Hey guys! So the last time we were here on this blog to discuss goals and goal setting was last year's Midyear Review, where I also shared with you my Theme or Word for 2016, which was to DO. So far, I did cross a few things off my list but I haven't gotten around to writing about them. As for the other items, well, I started acting on them and they are well in motion for this year.
So, let's start off for my One Big Theme for 2017, and that is: FOCUS. Well, FOCUS/MINDFULNESS. I thought about this for a few days before the year started and when it came to me around 3 days into the year, I thought it was perfect.
For the past few years, a lot of things have been trying to catch my attention, and I let them, because I enjoy learning. I enjoy trying out a lot of things. And the thing about me is that I want to do them all. AT ONCE. As in, I think far too fast than I can write or keep up with. I have so many ideas and I feel like I just have to try the good ideas out especially after I've read about them obsessively & feel like they are feasible. I really try to balance the things I want to all at once, resulting in me getting frazzled, overworked & overwhelmed. More importantly, this leads me to NOT FINISH the things I want to accomplish mid-project.
This was up until last year, when I discovered the magical power of DOING THINGS ONE AT A TIME. Yes, the secret to success is NOT juggling things but setting aside time to FOCUS on these tasks. This seems like such a shocker, especially in a world that lauds multitasking. Well, look what multitasking has done to my long term goals and to the quality of my short term goals. Ever since I tried focusing on one task at a time, I liked the quality of my outputs and felt waaay more productive, having been able to finish task after task.
I discovered the power of mindfulness last year while on my social media break. Social media and technology tend to distract us from what is around us, so while on that break, I was able to notice plenty of things I normally wouldn't have. I helped people out (it made me more empathetic), I was more in touch with my feelings (I could automatically identify what I was really feeling and sort it out before I could take it out wrongly on someone else), I could sense when I wasn't hungry (which is entirely different from being full, by the way!) and a whole lot more!
Anyway, here are my goals for this year:
1. Launch my business by the third quarter. (Target: MY BIRTHDAY) I wont say what it is just yet, but I am working doubly and triply hard on it so I can launch it this year.
2. Grow my blog community.
- I aim to have 100 subscribers on my Engineered Life blog by April. (Please help a girl reach her goals and subscribe to that blog? You will be the first ones notified of any new posts and freebies!)
I did a hiatus last year and now I am back with TWO blogs. Am I crazy? This blog is for my personal posts, while the other blog are for more informative posts about strategies on engineering & designing your life to make it better. I decided to separate them because I planned to write about this year's travels and didn't think it would go together with a niche blog.
3. Visit at least 10 new places this year.
I have spent the past years of my life within the 4 walls of a classroom and now it is time to see the world, while I am not tied down to anything. I bought tickets to Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia (Phnom Penh & Siam Reap), Bangkok and Vietnam (Hanoi) last year and I intend to use them this year.
While I haven't been called for a legit engineering job yet, I am working as a Virtual Assistant to earn money for these trips. I am excited for these trips, but also worried about my Korean visa, which I will be applying for in March. I am anxious because I think I'm technically considered unemployed & might have a hard time getting one. Maybe I'm mostly worried I won't be able to raise enough money. Please help me pray so I can get a visa and raise enough money!
Update (05/02/2017): I have visited Korea! If you wanna read my guide to Seoul, South Korea, click here!
Better yet, if you have any social media projects you need work on, I can help you do it. Just shoot me a message on one of the social sites on my header or side bar!
Oh, I also won a round trip ticket to Bohol, which I haven't been to. That's about 8 places now, so yay. :)
Update (06/15/2017): I visited Bohol, Dumaguete and Cebu this year with my sister! After we go on our ASEAN trip, that's already the 10 places! Score! :)
Update (09/11/2017): I have gone to those 5 countries around Southeast Asia! Travel goal, completed!
4. Teach at least ONE in-person workshop on blogging this year. Blogging is something I'm very passionate about and I am a bit frustrated that more people aren't trying it out or getting into it. My guess is because people are clueless about it, or scared to try it, and I want to recruit people into the fold. Besides, even though I'm no expert, I think I do know quite a bit about the topic and I am willing to share my knowledge.
These past two months of doing nothing while waiting for a job has made me realize a lot of things, especially with regards to what I really want to do with my life. You know what I think I was called to do? Write and teach. I know that isn't the most glamorous thing (I'd always envisioned myself doing something glamorous, tbh) or even Chemical Engineering-related, and maybe this realization came too late (wow, after 7.5 years in ChE and getting my license), but these two bring me the most joy and fulfillment, so I want to incorporate these in my life in any way.
5. Get a stronger core. I would say "be thinner" or "lose 20 lbs" but that is so generic and the concrete actionable steps I have to take to get there are vague. Like, what will I do? Treadmill everyday? So I chose to get a stronger core because the core is where all your strength is concentrated & its strength is something that can be measured (in my case: I hope I can do a 2-minute plank at the end of the year). You can also measure weight, but looking at the scale often disappoints even though you know that something in you has changed.
I also specifically picked this because I did this killer workout and while I was doing ab exercises on the floor, it came to the point where I couldn't get up because my midsection was cramping. It was the first time that ever happened. I want a stronger core so I can be steadier (I often get off-balanced) and hopefully land stronger punches when boxing.
Anyway, that's it. I only chose 5 because I'd rather have a small number of manageable goals that eventually get realized, versus a whole laundry list that doesn't have any item crossed off year after year.
I usually don't like revealing what my plans are, in case I fail to do them and someone asks me about it. It can be quite embarrassing to have someone congratulate you in advance and then the plan doesn't push through. But because I've got so much free time in my hands, I've read about The Law of Attraction and one of the steps to manifest what you want was aside from visualize them was to make these plans known to the world (say them out loud and affirm that they will come true for you), and send them out with good energy. I want all of these to come true so badly, so I am busting my ass off and claiming them as mine and on the way!
It may be too late for a goals post since it is almost March but like I said on this post, it's never too late to start! So, I'd like to hear if you've made any resolutions, or words of the year like I have, and I would love to hear what your goals are. Sound off on the comments below!
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