A new year! And with a new year comes a fresh opportunity to think about what I actually want from my life – not just vaguely, but properly. So here, for anyone who wants to hold me accountable (and for my future self, who I fully expect to come back and read this in December), is my masterlist of goals for 2019.
Reading
- Read at least 40 books
- Read more non-fiction – I tend to default to fiction and I want to challenge myself
- Read at least one book in German per month
- Keep up with my reading journal (yes, I have one, yes I keep abandoning it)
- Visit at least two new bookshops
Health and wellbeing
- Walk more – I want to aim for 8,000 steps a day on average
- Cook at home at least four evenings a week
- Get outside every weekend, even when it is grey and cold
- Drink more water (as everyone says every year and means it)
- Spend less time on my phone before bed
Kindness
- Do at least one intentional act of kindness per week – and write about some of them here
- Write more letters and cards by hand
- Donate to charity more regularly instead of just when something terrible is in the news
- Be a better listener in conversations
- Remember birthdays properly (with actual cards, not just a WhatsApp message)
Creative and personal growth
- Keep writing here, even when I do not feel inspired – consistency matters more than perfection
- Learn something new: I am thinking about a photography course or a language class
- Spend less time comparing myself to others online
- Say yes to more things that scare me a little
A note on goals
I have been thinking about this a lot lately – especially after reading Barbara Sher’s work on goals and what she calls “scanners” (people who are genuinely interested in many things and do not want to commit to just one). I used to feel guilty about having too many interests. Now I am trying to see it as a strength. This list reflects that – it is wide, it is varied, and I fully expect to not achieve everything on it. And that is okay.
What are your goals for 2019? I would love to know in the comments.
