21 Things I’ve Achieved in 2021

I can’t believe it’s already the end of 2021!

So much has happened this year. We’ve gone from a state of lockdown, to no rules, to whatever situation we are in now. It’s been a crazy year for everyone!

The second half of 2021 saw a bit of hope and fun for us all. Here in the UK, we spent the first half of the year in lockdown, with the rules finally lifting in July- on my birthday in fact!

With all the ups and downs, 2021 was a crazy, fun, exciting, scary, upsetting and unexpected year for me in both my personal and my work life.

In this post, I’ve come up with 21 things I’ve achieved in 2021. These are all small things, but they made up an important part of my past year!

I’ve found out how to find freelance gigs (just about)

It can be so hard to find freelance gigs online, and I’m so happy to have found a few regular clients this 2021.

I have a better idea of what I want to do with my life

When I finished University, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with my career.

Over the past year, I’ve managed to understand what I want to do and where I’d like my career to go- which is a big achievement for me!

I am independent

I moved out in 2021, and I love being a little more independent!

I’ve received all three Covid vaccines

This isn’t really much of an achievement as everyone is in the same situation- but I am very happy to have as much protection as possible from Covid this year!

I’ve managed to grow a supplementary income from my freelance work

It’s taken some time, but I’m very proud of everything I’ve achieved in my freelance work this year.

I love building up this work, and I’ve made it into a side hustle too!

I now introduce myself as a freelance content writer

I’m starting to introduce myself as a content writer, taking pride in the work I do and taking the time to explain my role to people.

I’ve become a VA for fellow bloggers (which I love!)

This is a big achievement, as I love to work for other bloggers, helping them with everything they need for their blog.

I love blogging for myself so why not help others too.

I’m on top of my skincare

I have a skincare routine that I love, and I got on top of my skincare habits in 2021.

After going on medication for my acne, I got it under control a little bit and I’ve managed to achieve a skincare routine that works for me.

I’ve gained more experience in writing

Before 2021, I had experience writing for my blog and other publications.

However, this year I’ve had the chance to try my hand at other forms of writing, such as content writing, ghost-writing and editing.

I feel more body and skin confident

2021 has been a bit of a journey when it comes to my body and skin confidence.

I feel in a more confident place now- although this doesn’t mean I don’t have low days sometimes too.

I went on a trip to London

My boyfriend and I went on a short weekend break to London, our first break together!

It was lovely to finally visit all the tourist sites.

I’ve moved out of my family home

This year I moved out my family home, and into a small flat with my boyfriend.

I’ve improved my diet- mostly!

As well as improving my exercise habits a little bit, I’ve tried my best to improve my diet.

I’ve introduced a few healthy foods and I’m trying to avoid unhealthy snacks when I work from home.

I go to bed earlier

This is something I’ve achieved with the help of my boyfriend, but I’ve started to go to bed earlier in 2021- and I feel so much better for it!

It means I have more energy when I wake up in the morning, and I can spend more time reading before I sleep.

I get up at the same time everyday (more or less…)

I don’t have the best discipline when it comes to getting out of bed in the morning.

However, in 2021 I’ve got better at waking up and getting up at the same time everyday.

I’ve survived a long-distance relationship

I spent the majority of 2020 and the first half of 2021 in a long-distance relationship- at the same time as lockdown.

My partner and I survived this long-distance relationship, and managed to bring it to an end this year!

I’ve opened a savings account

I’ve started to save up some money this 2021, and I opened a savings account to try and be a bit more sensible with my earnings.

I’ve had the chance to go out with friends

I’ve had chance to go out dancing, have a few drinks and get out for more meals with friends and family.

This is a huge achievement, considering that we could barely do anything in 2020!

I’m calmer (most of the time…)

I tend to overthink and panic about change, but (for the most part) I have become a lot calmer in 2021.

I still feel overwhelmed sometimes, but I am better at handling it.

I’ve finally started to learn how to drive!

I never learned how to drive at the usual age, so this year I’ve finally taken the leap and I’m learning how to drive.

I’ve been nervous about starting this skill, so this is a big achievement for me- and I hope to get further with my lessons in 2022!

What have you achieved this 2021? Have you achieved something big? What was your favourite thing about 2021?

Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below 🙂

Happy reading x

67 thoughts

  3. Wow you’ve achieved some amazing things in 2021, I’m so pleased your hard work has/is paying off. I hope 2022 brings you more amazing experiences as you deserve it. have a happy and healthy New Years lovely Xo

    Elle – ellegracedeveson.com

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  4. Massive congratulations for everything you’ve achieved this year (a lot more than me haha). My year has been very university focused (I’m in my second year), so everything else, especially blog wise has gone out of the window. My main goal for 2022 is to definitely focus on my blog more and become more consistent!

    Have an amazing new year!

    Jared

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thank you so much Jared 🙂 I’m sure that’s not true, every little thing is a big achievement in 2021! I completely forgot about my blog (and anything else haha) during my time at University. Thank you so much, happy New Year

      Like

      Reply

  8. You achieved so many great things this year Eleanor and so happy to see you thriving in your freelance work!! SO so happy you managed to move in with your boyfriend too and hope this year will bring you even more opportunities x

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  13. So much awesomeness despite the situation, both smaller things and much bigger things (moving out of home is huge!) You should be really proud of yourself. Here’s to a bright, happy & healthy 2022 for you lovely!

    Caz xx

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  20. Some great achievements- starting a saving habit will make a big change to your life.

    My big achievement was I started a new job at the beginning of the year – but that didn’t work out and was able to find a job which was a better fit for my personality!

    In 2022 I have a couple of weight training goals I want to achieve that I never got chance to due to lockdown closure and illness.

    Happy New Year!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. I think accepting that something doesn’t work for you is a huge thing, and the fact that you’ve found one that’s a better fit is a great achievement 🙂 I hope you achieve those personal goals, and I completely agree with you about saving- it’s just nice to know you have a little bit to fall back on if anything happens. I appreciate the comment, have a lovely New Year!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  30. Pingback: If Starting a Blog is Your New Year’s Resolution: Read this Post – Not-So-Modern Girl

  32. Do content writers still have their work edited? Because I can never trust my own writing to be appropriately edited for grammar, spelling, and typos. Also, is a VA a virtual assistant? It all sounds like you’ve had a pretty productive year in spite of everything going on in the world

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Yes most of my work is edited here and there, depending on the client I am working for, especially as I am still relatively new 🙂 VA is virtual assistant yes, so I basically help bloggers with getting content out, social media and other blog admin! Thank you so much

      Like

      Reply
  36. Pingback: 22 Things I’ve Loved in 2022 – Not-So-Modern Girl

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.