Hello! It’s that time of year when I start sharing blogs about things I’ve done to feel good about myself and my life.
This is all about focusing on abundance and recognizing what’s working in your life.
Make one change at a time and concentrate on what’s important to you.
I have a free worksheet for you to download and print. If you want to stay updated on my posts for this program, please subscribe.
As you work through the worksheet, take time to reflect. I suggest journaling every day, like I do. You can get a smart journal or use an app to track your progress. Begin by focusing on one thing and keep using the worksheet. See Below.
This isn’t a test; it’s an opportunity to face your fears and improve your relationships with yourself and others.
The program will run from May 1, 2026, to August 14, 2026.
Originally when I wrote this down it was about Body Image, but I now realise it is not just about that. It is all to do with how you treat yourself. This is not treating yourself with a box of chocolates, I mean being verbally kind to yourself and in your mind.
I am in a good place now. I have changed my thoughts of myself and my life in general. There are times in the mornings where I see my hair is all messy, I see unwanted hair growth but also, my room or home is chaotic and have no sense of, Is this it. Is this what my life looks like?
I have just come back from Wimbledon with my mum and step dad and I have case full of clothes, bag full of my notebooks and journals and I have believe it or not I did a declutter. So I am working on it. I will spend time tidying, unpacking and know I can get it back into shipshape.
This is free to download. It is reprogramming your thought patterns. I now make sure I read each day, because it slows me down and feel calm in the mornings now. I will have breakfast and go for morning walk. I do a bit of writing each day. These have really helped with stress and anxiety.
What one thing do you want to change in the mornings?
Write down in the printable or notebook of What is the first thing you in the morning. It used to be, for me get up, watch Youtube and before getting my son ready for school and it became a habit that would not help my day, because I would be lazy. It should have been to get my son ready for school. My son was close by, but had to get my priorities right and me and my husband would argue, because of it and if it were the other way around, I wouldn’t have been happy.
There was a time where I would come home angry. I was working in a Call Center, where people would call in, not happy, because I worked as a technical advisor/call agent and would go home and would bring what happened each day, home.
So are you have a lot of arguments?
Is a job, sleep or a relationship?
Is the food that you eat?
It is making sense of it all and creating a picture of yourself and your life and what do you want out of life?
Who do you spend time with?
I make sure that my son is okay and say good morning to him, have breakfast together, read and make sure my bed and his, is made and that my life is functional and do the things in my life that will help me grow and everyone in my life grow. Checking in on them and make the effort to have a good day, facing challenges but not making them stop me, from living.
Not having too many commitments, but that I have some social interaction and my son does too. I like to have a day off from everything and last Tuesday had a proper lazy day. I still worked on some content but stayed in and it felt so good.
I wish you all the happiness in the world. Life can be joyous and the image of it. Feel good about yourself. I write another google blog site, called Building Self Confidence – The Ugly Duckling: https://buildingselfconfidencetud.blogspot.com/
I really hope you find my Life Coaching Programme helpful and please give me your feedback and what would like to see in my next one.
What is coming up?
My Autumn Reset. Where I will be working on various areas and getting ready for the new season.
It is free and there will be videos aswell coming and is for April 2025, but you can do this training any time. It is not to make you feel pressured but do it when you have a chance as we all lead busy lives and take your time filling in the Worksheet.
So in this blog I want to talk about how It’s Never Too Late. As a kid I loved music and would listen to it everyday and daydream. When I left school I wanted to work on radio and it was my mum who suggested about working on hospital radio, but I had no idea how to go about it. Then last year I saw a banner outside Epsom Hospital about their radio station. I looked on the website and filled in the waiting list and was contacted by email to come to a recruitment evening and now a year later I now presenting on Sunday’s and have my own show. I am 47.
There is a lady that we met at St George’s hospital who is an MP for Tooting who also works in the hospital and she didn’t do well in her GCSE’s as she went to the same school as me. I went to a Westminster school and really wanted work in Medicine and so now she does both.
Never give up on your dreams and ambitions.
I remember saying to a colleague when working in a call center saying to him about following your dreams and now is a nurse at St George’s hospital. It is important to have ambition and what has helped me continue growing as a woman, sister, mum and daughter was my mum. She did a degree when she was in her 40’s/50’s and I admire that.
When doing parkrun there are people of different ages. You have children, teens, middle age and elderly and are as fit as anything and gone on to do 100 parkrun’s, when I have done my 4th and so its never too late.
In fact now I am in my 40’s have more confidence by living and finding out what my capabilities are and feel that I have gone through a tough time and now have a more drive, to follow my dreams, more than anything and glad I have had the jobs I’ve had, taking part in fundraising events and doing things I never imagined. There was no such thing as a blog, Youtube and social media.
Life can be a surprise and when I went to dancing school one of he teachers had a terrible accident which caused her to break her leg and quite seriously and took on dancing and it was through dancing she made a full recovery and became a dancing teacher and I will never forget her. So if there is something you want to do then you can. Believe in yourself, never give up and if you have stories of achieving your dreams, please share below in the comment section.
I will be doing Race For Life again on the Epsom Downs. Please check out my just giving page:
Hello! Please check my blog where I posted a printable for this training: Self development
So there will be three videos for this training. Please check my video where I share details of what you can use, for the 3 sections of this training. So in this training we will cover for example: What is Self Development, Suffering with anxiety, then section 2, Changing my financial choices, an area I have had to work on and planning, example: Setting up your day.
Here is the introduction to this training:
This training is completely free and please give me feedback or ask any questions training. You can write into the comment section below blog to do so.
I am someone who has battled through life dealing with insecurities, not feeling good enough. I would be so critical of myself and so I had to make changes, especially as I grew into adulthood. I thought that by then would feel better about myself but no and they grew even bigger. I feel better once I finished school, which for a while it did. I liked working. Yet had some not so nice jobs and was fired by some of them an lost my confidence.
I have become fed up of allowing those time to bully me. I knew to move forward in my life I had to feel better about myself and my life.
Then I hit rock bottom when I thought that there was someone being hurt, but there was other things going on too. I was finding motherhood hard, felt isolated and had this inner fear that I had never felt before. I went to hospital and found that I was hearing voices and diagnosed with Psychosis and got home help. I began to feel like I had no energy to do anything. It was like being on a wheel that I couldn’t get off from. I spent time in a mental health hospital and recovered and wanted to help others with their mental health and wellbeing. It can feel you are in a dark place with no light.
I want you to love who you are and not be so unkind or resentful of yourself and start living and living beyond your needs. Life doesn’t have to be a battle, but be the best it could ever be, by making changes in the different areas and changing your mindset.
I hope you find this training helpful and share your story, if you have have found life hard and support one another.
If you want to make changes in your life then start from going through what is getting at you, and needs sorting out. This time four years ago I lost sense of myself and things were happening according to my mind, to realise that actually it is okay and I was in debt, staying in bed all the time and felt very alone and that my life was just too hard to face.
Now it is June 2024 I feel so much better taking on new opportunities as I am now working Voluntary for Epsom Hospital Radio, which I wanted to do when I left school, but had no idea of how to go about it, I published another book I Mum&Me and editing another to publish and got back into my fitness, building steps and doing weight training and focusing on my son as there was a time where I hardly saw him at all and have a stronger bond than ever before and I love him more each, playing sports with him when he is not moaning, and got my life back and is growing more and more each day.
There are still so much I want to do and as humans we are growing everyday, and ask yourself, what do you value in life? I had to change to get to the next stage in my life and not holding back from opportunities and building back my confidence within myself and belief, and planning what else I want in my life and taking action.
I’ve being watching a lot of Amy Winehouse, who build her own successful writing music and singing and raw songs as she wrote about what was happening in her life, but sadly she left the world when she was at the height of her career and it feels me with such sadness that she was not in a good place, yet had major success.
So it is not about having it all but finding what makes you happy in the world we live in and not allow life get to us and to make your stronger, and live your life to the best of your ability.
Hello and welcome to another post. This week was a bit rushed as there were appointments were made ages ago and so was thinking I had a clear week had to reschedule and manage my content in the little gaps and doing two courses so had to change my plans but that’s life.
In this video I am sharing https://youtu.be/H4L8hdfj_mE getting to grips with life and getting my arse in gear as I guilty of putting things off so I schedule when I know I have a clear day to get it done. I am giving my kitchen in Epsom cupboard cleaned inside, and cleaning is not my favourite thing, so I need a clear day to know not to put it off and get it done.
I filmed a vlog that is coming on my vlog channel, Typical London Gal Carrie Holmes, of cleaning my packaging and cutlery draw. Jobs that I like to do, but want to take my time in doing and not rush. I am not a fan of rushing.
So I hope you enjoy this video and if you’d like to know when I post a blog or video subscribe to my educational Youtube channel and is completely free and this blog site.
Hello! So I hope you are enjoyed my previous video that is on my Educational Youtube channel, and please subscribe as it helps grow my content and this weeks video is all about How I Realistically Manage my time.
In the mornings I set my alarm for 5:30am but at the moment been getting up at 5am, but this morning I went back to bed, not to sleep but to give myself time to drink my cup of tea and a friend of mine always likes to read in the mornings.
When I used to go running and didn’t feel like it, I would put on a motivation video on or a song on. Now though I use it to edit a book I am trying to finish and do some of my Life Coaching course I am doing, and watch a bit of Youtube, before others are awake.
I give myself free choice time and mark it in my calendar and do whatever I choose, so be realistic and manage your days without putting on too much pressure on yourself.
If you’d like to be kept up to date with my Youtube channel and my blogs then please subscribe.
So this years Summer Project is nearly over and have one last blog to share. I really hope you gained something from it, and please in the comments below, give me your feedback as it really helps me grow my blogs and that you keep on liking these blogs and subscribe, and you will be alerted everytime I publish a new blog.
Self care and development is what is is all about, and making sure you put yourself first on some days and have a life you are happy with. Of course there are events that are beyond our control, like a loss of someone and something, but having resilience and determination, you can rebuild your life to be better and listen to your feelings, and address them.
Taking time out from everyday life and having new experiences and meeting new people, to build new relationships and making existing relationships stronger than ever, and being with people who will listen to you aswell as listening to them.
See that you deserve a happy life and you are worth the things in your life, and the relationships. You should treat yourself and make deals with yourself as I find rewarding helps me to get things done, and not procrastinate and taking my time, and taking it easy.
Life isn’t about rushing around, but having peace and if you can’t be bothered then it could be that you are doing too much and need to reevaluate your life and making changes, so you feel excited and not crawling through tasks, but will give you good results. Also taking a break and getting rest, so you properly recharge and feel full of energy to have a good life that you love.
Soon I will be starting my Autumn reset and so once I do my final blog then my Autumn Reset will begin and so a lot more content to come.
Yes so this is all about how make deals with myself, and I just did this now by promising myself if I do a home workout (exercise) then I can have another coffee. I am going to have my next coffee and watch another video on Youtube, and really enjoyed my workout. I do have a couple of fitness blog sites if you didn’t know, on WordPress and on google blogspot, please see these links:
This is the park in Epsom I like to walk through called Rosbery Park
I didn’t feel like walking this morning, but I did it by promising myself a Pain Eu chocolate with a cup of coffee that I had indoors and so now on my second and I am going to bloody enjoy it. Some may think this is counterproductive, but for me it is how I get stuff done and get focused.
I made a deal if I got what I needed, as I had shopping to pick up, that when I walked I could get the bus back and got one straight away which is unusual and tomorrow I am thinking a nice iced coffee whilst I walk and love it at the moment getting out in the morning, once my son has gone off to school, and feeling the cool air as it has been so hot in the day.
I have been on walks with my son too when he has come home from school, and to build my steps and completed another ring on my fitness app I have on my phone, and will have my dinner and by the time dinner time has come I have earned it. Tonight it is a home favourite Spaghetti Bolognese, and then often will play some more out in the garden with my son.
It helps me to be productive, and get my Life Coaching programme finished to then start my Autumn reset which will end by end of October 2023, and then it is getting ready for birthdays I have in my family and then getting ready for the festive season.
If you have read my blogs then you know I am that kind of person that likes to take her time, and if I can do something without rushing, I find I get may daily goals/to-do’s done and making the days as good as the next one.
So make promises to yourself and I can assure you, you will see positive results.
Today I spent time celebrating my nieces birthday. She turned 16 and I remember at that age I had enough of education and so once I did sixth form, it was time to find work. I was never ever going to university, because I just don’t have the concentration spam to do higher education.
So I started to do stewarding at Fulham Football club and did work experience working with the groundsman and I loved it. This was before you had the internet and so used the Yellow pages to help me find work and back then they had Career Offices and even though the Careers Man wasn’t exactly the politest I managed to find my first full time job in a Marketing company.
The work I have done I have found myself and it was working where I found my feet and way into the world. It was a lifestyle that worked for me, and seeing kids at that time going to school I was glad that school life was over, and began to socialise a lot and met up with friends, and got a buzz from the working life.
You have to get yourself out there and yes it can take time to find a life that you are happy with, but when you find it, it feels like a massive weight off your shoulders. I am not a millionaire, but I have my son, a roof over my head and family. I know there are people that don’t have that, and when I think that, it makes me more happy with my life, and thankful. I have good health and can walk and run, and hands that can write and a body that I can finally say, I am happy with.
Give yourself credit and take time in finding yourself. I would question why I am here? Why was I put into this world? And for me is to help others and to be a good mum to my son. Being a good daughter and niece, and Aunt and help others to live their lives that they can get up for and not feel down and alone.
Keep growing and building your knowledge. Even though I didn’t go to university, I have done short courses and learned a lot. I am doing some other courses online, on a course site, called, Ofcourse and I love to build my knowledge and skills. There are more I’d like to do, and I do have a Youtube Educational Channel, and check out TED Talk and Using Youtube. I also use Youtube to help me with my writing and building my knowledge to build books and getting writing tips, and have published a lot of EBooks, Books on parenting and happiness and well being. Check out amazon under the names, Carrie Challoner, Carrie Lee Holmes and Carrie Holmes.
Map it out. I have written about this in my books and is a good way to plan what you want to do and turn your life around, and do it as you keep growing. It helps to work towards building a life that you are happy with and gives me direction and use it to plan what projects I want to do next/
Learn a new skill. I suppose this relates to Keep growing and building your knowledge, but you can teach yourself too if you don’t want to do a course. If you want to be able to cook, buy a recipe book or look online and there are loads to choose from. Its about what works for you, and what will make a difference to how you feel about your life. Check out Women and Home Magazine. They have stories of people who have done this and started as a hobby into a livelihood, and I get so inspired by reading them.
There is space for you. Just because someone else has done it, doesn’t mean you can’t do it too. Never compare, use it to learn, to help you to be find you path into what somebody has done and put your stamp on it. There is a video by Mel Robbins, who talks about Jealousy and envy check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdYfAc3mMnQ&t=34s
Everyone can build a castle 
