I hope you had a great weekend and enjoyed counting down to midnight and entering 2016!
I’m sure you’ve heard a lot about New Year’s Resolutions by now, and you may already be rolling your eyes and annoyed by all the newbies packed in your local gym!
I actually love starting fresh on January 1, but creating large, broad resolutions is NOT the way to go. Deborah from Confessions of a Mother Runner wrote a great post on why New Year’s Resolutions don’t work that I highly recommend.
How about creating specific goals instead of vague, ambitious resolutions? Starting a new year is a great time to evaluate the previous year and come up with a plan to conquer your biggest goals in various areas of your life. So I thought I’d share with you, like I did in 2014 and 2015, my goals for 2016!
Be a great race ambassador. I am so proud to have been selected to represent the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Run and ZOOMA Races this year. It’s a little scary, but I’m so excited to be able to support these great organizations over the next several months. There are a couple more that I applied for that I’m waiting to see if I made it in…so exciting!
Make strength training part of my running routine. This has been hard for me to keep up with for so long, so I want 2016 to be the year where I finally make it happen! I do NOT want to deal with any injuries this year, so I need to learn how to do the right workouts on my own. I’ll be sharing my strategy on the blog soon!
Walk/run 50,000 steps per week. I’ve been loving my FitBit Charge since I got it a few months ago, but my steps are pretty inconsistent, i.e. my running days are great while my non-running days are so low! Now that I’m working in an office setting, it’s really hard to be active, so I want to make sure I’m getting away from the desk as often as possible. 50,000 is the bare minimum that I want to maintain every single week!
Explore new running routes in the city and local suburbs. I am spoiled that I live right near a popular running trail in Philly, but I need to branch out. I’ve shared some great running trails in Greater Philadelphia, but it’s been so long since I’ve made the trip to any of them! I love running in new places.
Run a marathon!! This is the big goal for the year. For the first time, I’ll be training for 26.2 miles! Way back in 2012 I was supposed to run the Philly Marathon, but it didn’t happen for various reasons. Now I feel that I’m finally ready to go for it. I will be working with Coach Kristy again and my goal is to finish with a smile on my face.
One of my favorite running pics!
Nutrition
Create a meal planning routine and stick with it! The only way I can be consistent is if I create a routine that becomes second nature. I can’t wait for Laura’s 21 Day Reset Challenge to begin on January 11 – this is going to give me the tools I need to finally make this goal happen! (Want in? Join me using code “blog” and get $10 off!)
Reduce my alcohol consumption. I’m not a heavy drinker by any means, but I know that cutting back would not be a bad thing! The empty calories just aren’t worth it, even though I love a well-made cocktail or local craft beer!
Lessen the sugary sweets, goodbye Twizzlers! This past year I developed a serious sweet tooth and for the sake of my teeth and my belly, it’s time to stop buying the stuff. There are so many better options and I look forward to trying out healthier snacks!
Career
Continue to work hard in my project manager role. I am really loving my job and I’m so grateful to have been given this opportunity. I’m hoping to kick butt in 2016 and really make an impact. I know it will be hard work, but it’s the type of work that feels rewarding, not demeaning – I love it!
Finish my Professional Engineering NCEES Record. At the start of 2015 I was “officially” given my Professional Engineering license. The next step is to create a record so that it’ll be easier to get reciprocity in multiple states. I slacked on this in 2015, so it’s time to get it done in 2016!
Step up my leadership and networking skills. This is really important to me as I develop in my career. In June, I’ll be entering my 9th(!) year at my company. It sounds bad, but I want people to know who I am and know that I am an asset. And on top of that, I’d like people at work to get to know me better.
Hobbies
Continue playing softball. I’m so glad that I challenged myself to give softball a try in 2015, and now I plan to play in 2 leagues this spring! I’m really excited because it’s a way that can I bond with Bret and my coworkers. It will definitely fill the void since we have decided to retire from kickball!
Continue my engagement with NSBE and SWE. That’s the National Society of Black Engineers and Society of Women Engineers. I want to continue to be involved, but I don’t want it to take over my life and become a major source of stress, as I’ve struggled with in the past with NSBE. I’m at the point where I’m okay with just being a volunteer versus running an entire program. They both do great work in the community promoting STEM!
A dirty game of softball!
Personal Life
Buy a home. This is definitely the biggest goal for the year. Bret and I will be buying a house in Philadelphia, most likely out of our current neighborhood. We’ve been going to Open Houses on the weekends for the past couple of months, now we’re at the point where we need to find a realtor. I’m super excited about taking this big step!
Read 4 books in 2016. I love reading books, but I have to be honest…I never make the time. I know there are people who read more than 4 books in a month but pulling this off would be huge for me. I want to read one fiction, one self-improvement, one biography/autobiography, and one wild card! Any recommendations??
Treat myself. I need to make more time for myself. Get a massage, spend some quality time alone, get a manicure, go shopping for no reason, practice yoga, meditate. It’s so necessary!
Maintain a strong relationship with Bret. You guys hear about Bret all the time, and he’s wonderful. We’re going on 4 years together and we’ve been through a lot. I want to make sure that we keep it going, with lots of understanding and open communication. Running and blogging take up a lot of my time, but he’s what’s most important to me.
Don’t deal with nonsense. Guys, I’m turning 30 this year! Basically, I’m grown, lol. I have dealt with so much drama and childishness over the years and I’m done! I started with this goal in 2015, and I’m going to keep it going. I won’t allow anyone to treat me with disrespect and if I have to purge someone out of my life, so be it. I’ve been a pushover in the past and bit my tongue…no more drama!
Run With No Regrets
Keep up the momentum from 2015. I ended the year with the biggest monthly page views I’ve ever had (over 7,000), and I’m still in disbelief! I want to keep this place growing and continue to create content that helps and encourages others. It’s been a lot of hard work, but totally worth it!
Improve my time management. I am so excited that I have the Blog + Life Planner from Wonderlass! If you’re a blogger, you know that there is ALWAYS work to be done and it can be very draining and time-consuming. I want to work smarter, be more efficient, organized, and a little bit less stressed when it comes to blogging! Some of my favorite and most popular posts take a very long time to write so I want to make sure I maintain high-quality posts, even if it means I have to post less frequently.
Guest post more frequently. In 2015, I wrote a few guest posts for other bloggers and I’m glad that I pushed myself. But I really want to pursue this more often in the new year and give myself enough time to brainstorm and write.
Build community. If you are a subscriber to the Run With No Regrets newsletter, I want to provide more value to each email you receive in your inbox. I also want to create more free worksheets that will be helpful and motivating for you. I have some other ideas, but will really need your feedback. I’m creating a survey that I hope you’ll check out as soon as it’s ready!
Stay focused. I think I had too many distractions last year as I was working towards becoming a better blogger. There were so many webinars and emails from various bloggers/entrepreneurs trying to share their “secrets”, and so many articles with conflicting information, especially when it came to social media and list building. I have to remember my goals (as there are a ton more that I didn’t mention!) and stay away from the shiny metal objects and latest “trends”. I will probably unsubscribe to a lot of influencers this year!
What are your biggest goals for 2016? Let’s support each other and help keep each other accountable this year!
