This year has been a big one for me. Here are some of the things I did, in no particular order.
- I ran a half marathon.
- I ran a DIY half marathon.
- I quit drinking alcohol.
- I ran 541 miles.
- I went to Birmingham, Alabama for spring break.
- I went to Seattle, Washington over the summer to meet up with my friends from high school.
- I went on a weekend retreat in the Delta as part of my graduate fellowship.
- I started my Master’s in Elementary Education program.
- I got all As in my first semester of my Master’s program.
- I got a new job, teaching a new grade level.
- I drove to Michigan and back three times.
- I watched three of my friends get married (congrats!)
- I started Creative Writing Club at my school.
- I bought a house and moved.
- I became an adult who bundles their homeowners insurance with their car insurance to save money.
- I finished Teach for America.
- I taught summer school.
- I helped plan and promote a local event that is, honestly, the best new thing going on in Jackson.
- I ate poké for the first time, then several times after that.
This year has been long and short and I am so proud of every ounce of it. Nearly everything I did this year was something that I could not have predicted at the beginning of the year. The only things I knew were going to happen at the beginning of the year were finishing Teach for America and running a half marathon.
In reflecting and wrapping up my 2018, I used Year Compass, which I filled out over a few days around Christmas. It was useful in that it provided a space for me to think of everything that happened this year, rather than weighing my reflection more heavily on the past few months. It also helped me to reflect on areas that were less of a focus for me in 2018.
My goals for 2018 were as follows:
Make progress on my fitness in 2018 – Yes! I’ve made progress as a runner and have been putting in some time at the gym on the rest of my body too.
Drink 68 oz. of water daily – Mixed success. I drank a lot of water over the summer but much less while school was in session.
Floss every day in 2018 – 99%. I didn’t make it every single day, but I was very close.
Get a new job by June 2018 – Yes! I got a new job in February and started in July.
Maintain fulfilling friendships – Yes! I’ve made a significant effort to initiate social gatherings, and I’ve been working on contacting friends who don’t live near me more often.
Reach a net worth of $x – Not quite, but I wasn’t far off.
Limit restaurant expenditures to $100/month – Nope. I had three months where my restaurant spending was less than $100/month.
Write biweekly blog posts – Nope. I wrote 14 (I guess this one makes 15) blog posts this year, and I did not write them in any kind of regular biweekly schedule.
I also want to make something clear – I didn’t complete every one of my goals I set for 2018. I am 100% happy with that. The turns my life took this year were wild and unexpected and I am amazed with where life has ended up this year.
That brings up a question: should I bother setting goals for 2019? If last year’s goals were way off the mark, is there a point?
I could debate this, but I’ve made my mind up – I am setting goals for 2019, focusing primarily on habit and consistency goals. For instance, my health goals are weekly meal prepping, flossing, daily sunscreen, and working out three times per week. My professional goals are similarly centered on habits and consistency – getting lesson plans done in advance every week, rather than a singular big achievement.
“So often we waste our time and energy thinking that we need a monumental effort to achieve anything significant. We tell ourselves that we need to get amped up on motivation and desire. We think that we need to work harder than everyone else.”
What is Your “Average Speed” in Your Life, Your Health, and Your Work?
I think that there’s something to the notion that our average speed has a larger impact than bursts of ambition, and I’m tracking my goals accordingly. This year, I’m using Kara Haupt’s Goal Tracking Spreadsheet, with a few minor modifications to meet my needs.
