Happy birthday to me…! This was a decent year, and the next will be even better. I’ve set a few goals for this year, split into groupings.
Last year I was pretty focused on just getting by. I barely had the bandwidth to function day to day, let alone plan far enough ahead to solve any real issues. The things I achieved were done out of necessity and could have been a lot more efficient if I had enough time and money to take a breath. But this year is starting strong and I’ve decided it’s only going to get better.
This year, I’ve decided on 4 focus areas, all of which connect nicely.
1. Financial
2. Health
3. School
4. Creativity
I’m starting with finances because when you’re focused on surviving, you can’t grow in other ways (Thanks Maslow’s hierarchy of needs!).
Once I’m financially secure, I can focus in on my health. Once I’m feeling good, I can be successful in school and have enough energy to devote to my personal projects.
My financial goals aren’t very complicated, really I just want to be able to cover all my bills. Starting in the new year, I want to be saving $500/month minimum. This money will go towards boat life and just general financial security for next year!
FINANCIAL
- Be able to cover all my bills
- Have consistent income
- Starting January: save $500/ month
Be able to buy a sailboat in the spring, live on it for the summer.
Health isn’t very complicated either, just want to go to my appointments and get my teeth cleaned. It’s been over 3 years since I’ve had any preventative dental or eye care! And my prescription isn’t cutting it anymore. One of the hardest things I’ve dealt with over the past few years is stress and anxiety, which really affected my sleep and my ability to problem solve. I’m committing to active stress management because I never want to feel like my life is snowballing again.
HEALTH
- Dental appointment
- Optometrist appointment => new prescription => new glasses!
- LASIK eye surgery (this one might be a pipe dream $$$)
- Get active every day
- Gym 3x/week
- Sleep well, consistently
- Anxiety and stress, keep it lowwww
- Heavy on the fruits and veggies, low on the junk
For school, once again, I’m keeping it chill. Above 85% average, very doable in my program. Consistent study habits, kinda necessary for the over 85 average. prepared for clinical in January? I hope so!
SCHOOL
- Consistent study habits
- Above 85% average
- Feel prepared for clinical placement in January
And finally, my most exciting goal section. This is where I’ll be focusing most of my blog attention, most of my emotional energy, and hopefully (!) it will be a real way for me to relieve stress and keep myself out of my own head. Creating things is the most satisfying feeling and also a good way to keep your skills sharp.
CREATIVITY
- Start my ocean quilt
- SDH personal project
- Plan for my boat life
- Plan my garden
- Plan my homestead
- and keep writing this blog!
- Improve photography and editing skills
Sharp skills are what I’m really aiming for this year, although that may be hard to read if you don’t know what my last few years have been like. I want to be disciplined, purposeful in my acts, and capable of planning ahead and achieving what I set out to do. I want the things that are necessary for day to day functioning to come easily by the end of this year.
The Avery Spectacle 