Happy soon-to-be New Year! I really cannot believe how quickly 2014 has flown by, or the fact that we are in 2015?!?! These numbers are just crazy!
Last year, right around this time, I made a complete list of New Year's Resolutions. Not only did they help me stay focused throughout 2014, but they also seriously helped this past year be one of the most productive, happiest years I have ever had! To be honest though, I have not actually read my resolutions for quite a while- I just memorized the general idea of them. So, today we are going to take a walk down memory lane and see what got done!
Triple Blog Readership
This totally got done! Thank you so much to all those new readers who made this possible! We are still a small community, but I am so happy to say that P+K is now qualified as a business because of all your pins and re-pins!! Thank you so much and I am so excited to make pinning a bit easier for all of you!
It is also great to know that you guys enjoy those informative posts like Blue Apron vs. Hello Fresh, Six Ways to Use Push-Up Bars, The Pros and Cons of Orange Theory Fitness, and The Calories Burned at Disney World. Those were definitely the most popular posts this year and I will be sure to keep that stuff coming!
Personally Grow
I had a few ways to do this in 2014 that included more reading, listening to improvement CD's, noticing the incredible and doing something that scared me daily, and going on an adventure. Check to reading a lot more, the daily's may not have been daily, but they were pretty constant, and the adventure- we climbed a mountain, so I think that is a check!
We were also able to take my first trip to Greece and do some adventuring there! That was an incredible. life changing trip and I cannot wait to go back!
Get Better Time Management
This one was more internal than external, but I did manage my time much better in the past year. About three years ago we got rid of our cable; that was the beginning of getting better time management and something I totally recommend. It is amazing how much time the average person spends with the TV on. Take that out and times seems to overflow. With HBO, Hulu, Netflix, Amazon, and all those other streaming services, we are able to watch what we want to watch when we want to watch it without being tempted by everything else on TV.
This year I also started a daily checklist system that we will be talking about more in an upcoming post all about hacks for 2015. I also made a schedule for myself that can be seen here!
Learn Japanese
I started, but did not finish. This year will be different though!
Remove the Excess from Life
This one did not happen quite they way I wanted it to, but the hubs has cleaned out our garage (so much better!), our guest bedroom actually looks like a guest bedroom, and our hard to keep clean closets have all been cleared out. Now, they just need it all all over again. This year, I have the same goals for organization, plus a little extra. We will be getting a custom closet this year and be massively cleaning out what we do not use or do not need. It will be wonderful!!!
Oh, and the buying on a whim? It was going great until that new mall came in. I need to seriously get some self control with that thing there. Thankfully though, I have only been tempted a handful of times!
Save More
We did, we did, we did!! I am so happy about this one because we seriously needed to start increasing our savings. It was not a crazy amount more than usual, but things like using a financial planner, Acorns, and moderation really helped. This year we plan to save a lot more and really increase our investments for the future!
Finances were better tracked, but nowhere near what they should be. There were still times where I had no idea how we had spent such large sums of money so fast. It was like someone had stolen from us, but no such thing happen. This year, I plan on being much more strict with my budget and using Mint a whole. lot. more.
Become More Fit
Yes and no. The first half of the year was the healthiest time of my life. I ran a race (albeit short), did so much more yoga than ever, and tried many many new workouts. Unfortunately, something happened at the end of this year and I gained some serious weight and lost some serious stamina. I am still trying to figure out if this is a diet change, hormonal, or some other health thing.
I also had a goal of running in two races and getting my yoga instructor certification. Although one race was run, there has not been a second. I also had to put the instructor certification on the back burner for some new and exciting business goals. This year I plan to run a longer race and I am thinking that 2015/2016 will be a great time to become a yoga instructor!
Volunteer More
Wow did this happen and NOT in the way I saw it. I have been trying to volunteer at a local aquarium/rescue for all year long, but to no avail so far. Where I have stepped up the volunteering is with All Children's Hospital. I am now the president elect of our guild and the chair of a black tie event. Excuse me while I go vomit and curl up in the fetal position. That is a lot of responsibility.
This year I plan on becoming a Big Sister and getting my foot in the door at our local aquarium!
Get Better people/Social Skills
Well, my hope is that I am on a better path to being better with people and social skills. This is the type of goal that is never really finished, just continued. From my work as a volunteer, I am working more with people. I also kept up my meeting with one friend a week and talking to people I do not know [almost] daily. As for staying in the moment, way better! This goal has helped me see that relationships are the most important thing we can build in our lifetime. Making sure the people we care about know we love and care about them has become more important to me this year than it ever has before. My hope is to continually improve in this category and keep the yearly goals coming!
What about you, how was your 2014 and your yearly goals? I would absolutely love to hear some of this year's highlights for you!