Goals 2010
/I’ve written about this before so it should come as no surprise: I’m a goal-setter, a list-maker, and a box-checker. I like to write my goals on paper in a list so I can check them off. When working with daily goals or weekend projects, I even draw little boxes beside each item so I have a place to put my checkmark.
I prefer to set goals that I have a solid chance to achieve, and goals that I can measure. For example, I never set abstract goals to be a better person or impossible goals to learn Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity. I wouldn’t know how to begin with Einstein, and I wouldn’t know if I was successful at becoming a better person.
I also believe in incremental improvement over a lifetime, so I don’t mind if my goals are small. I know that small changes today equal big differences tomorrow. As long as I make goals that are sustainable and repeatable, they’ll add up over time to shape new habits and new life. That’s my plan.
So, as has been my habit, I have a list of goals for 2010. They are a subset of my big list of 100 Life Goals, which, if you are interested, can be found at: http://journalentries.typepad.com/journal-entries/life-goals.html
Send my next book to my editor, and publish it this year.
Start working on book #3. I already have a broad idea in my head and I am ready to start working on it.
Run a marathon this spring, and an ultramarathon next fall. I know this depends on staying healthy and keeping my knee safe, so it is actually an every-day goal.
Continue my 2009 weight loss plan (I went from 220 down to 195), moving down to 175 pounds. I don’t know if I can go that low (I haven’t weighed that since high school), but I would like to try it to see if it helps my knee. The bit I lost in 2009 helped me do almost everything better.
Spend time backpacking in
Read several books by Hemmingway, as part of my long-term study of great storytellers. I hope, by reading their stories, I will get better at telling mine.
Build a chin-up bar in the garage and pursue one of my life goals of doing my age in pull-ups, sit-ups, and push-ups. The sit-ups and push-ups are hard, but doable. The pull-ups are a killer, but I have located a plan and I think I can do it.
Play my trombone more often. I took most of 2009 off because of my extra deacon duties at my church, but those are now over and I want to reengage. I am afraid if I leave my horn in the case too long it will stay there forever, and I am not ready for that yet.
Have lunch with at least one of my guys at least once a week. God has surrounded me with great guys and I need more one-on-one time with them
Update our wills. Our current wills were written when both children were very young; it’s high time we caught up to this stage of our life. This has actually been on my list of goals for a couple of years now, and I’ve made no progress other than placing the forms on top of my desk to remind me of what I haven’t done. This is the year to get it done.
Read 60 books on various topics, and read through the Bible. This is actually a yearly goal for me that never changes.
Think about the possibility of maybe beginning to consider learning Spanish. I’m not sure how to go about this, so I am open to suggestions.
Print at least one family photo album. This project has been on my list for a couple of years, but I keep finding more photos in shoe boxes and old albums and in the bottom of desk drawers and I’ve been afraid to start, thinking there must be even more photos somewhere. It is time to move on with this.
Do you have a list? Do you have any goals for 2010? What are they?
“I run in the path of Your
commands, for You have set my heart free.” Psalm 119:32
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