With 2021 finally here it’s time that we set our goals for the new year. Although I may fail or fall short of many of my endeavors this year, I still think it is a very healthy practice for personal growth. I encourage everyone to sit down and write a few goals for themselves this year.
Even if your goals seem far fetched, write them down. Writing them down is a vote and step towards the person you want to become in the future and there is power in that.
If you want to read about my goals from last year or my review of those goals follow the respective links:
- Grow My Net Worth to $350,000
Now this will take some work but I am relying on our trusted friend, compound interest to carry much of this load. Last year’s goal was to increase my worth by $75,000, this year I upped the goal to grow by nearly $105,000. I’m shooting for the fences here.
- Max Out My IRA, HSA, and 401k
This is almost the identical goal as last year and a goal that will likely remain on my goals list until I retire. The only change from this year to last year is that I changed the wording from “Roth IRA” to “IRA” as I am still unsure if I will be investing in my Traditional IRA or Roth IRA account.
Last year I started the year as a traveler so I was in a much lower tax bracket making the Roth IRA make the most sense. However, this year I am starting the year as a staff/salary employee putting me into a higher tax bracket which would make a traditional IRA make sense. I still plan to travel later in the year so I lean towards a Roth IRA still due to the flexibility later in life but I’m still not 100% sure.
- Read 5 Books With at Least 3 Being Personal Growth
I started last year hot but finished in a slump. I enjoy reading but if I don’t find a book that motivates me to read, I won’t do it. So this year I expanded my goal to include other books that aren’t only for personal growth to hopefully give more enjoyment to this goal while also maintaining my motivation levels.
- Try Another Minimum Spend Month
I REALLY enjoyed my attempt at a minimum spend month last April. I felt that it really grounded me on what was important in my life and actually helped balance out some of my finances for some of my heavier spending months.
This may be another goal that I routinely attempt to accomplish.
- Average 1 Blog Post Every 2 Weeks
The blog goals needed to be reworked this year as my focus has changed more from creating a business/following to continued self growth through the use of the blog. If more people begin to follow and participate that would be great, but it is no longer the primary goal.
- Average 4 Resistance Workouts AND 1 Cardio Workout per Week
Now this may not seem like a big change from last year’s “average 5 workouts per week” goal. However, if you knew me you would realize that it is. I am not a runner by any means and I normally get the majority of my fitness from lifting weights and playing basketball.
However, with COVID, my basketball intake has been minimal which has left my cardio lacking. So I know that I need to try and increase this goal to include cardio even when the court is closed. I may not be a runner but there are plenty of ways to incorporate a cardio workout into my weekly routine.
- Travel Outside of the United States
Try number 2 at this goal. Hopefully things will slowly return to normal and we will all finally be able to resume our traveling again. There is far too much world to see for me to remain in one place for too long.
- Get Engaged
As many things have changed in 2020, one thing in particular or should I say person has remained the same. This has resulted in further growth of myself and continued happiness. We have already discussed this goal heavily as a couple but putting it on paper further brings a smile to my face. I am hoping that this coming year I’ll be able to report about some of the financial and life implications that some of these often expensive life events have.
Conclusion
So that’s the plan for 2021. Hopefully this year is better than the last, but regardless of how the year goes we can all benefit from some personal growth.
Here’s to becoming the best versions of us. Cheers!
-Zach
Let me know some of your goals for 2021 in the comments below.
