Alright, new year… new goals. Twenty new goals in fact, well… 19 “NEW” goals to be precise. The first goal of my 2021 Twenty is to keep working on the 13 goals that weren’t achieved in 2020. So that means that technically I’m going to be working on 32 goals this year.
So, let’s begin by recapping which goals on my 2020 Twenty were left undone.
Ok, I must admit… I read my own goal wrong yesterday when I was doing my wrap up post. I saw the picture that said “get out of debt” and didn’t read the title simply stating “reduce”. In fact all year I’ve seen this wrong. Proving I’m a very visual person. (Picture catches my eye quicker than the contradicting words). So, all year I’ve been aiming to completely eliminate my debt load.
One of the reasons we decided to put our house on the market in May was because we realized we had more than enough equity in the house to completely eliminate all of our debts. So that became the goal. In the meantime, COVID was the biggest blessing of the year. I cashed in big time on all the recovery and stimulus grants and payments given to me this year, and used a large portion of them to completely pay off a credit card. So, I did in fact REDUCE my debt load, just not ELIMINATE it.
Our house is still on the market, and once it sells, the debts will be gone. So, this one should be achieved soon!
If 2020 did one thing for this goal, it increased the desire to make it happen. I have realized (as has my friend who lives near Oakland) that we were meant to be neighbors. Unfortunately, we live 16 hours apart from each other.
But we’re gonna make this happen. We have to meet this family. I can almost guarantee that the events of 2021 are going to make the desire even greater for both of us, however those same events will make it virtually impossible for us to travel. But we’re gonna keep this one on the list until it happens.
This one was probably the biggest disappointment of 2020 for me. I had just put together all the necessary items for a press/promo package, I was in talks with multiple conferences and events and even had begun working on a small tour proposal, when the event industry came crashing down in March.
But that didn’t stop me from writing more content and material. In fact, Ethan helped me find what will likely become a signature theme for my speaking engagements and forthcoming book. I can’t wait to debut my newest talk, “Standing on Your Head” at an event or conference later this year hopefully.
This one stings a bit because not only did my wife win a photo session with a local photographer through an online contest, but our favourite, go-to photographer who has done Lisa’s maternity shoots, newborn shoots and even took the one and ONLY family photo we have from 4 years ago offered us a free session in early fall. Yet somehow this goal was left unfulfilled and we went another year with no photo.
It stings even more, especially around Christmas when everyone sends out their Christmas cards and posts online - attaching their annual family photos. Unfortunately, if I don't have willingness from the four others in my family to do this, I can't accomplish this goal. So, we'll see if and when this goal ever gets achieved. I may have to resort to photoshopping people into photos.
I had really wanted a brand new 2020 model of something… I didn't even know what. But all I accomplished last year was some research. I’ve now got it narrowed down to four vehicles.
During 2020, my current 20-year-old vehicles all but exploded on the side of the road. I ran out of gas again due to my gauge not working, my windshield wipers stopped working (always fun driving in the slush with no wipers), the fan died (it was pretty cold driving to school in December with no heat - not to mention keeping the windshield clear) and the sounds coming from under the vehicles are similar to that from a horror movie.
So, this goal MUST be accomplished this year.
Did ANYBODY “suit up” this year?!? From what I heard, it seems more executives were buying lounge pants and T-shirt’s than were buying suits - not to mention stay-at-home dads! I think Canada’s largest suit clothier went bankrupt too, didn’t they? Not a great year for this goal. I’ll throw it on the list again… but I’m 99% sure this is my wild card, long shot goal of the year.
This one never had a chance. Little did I know you have to reserve your spot in October of the previous year to do the hike. So October of 2019 to have it completed in 2020 like I had wanted. Then the government cancelled everyone’s reservations and it’s still a gong show.
Maybe my goal should be to make a reservation in October 2021 to hike the trail (hopefully with my brother still) in the summer of 2022!!!
I looked into it. I had tentatively thought maybe my father-in-law and I could do it during summer holidays, but we ended up leaving Kelowna and taking our holidays elsewhere. Ideally, I’d love to explore this island with a friend, but like last year that involves MAKING a friend first. And now with everybody being scared of everybody… good luck making new friends.
We’ll see if and when I get to go explore his island and hopefully meet OgoPogo. What I do know if that this will be my biggest regret if I ever move away from Kelowna without setting foot on this island.
The easiest goal on my 2020Twenty and it didn’t get done. I need help. I need a mom friend who’s crafty or perhaps MY mother-in-law or my grandma-in-law who has time to take me to Michael’s and help me with this project. I’m disappointed this wasn’t completed. But again, perhaps with a new home on the horizon that will need decorating, this goal will align with that.
Nope. But to be fair, I got more sleep in 2020 than I did in 2019, so we’re improving. I thought I’d complete this one for sure when I was gifted a night at a local hotel for my birthday… but before I had a chance to use it, everything changed.
Besides, I think I function best on 5-6 hours of sleep. 3-5 (which is where I was at in 2019) is tough, and I still had enough nights and weeks like this in 2020, but the nights where I got 5 or 6 hours were good. I’m not even sure if my body would LET ME sleep for 8. We’ll see. I still need to use up my free hotel night before June!
Of all my goals last year, I seem to remember this one getting the most feedback. You guys sent me screenshots of YOUR dock and how half of you were similar to me and could relate and then the other half of you showed me clean docks and home pages with like a 3 above your mail icon and you then had to explain to me how that 3 was ruining your day.
Well seems like I’ve added another 5,000 to the challenge and that's after trying to eliminate 5,000! My phone eliminated all my voicemail randomly one morning when my phone crashed, so that was devastating. But at the same time it got my phone down to zero. Sadly it’s crept back up on me too.
Anyway… long story, short: I failed! Let’s try again in 2021.
Didn’t even get a chance to complete this one. Don’t know if 2021 will be any better. But this is going to happen. Just not sure when!
This is another goal that I had held off on, assuming our house would sell. In having to pack up an entire house, I figured it would be easy... perhaps not in the PACKING, but maybe more so in the UNPACKING to create order out of the chaos that is my life.
Again, I can try to justify it in telling you that my family of five has been living in a 900sq/ft house for the past five years. With my kids all developing special needs, that space gets even smaller as equipment and therapy bins consume every empty space. The "simple" act of finding a bigger home will resolve a lot of the chaos issues I'm plagued with.
So, once again. Sell the house, and this goal will be accomplished in short order.
And there you have it. My first goal of my 2021 Twenty is to accomplish (or at least make some additional effort and progress) on the remaining 13 goals from 2020. No small task, but I would regret just leaving these goals behind. And besides, they are GREAT goals! So, lets see if I can squeeze them into 2021.