3643 days til the ânew newâ decade. Thatâs 3643 opportunities to inch closer to your goals, become a better version of yourself, to up the ante with what youâre doing.
Thereâs a Turkish proverb that goes a little something like:
Drop by drop, it becomes a lake.
Consistency, is the key. Nearly everythingâs a numbers game.
Over the past week Iâve seen a barrage of âMe at the start of this decade, me at the end.â type memes and progress pics, and honestly, it doesnât get old - itâs always impressive.
10 years is both a long time and a short time.
I think we collectively expect things to change drastically in a short period of time. We get discouraged when we are seemingly not making progress with our careers, fitness goals, relationship goals. And we know it takes time, but in practice we still believe deep down that it should come faster - It just doesnât, it takes time and effort.
But it does eventually happen. So keep at it, whatever it might be, and when youâre counting down on the 31st of December 2029, remember where you were around this time - remember with a smile on your face đ
On a lighter note, what have I got for you today?
đȘ January 2020 goals and progress update
đ« Europe on a budget, my top tips
đ Link dump of the useful and interesting
đȘ January 2020 | Goals & Progress Update
Instead of having broad new years resolutions I encourage my friends and family to treat it like a business. Youâve got monthly goals, quarterly goals, your year end, and the Christmas party where you always take it too far with the beers, mate.
This is more about showing you how I approach my goal setting, rather than being âLoOk GuYS, IM DoINg SoOo WelL!! đâ - So notice how these goals are small but substantial, and achievable. Some may be a stretch, but attempting to get there, and failing, will still put you ahead.
There are 2 goals that are important to me, so Iâve made them my focus. This doesnât mean there are no other goals. It does mean that you need to beat the urge to put every little thing on the monthly list though (weâve all done it, câmon weâre all friends here) - itâs hard, but the fewer focuses, the higher the success rate.
1 | Publishing 30 articles on Thrifty Backpacker
This is a part of a larger project just like my other goals, and Iâm planning on releasing monthly updates with traffic, earnings, content, and what Iâve done. Hopefully we see the fruits of the labor in December and beyond - and a blue print on how to start and grow a revenue generating blog. Hereâs a recent post on Malaysia.
đ© Progress [10/30]
2 | Topping my strength training limits
After coming back from a long solo trip almost 2 months ago , I got back into strength training with a new routine of 6 days a week with 1 day rest. The split being push/pull/legs x 2.
If youâre just starting with strength training, donât do it this way, instead opt for 3 days a week, doing a full body workout
If youâre getting to intermediate, you should split up muscle groups to get more engagement
If youâre advanced, you donât need advice from this guy
The overarching goal here is to get back to my old strength level, and ultimately beyond. For January Iâve got set goals for certain foundation exercises. Hereâs where Iâm at and where I want to be by January end.
Note: All are 5 sets 6 reps
Bench
Current: 65 kg (143 lbs)
Goal: 70 kg (155 lbs)Dead lift
Current: 60 kg (132 lbs)
Goal: 70 kg (155 lbs)Squat
Current: 80 kg (176 lbs)
Goal: 90 kg (198 lbs)
Let me know if youâd like a full list of the exercises, diet plan or more. Also if you gym junkies have recommendations @sahkilic is where we can chat.
đ« Europe on a budget
The full article is here with some more goodies but hereâs the gist. I spent quite a bit of time in Europe in 2019 and learned a few Europe specific things that you might find useful in terms of saving money. Especially if youâre looking to go backpacking in the near future.
1 | Get your transport expenses down
Flixbus is by far the cheapest cross Europe bus service, get tickets in advance for cheaper prices.
Euro Rail Pass is more expensive but is more convenient and precise in terms of timetables and city access.
Skyscanner in Europe especially can be really good as budget airlines are massive in this region.
BlaBlaCar is a ride-sharing app for long distances, this can be a great alternative to when Flixbus gets expensive over longer distances.
2 | Pick the best destinations
Eastern Europe is going to be multiples cheaper to travel than central Europe - and youâll honestly have way more fun. Here are some cities that you should explore. More details in the original post.
Budapest
Prague
Krakow
Vilnius
Bucharest
Zagreb
3 | Get the best travel gear
Try to travel carry-on only as youâll save an absolute shit ton on check in luggage expenses and itâll be easier to move around with your new lightweight getup. The Osprey Farpoint 40 is the best bag for this in my opinion.
Get thermal clothes, and merino base layers so that even if itâs off season, youâll be able to travel light and keep warm.
And get a travel pillow and earplugs so you can take night buses and the like without sacrificing sleep. This way you can save on accommodation while traveling through the night.
4 | Go during the right time
If you donât mind the cold, going during off season will come much cheaper for accommodation, transport, and more. Though even during peak season, there are ways to save.
The happy medium would be to go at the end of peak season and at the start of off season. This way youâll avoid peak prices.
5 | Consider free accommodation options
Yep this is indeed a thing. There are plenty of way to get free accommodation and in places like Europe, this could be a great idea. Checkout some of the following.
And donât forget that thereâs free pitching in a lot of European countries - camping can be free.
đ Link Dump
A reader animated one of my most popular articles recently (Achieving Your Goals Regardless Of What Life Throwâs At You) - and he did a great job on it.
Latest article breaking down 2020âs top blogging platforms including Medium, Substack, WordPress and Ghost - if youâre looking to start something up youâll find it useful.
What Iâm reading at the moment - Built to Sell by John Warrillow. Itâs a book on building a business with systems in place so that it isnât reliant on you, very interesting.
What I cant stop laughing about - Ricky Gervais at the Golden Globes, he really does try to entertain the people at home watching, instead of caring for the opinion of the audience. Lucky for us đ
New keyboard shortcut Iâm using [Windows Key] + [.] đâđ„
Thatâs about it for this one, people. Hope your January is going well and Iâll see you in the next one â