Setting New Personal Goals
Last year I wrote a blog post of 30 things that I would have told my 20 year old self. Another year older and wiser, I wanted to share a few things that I wanted to accomplish before turning 32 and see what progress I can make. I’m hoping that by making this public I can look back a year later and share what I was able to accomplish from this list.
My motivation? As a co-founder of a startup, one thing that I have really stressed is setting goals to achieve as a company and for individuals each quarter (future blog post on this). Each quarter we evaluate whether these goals were achieved and if they weren’t, why not. So I’ve decided to try and put in place something similar for my personal goals. If you are interested in learning more about a methodology to implement at your company you should definitely read the book Traction , it was a true game changer.
#1 Putting Myself in More Uncomfortable Situations
I’ve always found that one of the best ways to grow and learn is by putting yourself in uncomfortable situations. For many of us that means overcoming fears like public speaking or heights. I have narrowed down a things that I can do to push myself in situations where I feel uncomfortable.
Greatness begins beyond your comfort zone — Robin Sharma
Write blog posts and sharing them on the web
Starting with blog post #1 today! I will try and improve my writing skills, content creation, and overcome being self conscious about other people reading my personal thoughts.
Planning and attending more networking events
To me there is nothing more awkward then going to networking events where you don’t know anyone. I know that going to networking events can be beneficial (not always) but continuing to build and grow your network needs to be a higher priority. I planned my first networking event for Indiana University alums in Los Angeles at 31Ten Lounge on April 11th, including a speaker panel with two IU basketball icons Jared Jeffries & AJ Moye (more info here).
Do more public speaking
I don’t consider public speaking to be one of my strengths by any means. As a founder of a company it’s a great tool to raise awareness for you and your company, establish yourself as a thought leader, and to build your personal brand.
#2 Pushing Myself to Learn More
I’m naturally a pretty curious person. I actually really enjoy trying to solve fairly complex problems and want to continue to push myself to learn more as I grow older. Probably my favorite thing that I have come to realize as why I have always been a natural entrepreneur is that no one ever really taught me how to start a business, it is a series of trial and error and trying to figure it all out. I want to continue to push myself to learn new things that continue to excite me.
Read a Minimum of 1 Book Per Month
So far for the year I am already behind on this. I’ve found one of the best ways to continue to learn is by reading. My goal for this next year is to not only focus on reading business books but a wider variety — mindfulness, personal finance, investing, and more
Become More Knowledgeable About Investing in the Stock Market
My company has raised a few million dollars from angel and seed investors but I haven’t spent much time learning about how to invest in the public markets.
Become More Knowledgeable on Utilizing Conversion Funnels
Conversion funnels are the key to any online business being successful. I have a pretty good understanding but want to become an expert in how to set them up, how to analyze the data better, and how to take corrective action.
Become More Knowledgeable About Finance & Utilizing Quickbooks
I’ve been using Quickbooks for years, it’s how we run our entire financial statements for our company. I’m already pretty familiar with how it works but want to brush up on my finance skills and become more knowledgable.
#3 Improving My Mental + Physical Health
As I grow older I continue to learn the importance of not only having great physical health but great mental health. This year I want to place a bigger emphasis on having better mental health as I have come to realize over the last 10yrs that I have a pretty stressful and complicated work/life balance.
Meditate Every Day for 10 Minutes:
This is something that I started about a year ago and has made a huge impact on decreasing anxiety, improving mood, and keep my mind from racing all over the place. I don’t exactly consider myself an expert by any means but I want to improve my mindfulness and place a bigger importance on it.
Do Yoga 1x Per Week:
I’m not a very flexible person, but to me there is no better feeling than coming out of an early morning hot yoga session. Sweating out all of the toxins, loosening up your muscles, and clearing your mind has been incredibly beneficial.
Drink Less Alcohol
This is a tough one and my social life will definitely be impacted. So far in the last 12 months I have gone about 2.5months without drinking. I noticed a big difference in my energy, my productivity, my mood, and definitely lost some weight from all the calories.
Run A Half Marathon:
Last year I set out to run my first 10k. I impressed myself and did under an 8min mile. This year I want to push myself further and complete a half marathon.
Exercise 4 Days Per Week
My favorite way to start the day is hitting the gym, even if it is for 30min. I’ve noticed a huge boost in energy levels and want to commit to a minimum of 4 days per week in the gym.
Go To A Therapist
I have never been to a therapist, but I know a lot of people that do and I have yet to hear a single person say something negative about it. Having someone to talk to about your thoughts and emotions is another important tool to having a positive mental state.
#4 Improve My Personal Finance Plan
Something that I wish I would have placed more emphasis on in my 20s was working harder on my personal finance plan. Now that I’m in my 30s it’s become of higher importance. I recently paid off all of my student loans and want to push myself to put a better long term plan in place.
Become a Better Investor
So far I managed to get sucked into the Bitcoin bubble and bought crypto at the all-time high then watched it plummet. Recently my fiance and I started to invest into some ETFs including some of the Cannabis ETFs. I want to learn and become a more active investor to build personal wealth and knowledge.
Invest More Into My Retirement
As I get older I know it becomes more and more important to start planning, thinking, and investing in your retirement early.
#5 Volunteer More
To me there is no better feeling than helping those in need. Most of the time I feel pretty busy and like I don’t have time to add anything more to my plate but want to build time to volunteer more and figure out where I can really add the most value.
Finding something meaningful to volunteer for that I can see my impact
To help get more invested into volunteering I want to try and find something that I truly enjoy and that I can help see my impacts. Last year I volunteered at a food bank helping to sort donated canned goods it was good to do my part and help, but I wasn’t as invested into the project to keep me coming back regularly.
