2011 Goals
It is a new year and time for new goals. There is a quote from Thomas S. Monson that I’ve always loved:
When performance is measured, performance improves. When performance is measured and reported, the rate of improvement accelerates.
I strongly believe in that statement, and so I’m going to start this year with several specific goals and keep track of my progress throughout the year. I plan on posting every now and then on my progress and hopefully I’ll be able to have several “I did it!” posts throughout the year.
For these goals I’ve chosen things that have a clear definition of what is needed for the goal to be considered accomplished. I’ve also left off goals that are easy to fail, such as “read the scriptures every day”. I’d love to read the scriptures every day but if I make that a goal and I miss a single day, then I’ve failed the entire goal.
Here they are, in no particular order:
- Read the Book of Mormon again. It has been a while since I’ve read the Book of Mormon from start to finish. I have a handy website that helps create a reading plan, so I’m going to take advantage of it to keep me on track with this goal.
- Earn as much from my side business as I do from my day job. In December, my side business made me about 70% of what I make at my day job. I think I have a real shot at getting that to 100% by the end of this year, which would make it possible to put a pile of money aside for retirement. This month is already off to a bad start (January is always a bad month for my side business), but I have a lot of coals in the fire and hope to get back on track real soon.
- Build a dining room table. We’ve been looking for a dining room table for months and months, and have had very little success finding something we like. I’ve decided I want to make our table myself. I’m going to buy the wood, cut it, put it together, and finish it. I anticipate this costing a lot of money and time, but I think it will be worth it. If I get real ambitious, I’m going to make the chairs, too.
- Launch twelve new websites. I want to create a new website every month. Once you have a server, the cost of starting a new website is just the cost of the domain (for me that is about $7.73/year, or $0.65/month). It doesn’t take much for a website to become profitable, and you never know which idea is going to take off and bring in a pile of money each month. I already have the domains registered for 7 ideas, and I’ve got a few more ideas that I’m still trying to find a good domain for, so all this will take is a bit of time and effort.
Well I think that is it. I have a lot of short term goals, like getting our TV mounted above the fireplace, but I don’t think those are worth listing.
Happy New Year! Good luck with all your 2011 goals!