Hey World,
When I started my Monthly Goals section, I mentioned that in November, I was also kicking off my first 6 months using Powersheets.
If you don't know what they are, here's the rundown (straight from the source):
As part of the preparation for your Powersheets journey, you have to pick a word that resonates.
This was the word I chose:
It also happens to be their word of the year! But working in agriculture & well....it just made too much sense to pass up on it.
For the first month (month 0), you spend a lot of time outlining all sorts of things that are important to you, and being the kind of honest that brings you back to your fuzzy 90's diaries with a little plastic lock on it (I'm not alone with that memory, right?!).
Then, you land on ten big goals that you want to accomplish in the coming six months. A couple of them are more personal, so I won't be sharing them, but the ones below you may see popping up around here through May!
1. Build up relationships with those who matter most
It should be no secret that keeping in touch with people, and maintaining dozens of long-distance friendships, for years on years, is hard. Really, really hard. This goal has a few different aspects to it, but the highlights are:
- writing 'just because' letters & postcards to friends each month
- periodically reaching out to friends to ask how they are doing
- create a Contacts book, where I track addresses, birthdays, and special moments
- send out our first TeamGrimes Christmas card to everyone we care about
2. Change all of my accounts and documents to my new married name!
I mentioned here that it is not easy to get your new name on everything -- especially when you live abroad! Goals here are to:
- change my drivers license over Christmas
- get a new passport
- change all social media accounts
- update my credit cards
3. Host a gathering with friends TWO times every month
I love, love, love hosting (sometimes, to Brady's dismay). This is simply to make sure I am fostering a community here where we live, and that I can continue to flex my muscles in the kitchen! Goals here are to:
- Host a Thanksgiving dinner for friends in town
- Host my 3rd annual Christmas Cookie baking party!
- Host an "Open Table" themed dinner once a month
- Be more proactive in inviting friends over for a meal, dessert, or drinks once a week
4. Give back annually as TeamGrimes
One thing that is really important to me is giving back. Now that we're married, I want to outline with Brady what some of our annual causes are going to be, how much we're able to give, and plan when throughout the year we can push the "donate" button!
My aim here is to:
- Decide together how much we can give
- Decide together on 3-5 organizations we'd like to support
- Continue my Kiva loans (and add some $ into my rotation!)
- Share what causes are most important to us here!
5. Finish and submit my Masters thesis
If you've been reading this for a while, you'll have a distant memory of my trip to Cambodia where I was supposed to write my entire thesis in two weeks. Well (unsurprisingly), I didn't quite finish. Like, I was literally less than 10 pages from being done when I needed to come home! A lot of other things have happened since then (engagement, weddings, marriage) but now it's time to officially time to try and close the Grad School chapter.
- Attend Sauti za Busara again in February & meet with the organizers
- Outline outstanding theory that needs to go into my document
- Take one week vacation to work remotely in Zanzibar and finish my thesis
- Finish the bibliography
- Send out final draft for edits & review, before final submission in May/June
6. Read more!
I LOVE reading, and this year, I've read more than 15,000 pages so far (that's 47 books!). I want to continue to prioritize reading over watching TV by checking off some of the following:
- Host a book swap / book sale to get new books into my library
- Read before bed 3x a week
- Ask friends & family for reading recommendations
- Order 5 books I'm really excited about over Christmas
7. Post regularly on A Path Unpaved
Yes, that means more for you! I think I'm getting to be more on-track with this, but setting up some regular posts (such as Monthly Mantra and Monthly Goals) has also really helped! I've also started preparing posts that are not time-bound so that I can have content ready to go even when I'm a little busy :)
8. Make Year One of TeamGrimes memorable (in a good way!)
I'm sure it is every newlywed couple's dream to have a drama-free first year full of lots and lots of beautiful moments-- and we are certainly no different! Our goals here run the gamut of creating new memories, reflecting on old ones, and pushing towards financial security (no one wants to be stressed about money!).
- Spend New Years Eve somewhere new (we are planning for Amsterdam!)
- Plan two long-weekend trips to new countries before September 2017
- Get back into hosting regular marriage meetings.
- Pay off Brady's student loans, and grow our savings account
- Include pictures & items from our wedding (!) around the house
The point of Powersheets is not to do every single thing, but to have a clear focus for what you want to do, and making deliberate progress towards completion, not perfection.
Have you noticed any of these coming through in my first monthly goal checklist? Do you have any short-term goals you're working on? I'd love to hear them!
xoxo,
M
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