28, 30, 31. Then, there’s the really unusual 29. No matter how you flip the pages, each month only has so many days. I’ve recently gotten into the groove of setting goals for each month, and I’ve been met with varying degrees of success. Instead of looking at the end of the month as the finish line, though, I wanted to play around with the scope and scale a bit to see if I can make more out of this next month.
And, like, no pressure. Because it’s not as if it’s the last month of the year or something.
Here’s my focus:
Each day, I’m going to do something related to my finances, my health, and my family. While I’m still largely suspicious of the concept of work-life balance since I had to give up my favorite job ever, I’m willing to keep trying. (Spoken like someone who has no other option, huh?) Instead of worrying about trying to get them to total something at the end of each week or each month, I’m simply going to do something to make the day count.
Here’s my starting point:
Finances
- Spend money on an experience instead of a thing
- Add to the 529
- Give some of it away
Health
- Meditate
- Take a nap (#newmomgoals)
- Go for a checkup
Family
- Spend a day away from distractions
- Write a letter
- Take more photos
Here’s my prediction:
This will end one of two ways. I will either pinball my way through the month, coming out more dazed and confused than ever, as I bounce from one bumper to the next. Or I won’t. Maybe I’ll discover that every action doesn’t always have to be part of a perfect streak, a flawless chain, a never-ending routine to keep moving forward.
Only time will tell.
So Tell Me…What are your goals for the month?
Excited to see how the experiment goes! I’m working on something similar-ish. A list of 10 or so slightly bugger, but not crazy unattainable, things I want to accomplish next year. (Things like run a 5k, go kayaking, etc.) To reach them, I will have to similarly make good, small choices each day. Good luck!
My goal is to give up my to-do list for a week. But I know what will happen. I’ll put my to-do items on my calendar rather than my to-do list. I just can’t help myself.
We’ve got three short trips before the end of December plus house guests and so another goal of mine is to enjoy all these moments and not over-plan. One trip is for a wedding in Winston-Salem, which we’ve been meaning to check out and so we’ll make a weekend of it. The other two are to Mr. G’s family — for closing on our land, and then for Christmas.. After Christmas, Claudia and Garrett (twocuphouse.com for those who don’t know them) are visiting us!
I have found goals to be a two edged sword in my life. When I can stay focused, and hit the finish line, they give me a feeling of accomplishment. But when I don’t, I feel like a loser or, almost as bad, I have to set new goals, which give me another opportunity to fail.
Earlier this year I read a book by Scott Adams called “How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big” which posits that goals are not the answer, rather systems. It was an interesting read and has changed my approach to living. I’m much more focused on now and what I’m doing today than where I might be in a month, year or five. It is very mentally freeing and I’m still doing what I should be doing.
I’m starting a new job on December 6th, so that’s my main goal for the end of the year. Learning my new job will be my main focus, and then I’ll slowly add more to it as I get more comfortable. I am hoping that this will be the start of my new career path, so i want to start out strong 🙂
My goal is to get put on a gig. Hopefully the one that has OT and repay my brother for the plane tickets he bought to see my dad. My goal is to continue getting the good sleep I’ve been getting during my unemployment and bereavement. A few more body weight exercises.
All little but important. Trying to take care of my mind and body while having to take care of his estate.
Next year has somehow become insanely packed w trips (family mostly but also for fun). So my goal is to get at least one fully paid for with side hustle income, and travel hacking. Therefore, I will be doing at least one thing each day to help grow my blog, and one big thing on weekends (think re-schedule posts/tweets/pins/what-have-you). Good luck!