Happy 2016, everybody! I hope 2015 was a spectacular year for you, and that 2016 will be even more so.
I’ve been thinking a lot about what I want 2016 to look like—as we humans are so inclined to do—and I realized that thing I loved most about 2015 was how involved I became with my own life. I wasn’t just cruising along in the same old rut anymore. I had been blessed with some great opportunities, and I really made an effort to make the most out of every moment. There is no question that I grew and changed and became a better version of me than I was before.
And I’m honestly a little terrified that I’ll lose that in the next year. Now that my life’s biggest adventure (so far) is over, I don’t want to fall back into my old routine (work, sleep, repeat) and forget to make time for cherishing the life I’ve been blessed with. Just because I’m back in familiar territory doesn’t mean there isn’t still plenty to explore and plenty of adventures to be had.
So, since last year’s resolution list was such a success (for once!), I decided to try it again this year, with a bit of a twist. I’m 30 now, so I thought I’d embrace that by making a list of 30 things I’d like to do this year. Some of them are your typical resolutions (read x number of books, lose weight, that sort of thing), but some of them are specific one-time things I want to make sure I do—bucket list style. Some will get blogged about if I do them. Some will just mean stickers on my calendar because I’m five years old and I need stickers to feel accomplished. But all of them will be fun, and all of them will make my life better.
Here is my list:
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1. Read 30 books
2. Lose 30 lbs
3. Sell some prints
4. Finish my rewrite and start querying
5. Sew the dress
6. Get an apartment
7. Participate in Illustration Friday
8. Reread Harry Potter
9. Complete the LDS Photography challenges
10. Visit Babby Farms
11. Read The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
12. Attend the Temple every month
13. Visit the Old Penitentiary
14. Complete a round of Whole 30
15. Ride at least once a week
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16. Go on a Grand Adventure
17. Visit Craters of the Moon
18. Visit Stanley
19. Go camping
20. Visit a National Park that I’ve never been to
21. Start Investing
22. Make a web series
23. Blog more consistently
24. Finish my Matador U course
25. Participate in an art show
26. Write a letter every week
27. Get my digital life organized
28. Floss every day
29. Practice my oboe every week
30. Pick fruit at the LDS church welfare orchard
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I’m not a terribly huge fan of the movie “Thirteen Going on Thirty,” but ever since my birthday, I’ve had Jennifer Garner’s little quote stuck in my head: “Thirty, flirty, and thriving.” That’s going to be my mantra for the year—especially the thriving part, because we all know that flirty is a bit of a stretch for me.
But maybe that will change this year.
Ha.
Do you make resolutions every year? Or do you prefer the mantra/word of the year method?
4 Responses
Great list! Sounds like a very good year is in the making. 🙂
I like to do a blend of choosing a word for the year and then also making specific goals. I like to make a list like you do – some are goals that I need to be working on all year and some are ones that are one-time only (or once a month or whatever). I’ve had a lot of fun over the last few years figuring out what works for me as far as goals go. One thing I’ve started doing is my own brand of bullet journaling to keep track of the goals that are daily/weekly. I’ve also discovered that I like making charts that track my success – the visual cue is nice.
Good luck with meeting your goals this year!
I like to mix a bit of bullet journaling in with my regular writing, too. I find that I do have better success sticking to my goals when I track them that way. That’s also why I post them on my blog–I’m more likely to stick to a plan if I’ve told someone else about it. 🙂
Good luck with your goals, too!
Um, I love your picture up top! It’s so well styles that I thought you got it from somewhere, but no, you’re just that good! I like your list too, especially the reread Harry Potter part, we got the new fully illustrated one for Christmas and I’ve started reading or with my kids. My goals include practing my handlettering and yoga everyday, and teaching Walt to read, among other things.
Well, actually… It is a mockup from Creative Market. I just added the text. 🙂
Fully illustrated Harry Potter?! The first time I “read” the series was mostly by audiobook. I’ll definitely have to check out the illustrated version! And I can’t wait to see your hand lettering! Will you post any to your blog?