Cheeky Quote Tuesday

Last week after I posted "Vienna Waits For You | Stressing About the Future" , I went to check my mail and found that I had received this card. It was a another great reminder of how everyone has their own specific journey in life and a personal path to get to where they are meant to be. As hard as it is at times, we truly mustn't compare our path to someone else's but do what we feel is right for us.

"Vienna Waits For You" | Stressing About the Future

Hello lovely reader! I hope you are doing well. This is kind of a spur of the moment post but I feel that it may be something that many of you can relate to. Lately I have been feeling very stressed, stressed about the future. The decisions that I am starting to have to make and consider are definitely "adult-life" decisions. From looking for internships in the fashion industry and thinking about how this will affect my career path goals, the future is starting to seem more daunting than it did maybe a year ago.

I think a lot of this stress comes from pressure I put on myself, I dream big and have high aspirations for what I want the future to bring, and now that the time has come to start choosing the stones that I will use to create my path, I'm worried about making the wrong decision. I've always been so excited to get out of school and get into the industry, pedal to the medal ready to go, but now that these times are approaching, I feel afraid to shift the gears and drive. Self-doubt starts to creep in, I want everything to work out but I know that the future is unknown. The countless stories I hear from people who are in the industry about how their career path was no where near what they thought about when they were in school is something that I have to keep reminding myself. My parents and those around me are continually telling me to calm down and slow down with all my worries and thoughts of the future, stay present and enjoy where I'm at now. So keeping all of this in mind, the other day I was driving and the song "Vienna" by Billy Joel, (Ariana Grande's cover to be specific) came on. I have always loved this song but as I listened to the lyrics line by line, I couldn't help but think they well were perfectly describing exactly where I was at and how I was feeling. When I got back to my apartment I looked up the meaning behind the song and found this,

• On another Howard Stern appearance Joel said that the song came to him very quickly, in what he called "a Promethean moment." Describing his message in the song, he explained: "It was an observation that you have your whole life to live. I lot of people in their 20s think they have to get it all together by their 30s and they kill themselves trying to get the golden ring. You have an entire life to live. The lyrics, 'slow down you crazy child' - in other words, you have a whole life. We tend to put older people away, and it's all about young people. Well, wait a minute, why do I have this whole lifespan? What's the point of it? Some people will get there sooner, and some people will get there later. Slow down, you're going to be fine. No matter what you do, be good at it, and whenever you get there, you get there." -Source

Mr. Joel's explanation of his song could not describe what I had been needing to be reminded any better. The feeling like you've got to have it all together, yup pretty much me. This is one of the reasons why I love music, I have loved this song for years but it wasn't until the other day that it truly had meaning to me and I felt like I "got it"! It was perfectly describing what I had been feeling. Yes, the future is coming, but all my worries about what my life is going to be in the next five years and ten years needs to slow down! Things will happen as they are meant to and I will get to where I'm meant to be when the time is right and how it is meant to happen. I also remind myself that I am blessed to have the opportunities that are causing me stress! There are two quotes that I have learned that I truly believe and try to remind myself in times when I let worries about the future takeover,

I invite you to take a listen to the song and check out the lyrics.

Ariana Grande's Cover


So if you have felt this way I would love for you to share your experiences or advice for other readers! And if you are currently feeling this way, try to remind yourself of those two quotes and remember the lyrics of Mr. Billy Joel! Just be, the future will happen as it is meant to and in its own timing. Xx

What I've Been Up To | Life Update

Hi lovely reader! Long time no post I know. First off, let me just say thank you to the people who read "Not Exactly Plain Jane", I am so happy with how the blogging world has been treating me. Since it is going so well, I thought it would be fitting to share a little bit more about me, gradually of course, because I know that when I read blogs I'm interested in the people who are writing them too. So today I'm going to do just that, a bit more of a lifestyle post.

As you may be able to tell I haven't been posting as frequently as I usually do. The reason for this is that I am now at college or university (whichever you say). Now I'm not going to lie to you and say "OMG I was so excited to go" or "I've been waiting for this all summer" because in all honesty, I really haven't. I've been quite scared and massively anxious, the thought of going away to school made me feel sick. I also have some anxiety issues, but I'll save that for another post. None of my close friends are here so in a way I'm starting all over. This idea terrified me but also excited me deep down. So the amount of stress and preparation has led to fewer posts this last week. I apologize but I know many of you will understand. 

Now that I have been here for a little while, I quite honestly, I'm proud of myself. I've done more things recently than I would have before and I've enjoyed it. I'm pushing myself to take steps outside my comfort zone, even if they're little. Do I feel 100% comfortable here and ready to go? No not at all, I'm still scared and unsure, but I'm taking things one day at a time, and thinking that way has made a massive difference. Since I am away, it may mean that I won't be able to do some of the posts I have in the past as often (mainly hauls or OOTDS), but I have already been brainstorming some new types of posts.

So if you are starting any type of school, job, or new experience that you are worried or anxious about, remember that you are not alone! (If you ever want someone to talk to, the comment section or my email is a great place, I'd even be happy to chat on twitter!) 

Have a fantastic weekend! Xx

Stay Positive

With a new week comes a fresh start and a clean slate. You may be looking at the upcoming week as full of things to do and places to go and wonder how you are going to fit it all in. You may be in school and have a huge test this week in a class that you aren't that confident about or you may have had a bad week last week and be afraid that this week will be no better. I know how all of these situations feel and have experienced each of them at one time or another and sometimes all at once. So if these apply to you, take a deep breath and take it day by day.

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If there's one thing I've learned recently it's that if you have a hectic schedule coming up or something that your stressing about, you HAVE to force yourself to go day by day and tackle each thing as it comes. If you don't and you're stressed about how stressful something coming up might be, it will make everything else difficult, even the things that really shouldn't be. I know for some people this may sound impossible, I thought the same thing, but if you start to do this, you will realize, just as I did, that it's all you can do. So if you are stressing about something that is happening on Thursday, try to just focus on Monday, or even today. Block that out of your mind and tell yourself that you will deal with it when you need to and that you are not going to let that ruin everything else. Don't let the stress of things ruin your whole week, push it to the side and take control, step by step, day by day. Hope everyone has a good week! Xx

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