Sitting on the harbour wall in Catania, Sicily was a little slice of heaven.

I just got back from the Etsy Captain’s Summit and we were talking about burnout and how to overcome and avoid going into overload and crisis. Something that really struck a chord for me was when we starting talking about peak experiences.

A peak experience is a moment where you felt at your best, like you were doing well, life was good, you felt content and just “ahh”. I recognised the feelings we were talking about straight away as that’s exactly how I feel when I’m travelling.

There’s something about heading off to a new place that just gives me a happy heart and I think the act of travelling brings me a whole bunch of the things I need to keep going. My fuel, I guess. Travelling gives me:

// A moment to switch off, not completely, but so much more than I ever would at home
// Constant inspiration from my surroundings
// A fresh start, you don’t have bad memories there, you don’t get distracted by the negatives. The beauty stands out so much more
// Time. For sure with city travel you are always on the go, but there’s time to do the things that you love – eating amazing food in incredible places or spending hours taking photographs
// Quality time with the people I love. I mean actual quality time, not just existing together in our busy lives.

Sitting on the harbour wall in Catania was one of those moment for me; Switching off and admiring the beauty of my surroundings with a fresh mind where anything was possible. Just taking our time, enjoying some lunch, taking photos and just wandering or sitting. Spending time with each other talking or just being side by side. Just looking back at these photos makes me feel a little bit calmer.

So in the absence of having the time and money to be able to travel every week, somehow I need to bring Catania back home with me. I need to find a way to see the beauty again in the places that I see every day and I need to make myself take my time more and do more of the things I love. I need to spend time with friends and family without stress and distractions and the biggest challenge for me will be learning how to switch off.

What are your peak experiences? What do they say about the kind of things you need to avoid burnout?
Loves x xx

Mustard Dress | C&A  //  Black Felt Hat | Accessorize
Poppy Necklace | Ian McGenn  //  Red Moccasins | Minnetonka

I’ve been meaning to write 30 things I want to do before 30 blog post for a long time, but I never got around to it so I decided instead to put a spin on the classic 30 before 30 blog post and write a 30 things I achieved before turning 30 instead. I’m all for personal growth and goal setting, but sometimes I think we put too much pressure on ourselves and set impossible goals that are only setting us up to fail – and feeling like a failure is not fun! If you look back over the years you have achieved so much already, so I challenge you to write your own 30 before 30 backwards bucket list today – how old are you? Write yourself a list of *insert age* things I achieved before turning *insert age*. Here’s mine for inspiration:

1. Fall in love. A lot of times with the wrong guy, but eventually with the right one.
2. Buy my own house. I never thought I would do this one before 30. Or even before 40.
3. Own my own dog from the rescue centre, our crazy Frank Monster.
4. Start my own business, make a profit in the first year and make it my full time job!
5. Visit New York three times and fall in love with it a little more each trip.
6. Attend my best friend’s wedding, as maid of honour.
7. Meet strangers from the internet who become my best friends.
8. Go to a music festival abroad. Rock Werchter was the coolest!
9. Buy my own laser cutter.
10. Become team captain of Etsy Team Leeds, our local band of Etsy sellers!
11. Organise a craft fair and a hugely successful one at that. We got 7,000 shoppers at our recent Etsy Made Local.
12. Travel to Europe alone. First I travelled to London alone, then I flew to Cornwall and then I made it all the way to Paris.
13. Tile a floor. Oh my gawd tiling is hard work!!
14. Get promoted… in every job I’ve had, even my first job as a waitress in a tiny garden centre coffee shop!
15. Work at a super fashionable high street store, with super fashionable people and win Best Dressed of the month!
16. Become friends with my favourite musician.
17. Get an official photo pass for a The Shins gig and take photos with my DSLR.
18. Go to art college.
19. Be handpicked at my retail job to go and set up a brand new store in a different city.
20. Sing live at the Royal Albert Hall, I’m not freaking kidding!
21. Be on the local news.
22. Get invited to sell my products on Notonthehightstreet.com
23. Sell my products to a number of wholesale customers, including Sheffield Museum.
24. Be featured on Buzzfeed and sell a bazillion teacup earrings!
25. Get invited to Paris by Doncaster Airport and whizz through the streets on a Segway.
26. Get invited to Paris by Etsy to their European Captain Summit and be treated to dinner on the River Seine!
27. Finally develop a good relationship with my Dad.
28. Play the main character in a school assembly (it was Ann Robinson in our version of The Weakest Link. Hahaha!)
29. Battle mental health issues and some days actually win!
30. Be happy with where I’ve ended up, despite a few fuck ups on the way ;)

The thing about these achievements is there is no way in hell I would have set most of these as goals as some of them are seemingly unobtainable, but hell, I achieved them anyway! Sometimes you surprise yourself, huh?

Tell me 5 things you’ve achieved in the comments, as big and mighty or small and precious as you want! I’d love you to link me to your own 30 before 30 backwards bucket lists on Twitter and I’ll share them!

Loves x xx