It’s a different kind of list this year. It’s shorter, and it’s a bit late. I hope it’s more doable if I only focus on three things. I didn’t do so well last year. How did you do? I hope better than me. So with no further delay, here is my list of goals for 2023.
Walk 1000 miles.
Read the Bible in a year. My church started this January 1. I didn’t start until January 8, so I had some catching up to do, but I’m there now.
Lose five pounds. Maybe more. These are the same five pounds I didn’t lose last year. We have a class reunion coming up next year so there is more incentive this time around.
So if you have a list, feel free to share it with me in the comments below. We can do this together, and hopefully, we all succeed this year. How did you do last year? And did that change your list for this year – either longer or shorter? Good luck.
Fail: Lose five more pounds. I am maintaining my weight but currently not losing much. However, from December 31 to Thanksgiving, I was down 4 pounds. By December 31, my next loss was nothing. Not a pound. I will admit that starting off in January I am slowly heading down.
Maybe: Ancestry: Contact at least two cousins. I have reached out to 2 cousins but have not heard from them. I tried someone else. Does an attempt to contact someone mean I contacted them, but they didn’t contact me back?
Complete: Read 30 books. I have read 46 books, reading two books in December. I will admit some of them were shorter than your normal novel. Reading is always easy for me. I crave reading. If only I could crave walking and exercise.
Partial: Get through at least my second and third drafts of the book I wrote in 2021 and finish the first draft of my second book. On June 11, I started a class to help me write my second book’s first draft. I have created an outline for that one and written about 10,000 words. I have completed my first book. My first letter to an agent was sent in October, but then I decided to make some significant changes before I sent it out to anyone else. So I have completed the drafts of my book written in 2021. I am only in chapter 4 of the second book. So it’s incomplete.
Fail: Visit three states I have not visited before. We planned to go to New Mexico, Wyoming, and North Dakota this year. We traveled to New Mexico in April. In September, I changed the plan to go to North and South Carolina. All reservations were made. And then plans changed again. We went to North Carolina and decided to go home due to my health. So we will not complete 3 states this year. I was confident about this goal, but it won’t happen.
Completed: two quilts. I plan to finish a quilt for my son-in-law and one for my daughter-in-law. I pushed it and worked on the quilts three days in a row, eight or more hours a day. It was exhausting. On August 30, I brought them to the quilter to be quilted. I picked them up in October and have machine sewn on the bindings. Then I started the hand sewing of the binding. That is the most time-consuming step. I finished the hand sewing and wrapped them up for Christmas presents. They were finished a few days before Thanksgiving. Before Christmas, I made a doll quilt for each of my granddaughters for their baby dolls. I might make more in 2023.
Fail: Walk 1000 miles. I have attempted this for four years and never reached it. This year, I have walked only 667.6 miles. . I walk more often, but I think I will end up, if I’m lucky, getting to 700. And I didn’t make 700. Once again, I will have to put this on my list for next year.
December was the last month of my attempt to finish this list. And I didn’t do so well. How did you do on your goals? Let me know below. How I did this year has led me to make some tough decisions for 2023.
Goals are achievable things. They aren’t wishes or dreams that you know are not attainable. An example of a goal is to pay off a certain amount of debt, to hand-make all your greeting cards for the year, to lose 10 pounds, or to learn how to knit. Some things that would be unattainable for me would be to lose 50 pounds, win $1,000,000 in the lottery (I don’t play,) or become President of the United States. Need some ideas? Here are 23 ideas to help create goals for 2023.
Goals should be given some thought. Don’t write five things down and think you are done. There is much more to it than that, especially if you plan to succeed.
Goal: Lose five more pounds. I am maintaining my weight but currently not losing much. However, from December 31 to November 30, I was down 4 pounds. But after Thanksgiving, I will admit I added a few of those back. Yikes. I need to be better in December. So maybe I can do this after all.
Goal: Ancestry: Contact at least two cousins. I have reached out to 2 cousins but have not heard from them. I tried someone else. Most of these cousins are a lot younger than me, which may be why they are not responding since I’m old. A great excuse, isn’t it? No progress in the last five or six months.
Complete: Read 30 books. I have read 44 books, reading five books in November. I will admit some of them were shorter than your normal novel. This goal is complete, but I’m not stopping reading.
Goal: Get through at least my second and third drafts of the book I wrote in 2021 and finish the first draft of my second book. On June 11, I started a class to help me write my second book’s first draft. I have created an outline for that one and written about 10,000 words. I have completed my first book. My first letter to an agent was sent in October, but then I decided to make some significant changes before I sent it out to anyone else.
I will not finish: Visit three states that I have not visited before. We planned to go to New Mexico, Wyoming, and North Dakota this year. We traveled to New Mexico in April. In September, I changed the plan to go to North and South Carolina. All reservations were made. And then plans changed again. We went to North Carolina and then decided to go home due to my health. So we will not complete 3 states this year. I was confident about this goal, but it won’t happen.
Completed: two quilts. I plan to finish a quilt for my son-in-law and one for my daughter-in-law. I pushed it and worked on the quilts three days in a row, eight or more hours a day. It was exhausting. On August 30, I brought them to the quilter to be quilted. I picked them up in October and have machine sewn on the bindings. Then I started the hand sewing of the binding. That is the most time-consuming step. I finished the hand sewing and wrapped them up for Christmas presents. They were finished a few days before Thanksgiving.
I will be unable to complete: Walk 1000 miles. I have attempted this for four years and never reached it. So far this year, I have walked only 589.9 miles. As before, I’m getting further behind each month, which isn’t good. I walk more often, but I think I will end up, if I’m lucky, getting to 700. Once again, I will have to put this on my list for next year.
November was good for my quilt goal and sort of for my travel goals, I guess. But that is it. I admit I have given up on reaching 1000 miles, but I still want to strive for as many as possible. How are you doing on your goals? Let me know below. Keep working toward your goals. We can do this.
Twenty-three ideas to help you make your 2023 goals list should give you a good idea of the goals you should set. Goals should be given some thought. Don’t write five things down and think you are done. There is a lot more to it than that. Especially if you plan to succeed.
Are you a good friend? Do you have any good or even great friends? Friendship depends a lot on the friend that you are to your friends. Recently I’ve realized that while I am so focused on writing books, I have not been the best of friends like I should be. So what are good friends all about? Do we need them?
“Friends, like all good things in this life, can be had by any one who wants them.
There is only one simple rule to follow; it is this: to have a friend, be one yourself.” – Unknown
Goal: Lose five more pounds. I am maintaining my weight but currently not losing much. However, from December 31 to October 31, I am down 3 pounds. So maybe I can do this after all.
Goal: Ancestry: Contact at least two cousins. I have reached out to 2 cousins but have not heard from them. I tried someone else. Most of these cousins are a lot younger than me, which may be why they are not responding since I’m old. A great excuse, isn’t it? No progress in the last five or six months.
Complete: Read 30 books. I have read 39 books. I read four books in October. This goal is complete, but I’m not stopping reading.
Goal: Get through at least my second and third drafts of the book I wrote in 2021 and finish the first draft of my second book. On June 11, I started a class to help me write my second book’s first draft. I have created an outline for that one and written about 10,000 words. I have completed my first book. My first letter to an agent was sent in October, but then I decided to make some significant changes before I sent it out to anyone else.
Almost finished: Visit three states that I have not visited before. We planned to go to New Mexico, Wyoming, and North Dakota this year. We traveled to New Mexico in April. In September, I changed the plan to go to North and South Carolina. All reservations have been made. In November’s update, this should be complete.
Almost finished: Complete two quilts. I plan to finish a quilt for my son-in-law and one for my daughter-in-law. I pushed it and worked on the quilts three days in a row, eight or more hours a day. It was exhausting. On August 30, I brought them to the quilter to be quilted. I picked them up in October and have machine sewn on the bindings. I have started the hand sewing of the binding. That is the most time-consuming step. At this point, this should be easy to complete this goal.
Goal: Walk 1000 miles. I have attempted this for four years and never reached it. So far this year, I have walked only 532.5 miles. I’m getting further behind each month, which isn’t good. I walk more often, but I think I will end up, if I’m lucky, getting to 700. Once again, I will have to put this on my list for next year.
October was good for my writing and travel goals. But that is it. I admit I have given up on reaching 1000 miles, but I still want to strive for as many as possible.
How are you doing on your goals? Let me know below. Keep working toward your goals. We can do this.
I’ve been the creator of the “Retired? Now What?” list of things to do in retirement for years. It started with 50 and is now over 125. But are you looking for something more seasonal? Even if you aren’t retired, this list can come in handy. Every one of these items requires you to step outside. Hopefully, you will enjoy the weather out there. Here is a list of things that can be done away from your home for a change in scenery. Here is the official list of 45 things to do outside your home this fall/winter.
I’ve been the creator of the “Retired? Now What?” list of things to do in retirement for years. It started with 50 and is now over 125. But are you looking for something more seasonal? Even if you aren’t retired, this list can come in handy. And what if you aren’t stepping outside much anymore? Here is a list of 43 things to do inside your home this fall/winter. They are grouped together in categories. You might decide that you will start out with the Organize/Declutter section. You could devote a week, or at least a few days to just that category. Not every category will work that way, but feel free to pull items from different categories and make a day of them.
I am maintaining my weight but currently not losing any. I need to get more serious about losing weight. No progress in June through September.
Goal: Ancestry: Contact at least two cousins. I have reached out to 2 cousins but have not heard from them. I tried someone else. Most of these cousins are a lot younger than me, and I think that may be why they are not responding since I’m old. A great excuse, isn’t it? No progress in the last four months.
Complete: Read 30 books. I have read 34 books. I read two books in September. This goal is complete, but I’m not stopping reading.
Goal: Get through at least my second and third drafts of the book I wrote in 2021 and finish the first draft of my second book. I have joined a group that will help me with my second book. Plus, I have completed my first book. I will start sending it to agents this month. On June 11, I started a class that will be helpful in writing my first draft of the second book. I have created an outline for that one, and I’ve written about 5,000 words.
Goal: Visit three states that I have not visited before. We were going to New Mexico, Wyoming, and North Dakota this year. We traveled to New Mexico trip in April. In September, I changed the plan to go to North and South Carolina. I should finish it this week and upon approval of my husband, make all the reservations since it’s coming fast.
Progressing well: Complete 2 quilts. I plan to finish a quilt for my son-in-law and one for my daughter-in-law. I pushed it and worked 3 days in a row, 8 or more hours a day, on the quilts. It was exhausting. On August 30th, I brought them to the quilter to be quilted. They should be done in early November. Then I will pick them up and put the binding on. At this point, this should be easy to complete this goal.
Goal: Walk 1000 miles. I have attempted this for four years and never reached it. I need to be really serious about this year. The fifth attempt must work. So far this year, I have walked only 464.50 miles. If I did this evenly each month, I’m about 286.56 miles behind, which is an increase, once again, not the decrease I had hoped for. I’m getting further behind each month, which isn’t good. I am walking more often, but I think I will end up, if I’m lucky, getting to 700. Once again, I will have to put this on my list for next year.
September was good for my writing and travel goals. But that is it. I am not giving up yet.
How are you doing on your goals? Let me know below. Keep working toward your goals. We can do this.
