Goals for 2009

My blog is going to focus on what my New Year's Resolutions are. (Side note, I'm a Generation Y kid but I don't feel that the world needs to hand me everything on a silver platter, I want to work for it all so I know what it's worth!)

Here are my top 5 resolutions:

1. Get to 175 lbs.
2. Be financially disciplined with my investments
3. Focus on the work that needs to get done
4. Read a book a week
5. Keep the house organized, get rid of piles

Let me elaborate a little bit on each of these.

1. The last time I weighed myself I was at 195 lbs. For my frame, that's not bad, but I'm not in the best of shape either. And over the last year or so I've put on about 15 lbs, and that's just something I don't need to carry around. To do this I plan on spending more time in the gym, eating less, and doing more cross training. I'd also like to run the Twin Cities Marathon.

2. This year I have a tremendous opportunity to get my financial life really squared away. If my tax return comes back the way I think it will I'll be able to pay off Megan's engagement ring, my car, and still have a bit to put away for my emergency account. But I don't want to be completely serious with my money, I live in one of the greatest cities in the nation, and I need to get out and do more of the activities that there are to do in the Cities. 2009 should be a great year for setting up my next few years!

3. I've noticed lately that it's really hard for me to really focus on work. I get sidelined doing the easy tasks that I want to do, answering emails, phone calls, and talking to people as they pass by my cube. ENOUGH! I love what I do, and I want to be the best at it. I want to prove to all my coworkers that Generation Y isn't full of a bunch of coddled privileged kids who don't know how to work. Every morning I want to sit down, lay out exactly what I need to get done that day, and do it. Not only do I want to do this at my full time job, but for SPM (the property management company me and two friends started). Right now is prime time to buy real estate if you know where to look. If I really focus on where I want this company to go, we'll get it there and by the time we're 30, we'll be using our full time jobs for the benefits instead of for a paycheck.

4. One of the best ways to stay educated is to read. I want to read one book a week, which should be relatively easy. If I'm not challenged enough with one book a week, I may bump it up to two. I usually read books about leadership, finances, or entrepreneurship. I want to expand a little bit and read some fiction books.

5. Previously my best way to keep the house organized is to put all my junk in a pile, then at least I FEEL like I have everything organized! But in reality, I'm just putting it off until the pile gets high enough then I usually end up throwing away a lot of it. I'll use our file cabinet more, and as soon as something comes in the door, it's put in it's correct place. Maybe I'll even use some of my Lean 6 Sigma to keep the house in shape!

So I'll be blogging about how I do with all of these goals, and I'm sure I'll also be writing blogs about interesting books, or articles that I find. I've got a ton of magazine pages ripped out from magazines that I need to combine and share with anyone like me, who has big goals for themselves!

I hope you enjoy this year's postings and I'll do my best to blog a few times a week and achieve the goals I've laid out for myself this year.

Thanks for reading!