on controlling how I react to the current world situation (I’ve let my anger, and disappointment in people control me and that had me off my routine for the past again four to seven weeks)—if I can just acknowledge that there are numerous ignorant, evil, greedy people in the world and that they’re the reason for the current situation, and that I’m doing all I can—I may actually be able to become somewhat productive again, as I enter week 8 (or possibly 9, or is it 12?) of the self-isolation period for dealing with the pandemic.

jessimatts No Comments AstrologyFull Moon GoalsHealthPandemic2020Reflections AstrologyFullMoonGoalsUpdateMoonologyPersonalMusingsselfreflectionsVirgoFullMoonGoalsReviewWhatshouldhavebeenLibraFullMoonGoals

Leo Full Moon Goals: A Review

Mar

2020

So in a day or two there will be another full moon—this time it will be going through the Virgo constellation. This means that I need to reflect back on the goals that I set for the last full moon and had aimed to work on during the month of February. In addition acknowledging my current mindset and coming up with ideas on how to switch it to being a more productive mindset.

So what were my goals for the Leo Full Moon?

Getting back into a workout routine
Working on my transition plan for moving into industry from academia
Spend time working on crafts (knitting, photography, and doodling)
Meditate, tarot/oracle readings—getting back on track with my spirituality.

So how did I do with each one goal?

In terms of getting back into a workout routine—I’m happy to say that today I finished day fourteen of Morning Meltdown 100—which is a hundred day workout program that launched on Beachbody-on-demand late last year.

I think that this is going to be the program that helps get me out of my depression/funk that I’ve been in for quite a while. I truthfully didn’t think I was that depressed last year, but looking at the stats on the total number of workouts I’ve done over the past not quite two years—yeah, I barely worked out (at least using Beachbody-on-demand).

My goal is to continue with Morning Meltdown 100, and the program will see me through until the beginning of June.

In terms of working on my transition plan for moving into industry from academia—it is slow going. I actually joined an accountability group to help an extra little push, and while it is uncomfortable at times trying to push out of my fear zone and into my learning zone—I’m slowly getting there. While I’m going to be going at my pace, I know have ideas on how to connect to others, adding value, inquiring on informational interviews, and so forth.

In terms of working on crafts—I managed only a couple of walks up at Boomer for doing some nature photography, and I’ve done a little backyard birding as well. I’m actually going to schedule in more time for crafts over the next couple of weeks.

This was something that I really didn’t do that well on—I really haven’t meditated nightly, and I’ve only done one or two oracle/tarot card readings over the past month. Again, this is something that I’m going to schedule more time for over the next few weeks.

One thing I’ve noticed over the past few weeks is that I’ve fallen back into the mindset of focusing on just one thing and ignoring everything else. That one thing I’d been focusing on is building my job search spreadsheet—so I’ve been spending literally days looking at companies on linkedin, glassdoor, their own websites to determine which companies I wanted to add to the list. I would take breaks for eating, an occasional walk at Boomer Lake, or just go sit outside in the backyard and watch the birds.

This isn’t a beneficial mindset to be moving forward with—but it is the automatic response of how I handled school from public up through getting my graduate degree and to an extent how I handled all the jobs since graduating (to an extent). But I’ve decided that mindset needs an overhaul—so I’m going to actually try to plan out my days somewhat. They’re going to be fluid in terms of the fact I’m not always certain when I’m going to do a walk at Boomer Lake or when I’m going to take my pup for his walk through the neighborhoods.

So while I seemed to be only about fifty-fifty on hitting the goals—I made a lot more forward movement on mental health side—so for fourteen straight days of exercising, and admitting that the current mindset needs to change and will start implementing those changes over the next few days/weeks.

I’ve also been reminding myself of this quote on a basically daily basis: “Progress over Perfection”

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Taurus Full Moon Goals: A review (a few days late).

Dec

2019

So the moon will be transitioning into it’s latest full moon phase—and it will be both the last full moon of the year, and the last full moon of the decade. There is now less than three weeks left in the year—three weeks from today (Dec 11^th) will be New Years Day. So the next constellation that the moon will be going through is going to be Gemini. So now it’s time to look back over the goals that I set for the Taurus full moon and see how I did with each one.

So what were my goals for the Taurus full moon?

Meditating nightly (yes, this is focusing on me a little—but if I keep myself in the right mindset, I’m more polite and easier to be around other people).

Reaching out to friends on-line (it’s a small step to start with, especially since there are only a few people within town that I probably still talk to, and I think better to start slow).

Figure out when exactly my reboot break is going to start—that way I have an idea of when I can refocus on my nutrition and fitness.

Above all remember: progress over perfection.

So how did I do with each one?

In terms of reaching out to friends on-line—this has been slow going. This has been due mainly to trying to figure out the best way of reaching out, also due to extending my work schedule another couple of weeks—I hadn’t felt like being on the computer at night.

I’ve managed to meditate almost every night (and I’m getting better at it with not having a full schedule the next day—i.e. if I want to doze a little after the alarm goes off I can). I do feel better at night after having spent anywhere from three to seven minutes meditating. Now I’m also going to try to work that into my morning routine (meditate before getting up to deal with the animals).

So my reboot break started this week (December 9^th), and I’ve managed one workout in addition to daily walks at Boomer Lake (to practice my nature photography). I’ve realized that walks may not happen every day (due mainly to weather and temperatures), so I’ll need to figure out the best times for doing one (or possibly two) workouts—possibly in the morning when I want a break from doing other things, and then again in the afternoon. Nutrition will be a little slower (true there aren’t as many sweets at home as there were at work—but there is the possibility of making cookies, muffins, and so forth), but I’m going to focus on trying to do my best each day and not beat myself up if I do slide a little.

So I managed to make an inroad with two of the three goals that I set for the Taurus full moon. I’ve always been a quiet person, who usually keeps different parts of my life in different “boxes” that usually never overlap. I’ve realized that this is almost all done unconsciously, due in part to my introverted nature—I don’t mind spending time with other people, but I need time alone then to recharge.

So progress is being made (slow progress, but progress none the less), and the baby steps will help make 2020 the best year yet.

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A review of my Pisces full moon goals

Oct

2019

So the moon will be entering it’s full moon phase tomorrow, and then within a few days October will be halfway over—as it is, there are less than ninety days left in the year. I have basically six weeks left on the job, and then I will be starting my reboot break—I’ve realized over the past week or so that I’ve worked myself into movement paralysis (overthinking to the point of not being able to do anything), and that in the spring I’ll have to make a leap. What that leap is going to be or where it will take me—that is still up to the drawing board.

So before I sit down to draft my next round of full moon goals, I should look back at the goals that I set for the Pisces full moon and see how I did with them.

My goals for the Pisces Full Moon included:

Meditating nightly.

Get back into journaling and working on my reboot break and transition plan.

In connection with number two—figure out how to divide things between different days and work on my time management (plan things out).

So how did I do with each one?

Other than the past week or so, I managed to meditate at least two to three minutes each night. I realized that October was going to be a difficult month (in basically every aspect of life), due to it being the one year anniversary “month” of when we had to put Chewi and Piranha down last year. I had thought that I managed to get a grasp on my depression—and for the most part I have, but I’ve also realized that there will be times when I slid backwards. These past few weeks has been that slid backwards—now I’m going to be working on moving forward again; both to regain the ground “lost” during my backwards slid and to make progress moving forward.

In terms of journaling and working on various plans—I’ve been slowly working through an new e-course, and with that has come some startling thoughts—like I’ve been in academic research (in some form) for a long enough period, that the “career” has reached the legal age of drinking. Now that I’ve decided that I’m done with academia—I’ll be starting with a “new, baby” career—that will have quite a ways to go before it reaches the legal age of drinking.

I’m still working on my time management and planning things out—I’ve realized that it may be better to just try to block off time for certain things (working on an e-course, journaling/answering personal development questions) than stating that from X to Y is going to be Z and then moving on to C and D. Again over the last few weeks I’ve realized that I’ve worked myself into “movement paralysis” and anytime I tried to slowly work my way out of it—I’d sidetrack myself by checking social media, and other pages. So one thing I’ll be doing is looking into the sites that allow you to block access to certain pages for a certain amount of time. That way I can hopefully get quite a bit of other stuff accomplished without sidetracking myself with social media. This also means that I’ll be having to straighten up my working space at home and remove/hide other items that I would consider “time wasters”—mainly my phone (so that I can’t check social media), my kindle (so I’m not just reading anything), and possibly some of my craft items.

It is time to figure out what I’m wanting to do with the second half of my life—academic research has been fun, and will always hold a spot—but it is time to find that one thing that I’m totally passionate about, and will also keep me interested and engaged at work, and I feel excitement when I head into work daily—instead of counting down the hours until I can leave.

But currently I’m going to keep with the motto: Progress over Perfection.

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A review of August’s Aquarius Full Moon Goals

Sep

2019

So the moon is going to be transitioning into Pisces either last night (which makes it a full moon on Friday the 13^th) or tonight—but it all depends on where you are in the world. So September is almost halfway over, and in a week or so I’ll be staring down my last year of my thirties.

But for now, it means looking back at the goals that I set during the Aquarius full moon, and seeing how I did with each of them.

My goals for the Aquarius Full Moon included:

Evening meditations

Getting back into a workout routine

Working on my reboot break and transition plans

So how did I do with each of them?

I’ve been okay at doing my evening meditations, even if it is only for two or three minutes, though there might have been a night or two that I skipped my meditations. I’m slowly being able to focus more on my breathing than the thoughts racing through my mind. Though I’m still working on the length of time I spend meditating—there are some nights where I can’t seem to focus and that’s okay. Still working on trying to find the quiet spot at work that I can go, sit and just be for a while (without anyone really knowing where I am, but at the same time not leaving campus). So this is still a minor work in progress.

Currently my workout routine has been mainly walking either on campus during the week, or walking around Boomer Lake on the weekends (the temperatures are finally decent in the mornings for a walk). I still want to get back into a resistance/cardio routine, but so far haven’t figure out the best timing with only about an hour and half between getting off of work, getting home, doing chores and then dinner time. After dinner, I have my evening routine before winding down before bed. So—yes I know that there are twenty-four hours in the day, and that I should easily be able to carve out thirty to forty minutes for a workout—I just haven’t figure out that time period/point yet.

In terms of my reboot break, it should be starting in roughly ten weeks—this is the approximate time in which my current job contract ends. Ending a job (without another set up) right before the holidays may seem strange and crazy—but that is exactly what I need to do. I need to mainly focus on myself and things that will help me go forward, and while I could probably gain a little more expertise in my current position (by taking on more responsibilities), there are no promotions or career movements within the position.

The first week of the reboot break will be semi-relaxing (mainly towards the end—which is the holidays), but at the beginning I’m going to try to get some of my storage unit in order (start repacking boxes that are falling apart), and seeing what I can maybe get rid of or sell. At the same time, I’m going to try to start paring back on the belongings I have at my parents’ place—that way when I do find a job, it won’t take that long to move the other belongings to storage unit (and that way easier to get on the moving truck).

After getting things in order, that is when I plan on devoting more time to personal/professional development and my transition plan. I have ideas of what I would possibly like to do outside of academia—I have a list of different skills for each of those areas, and have actually started to highlight what I think are the skills I should possibly try to start learning on my own.

The biggest thing though is going to be starting to network and be more active on linkedin, and figuring out where I would like to live and work (biotech hubs), and go from there. I’m hoping that by mid-December I’ll have at least three different ideas down on paths I would like to possibly take—and then I’ll have to start working my way on the three paths and see where they lead me in 2020.

So small steps were made with all three goals this past month. I’m thinking that I might start trying to track things in a journal again, but limit what I have listed daily. That way instead of trying to tackle four or five different areas everyday I can focus on one or two, and then the next day a different set. This will help curtail both the boredom that at times arises, and also the anxiety of trying to get too many things done in a very short period of time.

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A review of the Capricorn Full Moon Goals

Aug

2019

So tomorrow marks the full moon for August, and just like that we’re halfway through the month. I’m actually liking how time is going “quicker”—that means that pretty soon I’ll be starting my reboot break, and then readjusting, reorganizing, and restarting my job search/transition as well. So that means that it is time to look back on the goals that I had set for the Capricorn full moon, and see how I did with each one.

So my goals for the Capricorn full moon period will include:

Continuing to work on my drafting my “reboot break” and also working on my transition plan to move from academia to industry.

Read (finish) at least one personal or professional development book.

Finish my second round of Country Heat.

So in terms of my reboot break & transition plan—I have ideas for both. I’m planning on spending most of the first month dealing with my storage unit and slowly try to declutter and get rid of things. I’ve realized that I probably won’t be looking to buy a house any time soon—therefore I shouldn’t have a lot of stuff, and also whatever I do keep will need to fit in an apartment (or a condo). In terms of the transition plan, I’ve been going through my notes and I also have some ideas there as well.

I’ve managed to finish several books over the past full moon period:

“Outer Order, Inner Calm: Declutter and organize to make more room for happiness” by Gretchen Rubin

“Pause: Harness the life-changing power of giving yourself a break” by Rachael O’Meara

“The Self-Care Prescription: Powerful solutions to manage stress, reduce anxiety and increase well-being” by Robyn L. Gobin, PhD.

All three books dealt with one of the two areas that I’m currently trying to work on—decluttering and getting my mental/spiritual health back on an even keel.

Though now I’ve fallen into my reading for enjoyment more than reading to learn. Tomorrow, though I go back to reading at least 10% of a personal/professional development book before going back to an “enjoyment/escape” book.

In terms of the fitness goal, I did not make it through a second round of Country Heat. This was due in part to the weather—it’s been either hotter than hell, humidor than hell, or both—and after a long day at work wearing shoes & socks, I’d rather not once I got home. The other part, is that I’m still trying to adjust to the fact that I can’t leave work until 5 o’clock on the dot—when you have numerous things to do once you get home—something falls off the list.

I’m hoping once the temperatures drop a little, I will feel like putting shoes and socks back on at the end of the day and doing a workout—I use to do it after dinner, but then tried to push it before dinner (that way there wasn’t a little lag room for letting it settle before working out).

Well I managed to get two out of three goals this past full moon. Even though I didn’t make it through a second round of Country Heat—I did manage to basically hit my step goal at least Monday-Friday (weekends are something else, to where if it isn’t cool enough for a walk, I usually only hit about fifty percent of my steps). So I am making slow progression towards my goals. Now it is also time to sit and plan out the goals for the next full moon (which is tonight—or maybe tomorrow or last night depending on where you are in the world).

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Review of Sagittarius Full Moon Goals

Jul

2019

So the moon will be transitioning into the Capricorn constellation tomorrow, and entering it’s full moon phase as well. This means that July is a little over half way over, and we’re a little over halfway through the year. The temperatures are sure saying it summer (currently we’re suppose to be in the triple digits for the rest of the week after today). So now it is time to look back on the few goals that I had set for the Sagittarius full moon last month, see how I did with them, what could be improved, and so forth.

So the goals that I set for the Sagittarius full moon included:

Setting up July’s budget.

Scheduling a time to talk with the TIAA representative about my retirement account (and what to do with it when I leave my current position)—it depends on the times that are available.

Working on my “reboot break” plan. I realize that I need to “reboot” myself before I can properly focus on working on my transition from academia to industry.

Focusing on writing more content for the blog, and working on myself (yoga and meditation to begin with).

So my goals were basically in terms of finances, mental health, and trying to work on more content for the blog. So how did I do with each one?

I have my budget set up for July (I just need to remember to transfer some money to the saving account); since I’ve been trying not to buy candy on campus that often—I’ve been saving money there as well (about a quarter to a third of the week).

I haven’t schedule an appointment with the TIAA representative, for several reasons: a) I feel a little uncomfortable doing something during work hours (though it would probably be perfectly okay); b) I know that my retirement is small, and I don’t want to become depressed learning either how long I have to work or how much extra I would need to put into it to get it where I could retire comfortably in 30 years; and finally c) I don’t want to know how big of a headache it will be dealing with it after leaving my current position (as I’m sure the next company won’t be offering this particular retirement account). But there are some times available—I just need to force myself to do (there are times that I detest adulting).

In terms of working on my reboot break—I’ve at least informed my current supervisor that I probably won’t be signing an extension contract come November. I’ve realized that I am probably two or three steps away from being totally burnt out on science—not good since I have my PhD. So I’m going to take a little time off, and then hopefully come back to the transition with a lot more energy than I currently have.

Well I’ve been pretty good at trying to meditate nightly, and hopefully today I’ll be getting back into a workout routine (yes, it is a little late—night before the next full moon, but better late than never). I’m still trying to get into a good writing routine, and also trying to create good images to go with the blog posts as well (this will probably always be a work in progress).

So I’d say I managed about a third of my goals for the last full moon. I’ve realized that I need time off, and even if I only take the holidays off–it may be enough of a break that I can get back to job searching (though I’m going to aim for a little longer). But at least I’ve realized I really need to put myself first, and that nothing really should be worth my mental health.

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Update on the April Full Moon Goals

May

2019

So the moon is going to be entering it’s latest full moon stage tomorrow, and actually should be within the Scorpio constellation. I will admit that this year has totally confused me on which constellation the moon is in and when, since there have been a couple of times that it seems to have transitioned quickly back into the same constellation it was in the previous month. So it looks like I’m going to have another chance on working on my goals for a Scorpio full moon, as that is the constellation that it will be going through tomorrow. That means that it’s time to look back on the first round of Scorpio goals and see how I did with each one.

So goals for this full moon period are going to include:

Getting my fitness and nutrition back on track.

Working on my transition plan.

Practicing gratitude/happiness/keeping a positive outlook daily.

So how did I do with each one?

In terms of fitness and nutrition—this didn’t really happen, though I am trying not to buy as many sweets on campus. Now that our wifi/internet is hopefully back to it’s normal speed and not disappearing at the drop of a dime I will hopefully try to get back into doing a workout daily.

I’ve realized that at times I get bored with the workout because I’ve done it before and then I lose interest in the entire program. I’m thinking that I’m going to have to push myself to get through a program and try to lift a little heavier each week (if possible) in certain exercises and see if that can help propel me through various programs.

In terms of nutrition, I need to figure out a better way of dealing with stress and irritation—currently it’s going to buy some type of sweet/candy that I know I don’t need but I usually eat it anyway (or I save it for the weekend at home). If I can avoid getting the sweets (and the extra coffee) in the morning/during the day—besides losing some weight I will also be saving some money.

In terms of working on my transition plan, so far the only book that I’ve finished reading so far has been: “Reboot your life: energize your career and life by taking a break” by Catherine Allen, Nancy Bearg, Rita Foley, and Jaye Smith. This book has shown me that its fine wanting to take a break from things, and that it’s even expected that people do that (I had no idea that companies like Google and Genetech actually support employees doing this).

So this is something that I’m seriously thinking of doing. I know that I have enough money saved (one nice thing about my current living arrangements), and that this is the perfect time for me to do so. Therefore sometime by the end of the year I’m going to embark on my own “reboot break”.

I’ve also joined another subgroup within a professional group I’m in—this one focusing on different aspects of scientific writing (but focused on non-academia areas). There are two other books that I’m currently reading (and hopefully will be finishing within the next full moon), and they are: “The Renaissance Soul: How to make your passions your life” by Margaret Loensteine and “Next Gen PhD” by Melanie Sinche.

Listening to a teambeachbody podcast this week (and currently I forget which April one it was), but one thing that stuck with me was—working the personal development that I need to be working on for myself and not what others think (or I think I should do to be like others). Listening to some of the podcasts have been reminding me that I really haven’t been working on me for me; and that is another reason why I’m leaning towards doing a “reboot break”.

Finally in terms of trying to practice happiness/gratitude daily—this is a hit and miss. I realize that the part of my day that I’m currently at times the unhappiest is when I’m at work. One reason is that we’re getting into the nicer weather and I don’t like being stuck indoors all day. I think that I’d almost prefer a job that had flexible hours/schedule to where I could work from both an office and then from home (or a park or somewhere I could take a break and get outdoors). I’m trying to find things to be happy/grateful for daily, and it boosts my mood for a while—but if others are in a bad mood that seems to spread around everyone and it’s hard to stay upbeat. So that is yet another nudge I need for taking a “reboot break” so that I can figure out what the next stage of my career is going to be.

Things were hit and miss this last month, and I’m not sure if it was just because the semester was winding down or if I was going through another small bout of depression (or both). Since we’re going to be cycling back through Scorpio, I will have the chance to modify the goals and figure out the best plan for moving forward again—since the moon in Scorpio will also mark the start of the full moon going through all my houses (from the first).

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A Review: Libra Full Moon Goals

Apr

2019

So the next full moon happened yesterday (April 19), and technically is the second Libra Full moon, transitioning quickly into Scorpio. So both my review and my new full moon goals are going to be a couple of days late in posting. In terms of the next full moon goal post—I’m probably going to go with Scorpio goals, as the moon will have transitioned into the Scorpio constellation by the time I get to posting that entry. But for now lets look back at the goals I’d set for the Libra Full moon and see how I did with each one of them.

The goals for the Libra Full Moon included:

Rereading and modifying my transition plan as needed.

Continue making the lists/goals for the set of job titles that I’ve initially chosen so that I can narrow it down to say three to four (out of the seven).

Rework my fitness/nutrition plan/goals and make another long-term list (including rewards for hitting certain benchmarks).

So how did I do with each one?

I’m still going through and modifying my transition plan—I’ve realized that one area that I haven’t been clear on is the exact type of position (or companies) I want and that I’d want to work for. It’s difficult to move forward in the transition if I’m not sure where I want to end up. So I’m also reading some other books to help in the self-assessment and self-reflection to help narrow down some ideas of what I would like to do.

I am making lists and goals of what I should be doing (and trying to make a weekly post on how I’ve done with everything that I said I wanted to get accomplished that week). I am probably going to be reworking the lists and goals as I work through other questionnaires and really try to get a good idea of what I want to be doing with my life.

In terms of the nutrition/fitness goals—I’ve reworked this as well, and I am going to be trying to make a weekly (or biweekly) update on the blog on how I’ve done the previous week in terms of the mini goals that I’ve set.

So far in terms of the last two goals—I only managed to do one update last week for the fitness/nutrition and then my finance goals. I will probably try to do what is turning out to be a biweekly update on the job transition/career goals and then my other personal development goals. There won’t be an update this week for the fitness goals as all I managed to get done is really walking this week (though I have managed to surpass my step goal for the week).

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