Always look back on how far you've come

Hello everyone! Just a quick one for today, as once again, worklife is taking over me at the moment. Well, as of this Monday. And I had a busy rest of July doing other non-work related things as well.

On the 16/7, I went for a walk from Weybridge - Walton-On-Thames via the Thames Path after a busy afternoon of doing "non-work related things". It was also just over a year ago since I have walked on that very same path, as I used to go to college in the area, and I used to like walking along that path alongside the Thames during long breaktimes or if I've finished early for the day.

It was also a coincidence that I wasn't feeling in the best of moods throughout most of that day by constantly worrying about things like finance & what will happen for me in the future.

However, whilst I was halfway along the pathway between Weybridge & Walton-On-Thames, I stopped very briefly, turned round, and that's when a truthful thought entered my mind. It just kept telling me: "Since I was last in this area, I've done & accomplished so much."

That thought was indeed nothing but true, as during the past year, I have: 

• Worked alongside the Surrey PCC & her Deputy on crime issues in Surrey with other SYC members

• Attended/ran the SYC conference with other SYC members in Woking to showcase all of our hard work we've done with tackling crime in Surrey, as well as gathering views from young people across Surrey to help shape our key findings as evidence

• Joined the IOPC Youth Panel, and began working with members all across the country to gather views of young people on their experiences of the police, criminal justice system & the police complaints system

• Did my own fitness challenge throughout July of last year to raise some money for Mind

• Attended 2 Surrey Police Training Workshops in Ewell with some IOPC members, where we provided the police better strategies when it came to dealing with young & vulnerable members of the public 

• Jumped out of a plane from a staggering height of 13,000ft to raise vital funds for Challengers (I was even joined by the CEO & her wife too!)

• Registered with an agency, where I worked as an LSA in a SEMH school from November - May, and gained a better understanding of how SEMH affects pupils. Not to mention the emotional & inspirational journey I had been on in those 6 months as well with the school, as it went from a instructured & failing environment to a safe & thriving place to learn. (More blog posts to come relating to this...)

• Attended/ran the IOPC Youth Panel Conference up in Leeds, where we showcased all of our work on how we are making the police complaints system better for people to access, as well as how we are working with police forces across the country to form better working relationships with communities, young & vulnerable people

• Just for fun, I travelled to every major place in Kent that I haven't been to yet within just 1 week

• Went up to Parliament with a few members of the Surrey Youth Commission & the Hertfordshire Youth Commission, where we were joined by the Deputy PCC to have a round table discussion with some MP's about how vulnerable young people must be prioritzed by the government

That's definitely quite a few accomplishments I will be forever proud of! It made me feel a whole lot better about myself too by looking back at how far I've come to where I'm at now.

The morale of the story is: "Always look back on how far you've come, as it will help you to appreciate your accomplishments in the present moment."

If you've made it this far into the post, then thank you so much for taking the time to read through this, and I'll hopefully be back soon!

*I began this post on the 31/7, but didn't finish it until the 2/8*

How having an interest makes you more confident

Hello everyone! Hope you're all having a good day so far.

I've also just realised as I'm typing this post... We're at the halfway point of 2025 already! It's just flown by so quick!😱

Anyway, I've decided to make this blogpost based on something else that I have experienced during my time working at the SEMH school. Every single kid at that school had at least 1 or 2 special interests that made them more confident at being who they are, and how they are not afraid to show that confident & bright side of their personality to others.

Obviously, I will not be naming any names of the pupils that I have witnessed tell or showcased their special interests to me to protect their identity, but the least I can do is be specific about going into their special interests in detail on here.

There was a boy in my Y11 class, who was very fascinated into art. There was even a large, suitcase size art portfolio where all of his artwork is stashed. Every piece of artwork was inspired by the artists that he had learned about. I've seen for myself how more confident he becomes in himself, as he appreciates how much I say how his artwork is very inspirational, and how it gives him a sense of pride; To make him want to do so well in life.

There was another boy in my Y11 class, who has very in-dept knowledge of theme parks & rollercoasters. He can tell me every single fact & trivia about any rollercoaster from across the world! Again, the more I let him share his wide knowledge of theme parks & rollercoasters, the more confident he feels interacting in class, as this gives him a sense of pride.

In some cases, these interests CAN lead to you gaining a job/career in those industries, because there is a certain saying that goes along the lines of: "Choose a job you love, then you'll never have to work a day in your life." Meaning, you thrive so much with doing something you're wholeheartedly interested in, that it takes away the worry of having to apply to any job just for the sake of HAVING to work somewhere, or to show everyone you do actually work to people please them.

I hope this post was helpful to anyone who can relate as well. 

I do plan on making more blog posts next month, as I'll have some days free where I've got nothing else "out of work related" planned.

What is beneficial about "Looking forwards in life"?

I'm back!😁 

Yes, I purposely took a long and fore filling break, because A: I've been on holiday recently. B: I've been having trouble with what to talk about. This is why taking this lengthily break helped me to cook up new ideas for some upcoming posts...

In this case, this one is related to our defeat against the Italians 2 Sundays ago. I will admit, when we lost, I felt the tears running around in my head and they were screaming to be let out by me, as I was so whelmed up by everything that's happened during the whole game. In the end, I realized that it was only best to reflect on the team's journey during this tournament and looking forward in life. (Explanation coming up)

 

Fun fact: This is a popular quote which can be explained in many different ways!

What does this quote mean?

It means, that you acknowledge something great is eventually going to happen to you in life, but in order to achieve that greatness, you HAVE to keep looking forwards at your future and not think too much about what happened in your past, as you cannot change it.

What is beneficial about this quote and why?

If you keep reading this quote over and over again, your mind will eventually become so hyper focused on working on your plans and goals for your future.

Don't get me wrong, it is always a good thing to reflect on your life journey, as well as your past achievements, (if necessary) to help give your mindset some ideas on how to succeed for next time and do better than ever.

Furthermore, never forget about all of the obstacles you had to face and what you had to do to progress through them, as they will always be a useful reminder of your mindset tactics in favour of your success. 

What are the best examples to use and why?

One of them being what I was talking about previously. The England V Italy game. I can sense the players' heartbreak and frustration on how they succeeded in every game right up until the final, when the players got tired and were struggling to keep up. 

During their loss at the end of the game, they had the whole night to pause and reflect on their journey and how they can improve for next time. As this reflecting moment was showing on live TV, I can imagine the teary reaction of everyone else watching, as they can feel the players' emotions when THEY show them after their team lost. It was so powerful.

This is where they start talking on their social media platforms, that they were extremely proud of their tournament journey, their teammates and their support. In which, will help encourage them to look forwards to their next journey in life.

That's all for this post.

Thank you for taking your time to read through. Please feel free to let me know what your thoughts are in the comments or in person. Have a good evening!

   

"The Most Eye Opening 10 Minutes Of Your Life" - By David Goggins

I thought about doing something different for today's post, so here is my attached video which I have just watched recently and I found it very inspiring and touching. 

I reckon most of you will feel the same way after watching it, as well as benefit yourselves for the future.

Hope you all enjoy it!