2023 Goals

     Since the start of the year I've been reflecting on what I want to accomplish this year, or in the next couple of years. With a new year comes a lot of pressure to totally change your life, and make big goals which end up failing. My approach this year is to set more easily attainable goals, and work my way up to the bigger goals. So with that here is my list. 

• Drink more water. This is something I've struggled with all my life. From a young age I started drinking soda, and since then have never really stopped. I almost wish I didn't have that exposure to soda as a kid so sugar wouldn't be as much of a problem as I think it is in my life. With that I am usually super underhydrated. I think the scientific data says you should consume around 64oz a day (which I think is steep). I myself consume about 30oz or less in a day, and it usually comes from unhealthy drinks. 

• Keep my apartment more tidy. I have a studio apartment for it's easy for things to get cluttered. Especially since I'm the only one living here, so it's my sole responsibility to keep everything clean. Since I don't have a lot of guests I have less accountability to keep it clean. I also come home pretty tired from my 9-5 so things get put off, but I think if I do a little each day to keep my space clean it will help keep everything less messy. Also focusing on one task at a time. My brain tends to jump between multiple tasks when I'm cleaning so I start one and jump to another, then jump to another etc. 

• Spend less time on my phone. When I get home from work I want to do things that don't require a lot of mental capacity. My go to then is spending way too much time on my phone. It's gotten better, but it's definitely something I can improve a lot more on. A lot of the information consumed from social media and online is a waste of time, and breeds a lot of comparison. Instead of being on my phone I want to do things that are more productive. Ie: cooking, cleaning, reading Scripture, making something, listening to a teaching, reading a Christian book, etc. 

• Do Life Together With People. Being single, and living alone I do a lot on my own. I've gotten used to doing most things alone, but God has created us to be apart of a community for a reason, so I want to be more intentional about allowing people to come along and do life together with me. 

• Travel. With my current job we get very little time off. (We had 1 day off for Christmas, and 1 day off for the New Year's holiday.) To add to that I've been working full time, and haven't taken much of a break off since July. In August I took 2 days off for a church conference, in September I took 1 day off, in October and November I didn't take any days off, December I took 1 day off then we had off the 26th, and I took one day off due to illness. In January I took 1.5 days off. 1 due to sickness, and a half for a leadership conference, and we had off January 2nd. Basically if you do the math I haven't had a lot of time off, and my job can pretty draining in general. For this year I am currently planning on doing two trips. (Maybe only 1 will happen due to finances/other factors but I think its good to have a plan.) 

1. Trip 1: I am planning to do a girls trip at the end of March to somewhere coastal (probably southern California, or Florida) to take a break from the Wisconsin winter weather. I've been craving going back to the ocean since I last saw it in 2019. It all depends if I can get people to go along with me, etc. (4-5 days)
2. Trip 2: I want to finally go to Europe. The goal is around August. I have so many friends in Europe who I haven't seen in awhile and would love to visit. I have yet to leave the country, and have planned to go to Europe since 2018 now. I would probably stay in Germany and England, and visit Switzerland, possibly other countries as well. I would stay with said friends, to keep the cost lower.

• Promotion. It's pretty easy to move up in the company I am at currently. I was last promoted to the next level of my job in September. (If you're hired as an entry level you start at Level 1, and are able to move up every 6ish months.) There are 4 levels until you can be set into a supervisor role. I was hired as a Level 2, and moved up to Level 3 in September. I have been working with higher up staff to make my way into being set into a supervisor role. The goal is spring time. Not everyone is considered for a supervisor role, so I'll have to prove myself in order to get there, which shouldn't be much of an issue. 

• Upgrade to a larger apartment. I'm pretty content with where I live now, but eventually I think it would be nice to have a bigger space to be able to have more people over, and to possibly finally get a dog. :P Rent for a new apartment, and taking care of a dog wouldn't financially be a smart decision for me right now due to the high cost of everything but I do have a pretty strong savings. Thankfully an old friend from college reached out to me and has become my financial advisor so I'm able to better make the most out of my finances. 

• Spend more time with God. One of the biggest challenges for me is getting into Scripture daily. Especially recently. I finished reading all the way through the Bible chronologically and have had little desire to jump back into Scripture. My logic is that it would be too repetitive. However, Christians are called to "know" Scripture. By doing this we can better know what God wants for us, and fight against the evil things in the world. Without being in Scripture daily we can forget important things and be led astray by the world around us which is constantly fighting for our attention everywhere. What I have been currently doing is putting on worship music in the morning while getting ready, then praying in the car for my day on the way to work. I try to conversate with God throughout the day, and read a Christian book before bed. I usually attend church weekly, I serve on the communion and kids work team once a month, and go to a small group from church every week, as well as help out with the Christian organization on the Parkside campus during the college semesters. The more time you spend doing things for God, the less you can be persuaded by the culture, and the less time you do meaningless things. 

• Learn more recipes. I don't have a lot of energy to cook after work, but I want to be able to cook more things with bigger portion sizes that I can store in the freezer for later after I get sick of a certain food. The current list of go-to recipes has been getting repetitive so it'll be good to discover more meal ideas, and also encourage me to eat healthier. I tend to end up buying too many meals from fast food places. 

   This is my list for now, but I will add to it as I think of ideas. I think having this list typed out will help me keep myself more accountable in reaching these goals going forward. Thanks for taking the time to read if you did. 

      "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of your time, because the days are evil." Ephesians 5:15-16