Now that we’ve settled into January, it’s time to put a bow on 2021 with a goals report card. I’m not a fan of new year’s resolutions. Let’s face it—vague, overly-ambitious declarations made at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve are unlikely to have sticking power. I prefer to take some time at the beginning of the year to reflect before locking in my 2022 goals.
Just before Christmas, my friend The Yorkshire Dreamer tagged me in the This Time Next Year tag created by Katie from Life With Ktkinnes. Then, on New Year’s Eve, Smell from Smelly Socks and Garden Peas tagged me in the same tag. This Time Next Year is all about 2022 goals. Although it’s too late to participate in the tag, I did want to thank both of these wonderful bloggers for including me.
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2021 goals update
At the beginning of 2021, I set several goals for my blog. I also set goals related to green living, physical and mental health, and lifelong learning.
Let’s have a look at how the year turned out.
Blogging goals
I’m calling 2021 a huge success on the blogging front. I highlighted key accomplishments for the year and my plans for 2022 in my year-end recap post so I won’t repeat them here.
Green living and sustainability
- Do a Buy Nothing Challenge for Lent. I completed this one as planned and recapped the experience in What I learned from the Buy Nothing Challenge. DONE
- Buy no new clothing. In 2021, I bought a couple of pairs of shoes and just three items of clothing: a pair of workout shorts, a pair of yoga pants, and some Christmas pyjama pants. A
- Complete the 52-week Decluttering Challenge. If you’ve been reading, you’ll know that I did it and decluttered a total of 3,379 items. You can read more about my learnings—and get some tips to start your own challenge—in Looking back on a year of decluttering. A+
Physical and mental health
- Work out 180 minutes each week. The first half of the year was great, then I lost some momentum in the second half thanks to some arthritis issues. I did still manage a shorter workout and an outdoor walk every day so all was not lost. I ended the year with an average of 160 minutes per week. A-
- Cut down on sugar. I started the year keeping track of how I was doing on this one and then got lazy and stopped tracking. Overall, I do think I managed to cut down my sugar consumption, although probably not as much as I should. My chocolate addiction is alive and well. C
- Set aside 15 minutes a day for mindfulness, prayer and reflection. I made decent progress on this one after I abandoned my attempt at daily mindfulness meditation. It’s just not for me. In the second half of the year, I got myself into a better routine by writing in a prayer journal, and listening to a Christian music playlist. B
Lifelong learning
- Complete three more courses towards the Plain Language Certificate at Simon Fraser University. DONE
- ISCEBS Fellowship course and exam. I passed the exam in early May. DONE
Here’s the final report card. Considering its challenges, 2021 turned out to be a successful year.
Introducing my 2022 goals
In keeping with my 2022 theme of simple living, I‘ve streamlined my goals for the year. Last year, I set eight non-blogging goals which turned out to be a lot to keep track of. Some of the items I was tracking in the past—like my daily workouts, regular decluttering, and buying less—are now regular habits so I don’t need to write them down or track them.
Here are the things I’ll be working on in 2022:
- Appreciate the simple things in life by building a regular habit of gratitude journaling. I’ve never been able to make this habit stick in the past but I’m hoping Simple Living Sundays will help me do better with that.
- Read one book a month. I love to read but I just don’t have time to do enough of it. I’m going to commit to one book a month which will be an improvement over the total of seven I read in 2021.
- Complete the remaining course work for the Plain Language Certificate at Simon Fraser University. I have two more courses and the final project to go.
- Complete the Certified Professional Retirement Coach course. This is something I’ve wanted to do for a while, and now feels like a good time to do it.
- Get into a regular routine of practicing my singing. I was delighted at the end of last year when I was asked to join a group of former School of Rock students for a weekly jam session. At the first couple of rehearsals, I noticed how rusty I am thanks to not singing much during the pandemic. I hope regular practice will take care of that!
After the year that was 2020, we all went into 2021 feeling hopeful. While it turned out to be another difficult year, I feel good about how things went overall. And, I look forward to 2022 with hope and optimism.
What are your goals for 2022? Tell me about them below.
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An inspiring list of goals, Michelle! My goals are a bit more general – I hope to be more positive this year, be kinder to myself but also hold myself accountable for my actions… I also want to apologize less and forgive myself more! A mish-mash…
Thanks! Those are all excellent goals. And “apologize less” is just so Canadian!
Hi, Michelle. Congrats on achieving your goals! How wonderful. I especially love the buy-no-clothing and the thousands of items decluttered. Last year, I basically sold and gave away and shredded my entire house. It felt so good. I have virtually no papers anymore. And I sold half my clothes on Thred Up (but I still have too much!). We also just emptied our cabinets of coffee mugs and it feel so freeing! All the best in 2022.
Thanks Suzanne. It sounds like you’ve made some awesome progress too. I got rid of dozens of coffee mugs last year, and I still have too many. Time for round 2! It’s an ongoing process.
I love that your goals cover so many different parts of your life from learning to physical and financial health. Great job on achieving all of your goals though I don’t blame you in the least regarding the one on the sugar — chocolate is a tough habit to break after all! 🙂 Good luck in 2022 🙂
By the way, under your heading ‘green living and sustainability’ there is a tiny little typo. I think you meant to type 2021 instead of 2022.
Thanks Helen. It seems chocolate is a nemesis for a lot of us.
I appreciate you pointing out the typo. It is now fixed. Looks like I need to fire my proofreader. 🤣🤣🤣
2021 was a wonderful year for you and your 2022 goals sound wonderful and great for you to do more for you! I think that is what we all need to be setting goals that apply to us finding enjoyment out of our lives. Thank you for sharing x
Thanks Gemma. I think in these strange times, we have to prioritize things that make us happy.
Congratulations on your 2021 achievements, it’s remarkable! I penned the same one-book-a-month goal. Have you picked a title for January? I’d like to finish “The Secret Teachings of All Ages” by Manly Palmer Hall.
Thanks. That is a coincidence. I got a head start on January while I was still off on vacation. I read a novel “Lock Every Door” by Riley Sager. It was a good mystery. I finished it in two days.
It looks like you did really well with your 2021 goals. I love chocolate and sweets too so a C in that is probably as high as I would be able to get too.🙂 I love that you made a goal of reading one book a month this year. I’m going to add that to my monthly habit tracker. With small kids, I don’t read as much as I would like but I think if I made a goal to read one book a month I could handle that.
My goals for 2022:
Keep up with my habit tracker. Tracking my habits keeps me focused on what is important to me and helps me set mini goals depending on my progress. I track yoga, drinking 60oz of water a day, staying active (walking, biking, or playing pickleball, making time for my hobbies (knitting, painting, reading), incoming and outgoing money, as well as building my business.
Build my Business. This year my main focus is on building my business so all of my other goals revolve around marketing and building my brand. My main goal is to make small steps every day so throughout the year I will continue to make new goals to keep my momentum going.
Good luck with your 2022 goals. I’m excited to follow along with your Simple Living Sundays posts!
Thanks Suzanne. I am glad to hear I inspired you to read. If you come across any books you think I’d like, let me know.
A habit tracker is a great idea. Although I didn’t include fitness in my goals for this year, I do track my workouts to make sure I’m getting my 150 minutes a week. I also track my steps with my Fitbit.
Good luck with your goals. I know you’ll crush them.
Love your sustainability achievements, Michelle. Super nice! And I cannot blame you for your chocolate addiction. All the best for your goals this year. You will crush them! Cheering for you!
Thanks so much! Yes, chocolate rocks!
Hi Michelle – I posted my “2022 Intentions” a bit earlier. Like you I’m not a fan of resolutions and it’s much more effective for me to establish daily habits that directionally move me toward bigger goals. Here’s the post: https://montysblahg.com/2022/01/03/2022-intentions-montys-blahg/
Thanks Monty. I remember seeing your intentions post. It’s a great appraoch to setting goals. My motto has always been progress not perfection. As long as you’re moving in the right direction, that’s success!