My Theme for 2019 (and a few goals)

It’s a new year, and I’ve been thinking about what I accomplished in 2018 and what I want to accomplish in 2019. I’m not making resolutions this year, but I am setting a theme to guide my thinking and focus.

My theme for 2019 is “Slow down and simplify.” 

Slow Down

One of the byproducts of being obsessive about productivity is a tendency toward haste action, at least, this has been the case for me recently. So, this year, I want to slow down with a few specific goals.

I want to see people. By this I mean see them in the depths of who they are. I want to empathize with people more deeply, understanding their needs, wants and dreams. I want to connect with the people in my life and learn to better appreciate them.

I want to plan and execute well. Slowing down to plan rather than just running ahead will help me focus on the important things in my world. Slowing down as I am executing plans will help me to avoid silly mistakes (like poor communication), giving my work a higher quality and making it more effective.

Simplify

Living a simpler life is a path I have been on for a while. One of the crazier things I did for this in the last year was making my kids pair down to only owning 150 items or less. I’m on that path as well.

This year I want to continue the process of simplification for my family and me. I want to simplify:

  • What I work on, only doing the critical things that only I can do.
  • Relationships, focussing on specifics ones.
  • My exercise program, keeping it simple, but challenging.
  • My schedule, avoiding meetings that are unnecessary.
  • My possessions, I want to get rid of my junk.

My Personal Goals for 2019

My personal goals are what will challenge me to become better in 2019. I want to be a better husband, father, son, and friend. I also want to grow spiritually, mentally and physically. These goals are my path for this.

  • More dates (one on one time) with my wife and with each of my kids
  • Read 35 books this year (audible, kindle, and physical)
  • Get my basement cleaned out and useful
  • Enter a physically challenging event that I must train for and complete. I did this last year with a GORUCK Tough event
  • ID and track my core habits for an entire year using this app

Photo by Nick Abrams on Unsplash