Yesterday at work, a colleague was talking about creating her 30 before 30 list. The first thing I thought was ‘I don’t have time for that!’

I turn 30 in nine months and six days.

Is it too late for me to start a 30 before 30?

The answer to that is yes if I wanted to include big and expensive things like go to New York, sky dive, or go on a cruise. However, it’s got me thinking about what I could achieve before reaching the big 3-0.

At the moment, money is a bit tight because we’re paying off our wedding. Once this is cleared, the plan is to pay the same we’re currently paying off our loan into a savings account so that we can get a house deposit. I seem to be planning my life for four years in the future. When we have a house we can get a dishwasher, we can have child, we can move away, etc, etc. I’m inadvertently wishing my life away.

Rather than focusing on these big life goals that I can’t do anything about right now, why not choose 30 small but achievable goals? So what could my 30 before 30 be?

Read 30 books? I could choose 30 must read titles. But even that’s probably unachievable because I’d need to read one book every nine days. Mmm… next?!

Last year, I stopped going to WeightWatchers. Again. Since stopping I’ve pretty much put back on every last pound I worked so hard to lose. Again. I’m planning on celebrating my birthday on the beach in Portugal. This means a swimsuit. Perhaps the best option for my 30 before 30 is to lose 30lbs before my birthday. It’ll be a good start towards a healthier, happier me.

This is me on my honeymoon in Turkey. It’d be nice not to feel so self-conscious in a swimming costume.

Why not start my thirties ready to embrace life with the knowledge, experience and love that I’ve gained during my twenties? But perhaps a little lighter.

If you had nine months to get in your 30 before 30, what would you choose to do?

Rachel x