Fuck new year resolutions, long live concrete goals !!
How I built my goals for the next 12 months
It is amazing how much can change in one year.
It is amazing how much can change in one year. In the last 12 months, I had more changes in my life than in the last 3 or 4 year combined.
One year ago:
- I was a business student lacking some practical skills
- I was working on a great startup idea but was not sure to be the right person to build it
- I was based in Lyon, France and was not thinking about moving
- I still had to rely on the financial help of my parents to live
- I had been with my ex-girlfriend for more than 1 year
- I was feeling alone, even if I had good friends around me
I was quite insecure and did not really know if I was in the right path. More important, I was not deeply happy.
Today, one year later:
- I did Le Wagon, an amazing bootcamp, to learn how to code and now work as a freelance web developer.
- I am about to graduate from my business school but I don’t need it anymore
- I began a nomad lifestyle and loved it
- I am financially independent
- I am not in a relationship anymore
- I met amazing friends and strengthened my relationships with my existing ones
I now feel empowered and know I am in the right path. More important, I feel happy !
It is really amazing how much can change in one year. In 2016, it was for the best for me.
Opportunities are not always consistent, and I want to make sure changes in my life are
However, to be honest, these changes in my life were mainly due to opportunities that I was able to grasp. But opportunities are not always consistent, and I want to make sure changes in my life are. Starting now, I want to grow as a person and to move forward in my life consistently every year.
FUCK new year resolutions, let’s achieve concrete goals !
Every year, I try to make new year resolutions. Of course, it never works. Starting today, I will set every year some concrete goals to achieve in the following 365 days. I will make them as precise and measurable as possible and will share them to hold myself accountable. This post is a first attempt. At the end of the year, I will look back at it and analyse my successes and (possible) failures. To help me with the process, I adapted the 8760 hours method by Alex Vermeer and made it fit my own needs.
I have been thinking quite a lot about my life in the last months to try to build a clear picture of what I want to achieve in the long run. These are my longterm goals :
- I want to be a really good fullstack web developer, able to build great innovative products by myself from scratch
- I want to earn a consistent passive income from my personal projects and not to worry about money anymore
- I want to travel the world most of the year
- I want to have a positive social impact on the world, from my personal actions as well as from the inspiration I give to people
- I want to be in a healthy and empowering relationship with somebody I love
- I want to consistently share amazing moments with amazing friends
My goals for next year should bring me closer to my lifetime plan but should also be achievable in 12 months. They should also be mesurable to be able to analyse at the end of the year the successes and failure.
I set 10 goals for 2017. Here they are :
1) Make procrastination an old memory
- I have always had a tendency to spend my time in inefficient ways, spending countless hours on Youtube or Facebook. At the end of 2016, I decided to stop this and installed tools to help me limit the time I could spend on these sites. It has been working really well since then and, in 2017, I want to make procrastination an old memory. If I reach this goal, it will be a big step forward to help me achieve all the other ones as I will be able to allocate my time more efficiently.
- Measure of success : Do not uninstall the tools I use or change their settings
2) Don’t let work impact my health
- I know that, when you are really into something, you tend to neglect other important aspects of your life. In 2012, I suffered from burnout after the competitive exams to enter in my business school. This year, there is no way work will impact my health.
- Measure of success : Have a healthy work environment (buy the Roost Stand), exercise at least 3 times a week, sleep 8 hours a day on average
3) Become a really good ruby on rails developer
- In 2016, I learnt to code thanks to Le Wagon and loved it. In 2017, I want to become a really good ruby on rails developer. I still have a ton to learn and want to deeply understand how this amazing framework works.
- Measure of success : Become a teacher at Le Wagon and / or obtain a summer internship at Basecamp and / or build a great open source project with 100+ stars on Github.
4) Find consistent freelance work
- This year will be my first full year as a freelance web developer. I really love the freedom it gives me but maintaining this lifestyle will be a huge challenge. I want to build a strong network of clients to be able to find work easily during the year.
- Measure of success : Charge more than 30 000 euros as a freelance web developer during the year.
5) Generate my first 5 000 euros of revenue with side projects
- I have always had an entrepreneurial spirit. In the long run, I want to live from my own projects. In 2017, I want to lay the foundations for this. More to come in the next months ;)
- Measure of success : Launch one or more side projects and make 5 000 euros out of them.
6) Live consistently for less than 1 500 euros a month
- If I analyse my spendings in the last years, I see a complete mess. I bought things I never used and spend way more money than I really need. I now want to live a minimalist lifestyle and just pay for the necessary.
- Measure of success : Spend less than 1 500 euros a month on average.
7) Get rid of 95% of my belongings
- In November 2016, I decided to begin a nomadic lifestyle. I spent 2 months in Thailand to see if it could fit my needs and I loved it. In 2017, I will pursue this lifestyle at least part of the year (I will be in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria in March, April and then… we will see). Adopting this lifestyle means I do not need most of my belongings anymore. I travel light, with just a backpack, and cannot physically bring with me all the useless things I have back home. There is no point for me to keep them anymore.
- Measure of success : Get rid of belongings that cannot fit in my 40 liters backpack or in a 100 liters box that will stay in Paris
8) Learn how to swim
- Actually, I know how to swim. I even had the opportunity to swim with whale sharks and dolphins. But I am a terrible swimmer. I get tired really fast and do not feel confident at all in water. It often prevents me from having a lot of fun and this is something I have been wanting to improve for years. This year, I want to do what it takes.
- Measure of success : Be able to swim 100 meters without being tired and feel confident with water.
9) Share my thoughts and discoveries in a blog
- This is something I had always wanted too. My friends know I often have strong opinions but I never took the time to share them publicly. Few months ago, I bought dlet.me and hosted this medium publication in it. This year, I want to use this blog to share my thoughts about my life as a digital nomad, code and society. This post is a first attempt.
- Measure of success : Write 20+ blog posts in 2017
10) Find somebody meaningful and feel empowered in this relationship
- I am learning to be single again. However, I still miss having somebody meaningful to share with. This year, I want to find somebody who support my lifestyle and build a relationship that makes both of us grow.
- Measure of success : Be in a relationship and feel empowered
That’s it ! Lot of challenges for 2017 but achievable and mesurable. I will do what it takes to achieve them !
What about you ? Are your ready to get rid of your new year resolutions and to commit to concrete goals ? If you are, please share them below !
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