Monday, January 06, 2020

2020 Quarter One Goals

In 2017 and 2018, I had goals that I set up for myself at the beginning of the year and I did a good job with them. In 2019, things really fell off the wagon, so I'm going to back to the system that works for me.  Here are my goals for the first three months of the year.  I definitely reserve the right to tweak these goals throughout the year.

Area One: Health
1) Work out three times a week for 30 minutes or more - Because of a dumb overuse injury in my leg, I was not able to do substantial workouts in the first quarter of last year. And then I just...didn't pick it up again.  I need to get back to at it.
2) Work out an additional two times a week for at least 15 minutes - I have in my mind that a workout has to be at least 30 minutes to be doing something, but honestly a 15 minute core workout can be just as punishing as 60 minutes of cardio for me. Mindfully moving my body for five days a week seems like a good way to improve my physical and mental health.
3) At least two strength training workouts every week- I actually like lifting weights. Dr. BB got a new weight set, too, so I need to start doing a better job of incorporating strength training into my life.

I reserve the right to add food and/or water tracking on to this list. Unfortunately, I've tried that in the past and I've always failed to do so, so I'm not sure if this exactly a realistic goal for me. However, if my weight doesn't start to decrease, I might be forced to count calories again.

Area Two: Professional
1) Get my email under control and keep it there (try to keep the inbox to 15 emails or fewer at all times) - I had some mental health issues in 2019 that led me to avoid checking my work and personal email. Because of this, my email started stacking up. There are over 1000 emails in each of my accounts right now. Most of them can be deleted, but it is a definitely a priority for me in the first quarter of the year to get those inboxes under control. I'm not a zero-email inbox kind of girl, but I'd like to stop missing things because they sink to the bottom of my inbox.
2) Volunteer position - I'm on the board for my local community center.  I'm head of the programming committee and I'd like to get a program started in 2020 and, ideally, have that program be profitable. Also, I need to communicate with everyone promptly in that role.
3) Update my resume and cover letter - Things are not going smoothly for me at work. I'd like to take the free time I will have this semester to really think about what I want to do for work.  Anyone know how to create a business plan for a small business?  Or maybe I should just take a part-time job in non-profit training. Argh.
4) Create a portfolio - I have to do this for one of the classes I teach. Right now, I just have a fake portfolio with links that go nowhere. I actually want to create a portfolio of our progress with Hannah (I can actually use this for instructional purposes, I swear). This will involve me figuring out how to do video editing, though. Egads. It sounds hard. Oh, well. Let's say it's a "goal" and hope for the best.

Area Three: Communication
1)  Post to Instagram once a day - I did this in 2017 and it was good fun. I think I'll do my best again this year. It is sometimes hard to find something new to photograph, but if all else fails, I'll take a photo of my adorable mutt.
2) Update blog at least twice a week - I posted an average of 1.4 times a week last year without tracking it. I'm hoping that I can keep a good editorial calendar and do better. We'll see.
3)  Keep track of books read - Every year people ask me how many books I read and I honestly have no idea. I read a lot of trashy books that I get for free on my Kindle (sign up for BookBub, people!), but this year I'm going to have a dedicated place on my spreadsheet for what books I'm reading and when I finish them. I generally have two books going at once - one on my Kindle for bedtime reading and one book that I have gotten from the library that I read downstairs.  I will hold myself accountable by publishing a list every quarter.
4) Send a postcard/note/letter to my two elderly aunts and one uncle every month - I've done this in the past and it's fun and I like to do it.

Area Four: Personal Improvement Projects
1) Tackle one project around the house every week - By "project," I essentially mean "something I've been putting off." The first week in January it will be taking down the Christmas tree. I also need to organize my desk, the closets, deal with a bunch of Lego sets my mother gave me from childhood that have taken over the guest room, and figure out how to declutter our bookshelves. There's a lot to do, but I just tend to ignore it because it doesn't have to be done RIGHT. NOW.
2) Duolingo every day - I've done Duolingo for at least ten minutes a day for over 300 days as of today. I would like to keep this streak going. I can actually follow basic stories in Spanish at this point.
3) Take at least three more classes with Hannah - She's so smart and tries so hard and I want her to be happy. Also, I love videos of dogs doing fun tricks and I want Hannah to be the star of one of those videos.
4) Try a new recipe every week - For real. I'm so sick of eating the same five recipes.

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