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Guys and gals, it’s almost 2020! What better way to start the next decade than with some positive change? How crazy does that sound? It’s a whole new decade! It seems like the perfect time for some sort of personal growth. That’s why I’m over here setting a few personal 2020 resolutions and goals. If you’re looking for some 2020 resolutions or goals then look no further.

Here’s the problem with most goals and resolutions I read. They’re total crap. Some are just completely inane and impossible to track(and thus impossible to achieve). How about you SMILE MORE in 2020!

Oh boy, great, let’s do that but how do I know if I’m smiling more. Do I just check off a mark when I smile? What if I’m faking a smile all day? Am I succeeding?

Here’s another, sleep more! So easy isn’t it? How do I do that though? It’s goals like that which drive people away from resolutions all together. Here’s a good one in that area; learn how to sleep better!

Still, no matter how silly they can get, goals are a great way to motivate yourself any time of year. It just so happens that the changing of the calendar is the time most people think about it. Plus this time, it’s the changing of the decade too.

What sounds better? I’m going to do a few things to make myself better next year OR I’m going to become amazing the next decade! You’re damn right it’s #2.

I know what you’re thinking. No matter how you phrase it, 2020 resolutions are no different than 2019 resolutions. It’s not a change for the decade, it’s just another random year! Sure, it’s a bit of nonsense but maybe a change of the decade is a perfect way to usher in a new era in your life.

Think about the type of person you were when 2009 rolled around? Are you much different now? Hell yea, you are, so it’s clear that a decade can make a pretty big difference. Why not guide your path a bit with some resolutions?

It’s easy to say, blah, who cares, not worth it. However, that’s not the type of attitude that brings about positive change. After all, how are you gonna know how to smile more in 2020 if some website doesn’t tell you!

And yes, I know, goals are hard. I set them every year and fail most of them. That’s the reality of life but it doesn’t mean you don’t try again.

What goals? You know, the typical stuff. You find a few things you think will improve you as a person, stuff like work out more or read more. The reality is that you end up doing most of them at the start then slowly trail off. You set ten goals, do a few of them for a while then forget about them. It’s either too hard or too boring or life simply gets too busy.

On top of that, some of the goals you set are vague and hard to track or just designed to fail. Beyond smile more, I’ve seen stress less and things like just do it! What? How do I even go about doing that? It’s all nonsense!

That’s why it’s easy for them to get lost in the shuffle or be thrown aside at the first sign of failure.

That’s why I personally think goals should be very specific(work out more is not) and able to be tracked(smile more is not). On top of that, they should be reasonable and not be something you have to do every day(guaranteed to fail).

Otherwise, what’s the point of setting goals? If you can’t track them, you can’t reach them. Setting goals where you’re guaranteed to fail means you WILL fail(gasp). And if you’re not specific then you’re just making 2020 resolutions with no intention of doing anything aside from saying platitudes to make yourself feel better.

However, even if you set specific reasonable goals that can be tracked, goals are still hard. The reality is that you’ll still fail most of them. That’s just how life is but hopefully with goals such as mine you can reduce the failure rate a bit.

In the end, I think goals are still important. Most years, one or two end up sticking and become a part of your life. Sometimes, they don’t, all ten can fall off, but every once in a while, maybe once a few years, a few stick around.

For me, that’s what goal setting is all about. It’s the positive intention of doing something different with guided specific goals. Yea, sometimes you don’t, but even if 1 out of 20 stick, isn’t that great?

I think so, that’s why I’m setting some 2020 resolutions and hope you’ll join me. After all, a new decade is the best time for that. Here’s to some personal growth in the next decade. These are goals for me but they’re broad enough that anyone can get some ideas for 2020 resolutions of their own. Note that these are personal goals. I’ll be back with a whole list of financial goals sometime next year after I analyze how I did this year.

2020 Resolutions and Goals

One thing to note is that I suggest making these goals reasonable, achievable and target specific. In the past, I’ve set generic goals like exercise every day and failed. That’s great but it’s hard to achieve and doesn’t really have an end goal in mind.

Plus, it’s easy to fail immediately since a stipulation that says EVERY DAY is really hard to achieve. It’s important to not set yourself up to fail and aim for something specific.

The reality is that once you fail, you give up and it goes nowhere. That’s why there’s so many people in the gym in January but a lot less by March. If the goal is go to the gym every week, even that’s easy to fail. You miss one week and tell yourself you already failed, why bother.

It’s much easier to be specific and allow yourself flexibility to start goals even late in the year. Instead of exercise every day, do something like run a 7 minute mile(assuming you currently run something higher) or complete a plank challenge. The feeling of failure can really make you lose your desire to do something. However, the feeling of success or getting closer to a specific goal can really drive you forward.

That way you can aim towards something(always fun) and even if you start later in the year(since it’s often hard to get started in winter), you can still do OK. In essence, avoid things such as every day in your goals, they’re a recipe for failure. Same for things like work out more. What does more mean if I’ve never tracked anything in the past. Make it specific and realistic like the goals below.

Goal One – Row 5000m in One Sitting

In the spirit of the above, here’s a physical goal for me to work towards.

Not too long ago, we bought a nice rowing machine at the suggestion of our doctor for a medical condition both my wife and I have. It’s a fantastic workout but I don’t use it often. There’s plenty of excuses but the main two are that I’m lazy and it requires some setup time since we live in an apartment.

Right now, it’s sitting not set up with some clothing on top of it. That’s not good!

On top of that, I’m in terrible shape. I have a hard time getting to 1000m without feeling like I’m about to die. That’s about to change in 2020! I want to be able to row for 5000m in one sitting without feeling like death.

That’ll take some time and will likely require a lot of shorter rows to get there but it’s one of my main goals for the year. I want to be more fit and using the rowing machine often is the best and easiest way to achieve that. After all, it’s right there in my home and we spent almost $1,000 on it so we should be using the damn thing!

What do you do if you don’t have a rowing machine? Well, set some physical goal around something you have. Most of us can walk so why not…

Goal Two – Double My Steps in 2020

This is what my phone health app tells me I walked in 2019.

3138 steps! That’s terrible. However, it seems like that’s in line with the average american. Apparently, most of us average 3-4k steps per day. That’s not great as there’s plenty of benefits to walking like reducing the risk of most major diseases.

Best of all, almost all of us can do it. Sure, it gets a bit harder in the winter as evidenced by the above graph BUT it’s worthwhile and easy to do. Plus, many of us work in warm offices so it’s not too hard to just get up and do some circles around said office.

A lot of times I find myself sitting and doing nothing at work. Why not get up, do a little stretch and take a little stroll. This will give me a push to do just that!

I’ve read the the magic mark is 10,000 steps. However, I don’t want to set a goal I know I can’t reach. That’s why I think doubling a relatively small total is reasonable. That’s a goal of 6276 steps in 2020. What a number!

The reality is that I likely walk a bit more than the above totals show. The metric is from my phone and I often don’t bring my phone with me everywhere I go. Often, I’ll walk the dog with the phone sitting in the living room. That means this goal can be achieved with a combination of more walking plus bringing the phone out more often. Maybe I’ll end up getting a smart watch too since I’ve been thinking about that.

If you’re already walking a lot, maybe bump up your total by 1,000 instead of doubling it. It’s hard to double 10,000 steps after all. Goals can be fun to track and with the proliferation of smart phones, tracking this one is easier than ever.

Goal Three – Learn to Meditate and Medidate

I own like 5 meditation books. I bought this one in March 2017. This one, I got in July 2018. That’s only ones I got from Amazon but I’ve gotten a few at local stores before then too.

This is one of those past goals that I’ve failed and want to revisit. After all, I’m not buying these books for no reason!

I’m an anxious fella and meditation is supposed to help calm the mind. However, as with many things, I just never got around to it.

You know the deal, you read about something, get eager up to do it. The internet allows you to do some research and you find the best books about that something. I’ve found the two above after some extensive research on forums about meditation. They’re supposed to be the best two or so I hear, life changers for some!

You buy them eager to do it and then you just never do it. That was the case in 2017. It was the case in 2018. I did bring the 2018 book with me on my Hawaii honeymoon planning to read it on the plane. However, I watched movies instead. I learned my lesson in 2019 and didn’t buy any books.

However, I want to return to this goal because meditation sounds interesting to me. Learning how to calm a racing mind and deal with my anxiety has been a big thing for me. I’ve gotten there through other means but I’ve always wanted to incorporate the practice of meditation into my life.

After all, some people swear by it. In the end, maybe it won’t be for me BUT I want to try it. In fact, I can be like this lady next year. Look at her, sitting atop some mountain meditating while the sun burns her eyeballs. Thank you stock photos for your insight into how one should meditate.

I probably won’t do that. I’ll just do it at home, in the dark, in my pajamas. She’s breathing in fresh air while I’ll be breathing in my dog’s farts. Damn, Teddy, lay off the treats. It’s pretty much the same thing though. I’m sure it’ll be great for me too!

Goals like this where you revisit something you’ve wanted to do in the past can be great. I already have the books, I just have to sit down and read them. In 2020, I want to meditate at least once and I want to do it right. Sure, I could just sit down, close my eyes and breathe in and out and call it a day. However, since I have all these amazing books, I might as well read them, learn about it and do it well.

The beauty of this goal is that since it’s just a one time thing, I can do it whenever. Maybe it’ll become a staple in my life, maybe it won’t but it’s certainly worth trying. After all, I already spent the money on some books, why not read the damn things!

I’ve seen this goal in many places but it’s often something like “meditate every day”. Hell, I don’t do anything but sleep and eat every day. I sure as hell won’t succeed at doing this every day. However, I might do it once!

This can be a goal for everyone. However, it doesn’t have to be meditation. I’m sure some of you have bought a book or two about something you planned to learn but never got around to it. Even if you haven’t, there’s plenty of YouTube videos about anything that interests you or has in the past.

Make your 2020 resolutions a new starting point for that! It’s a new decade but it doesn’t mean you have to try all new things. Revisit some things you failed and improve upon that!

Goal Four – Visit Two New Places in 2020

I’ve gotten more and more enamored with travel as I get older. It’s kinda nice to visit new places.

Don’t get me wrong, I still HATE the travel aspect of it. Pack, go to airport, wade through security, sit and wait, get on the plane, enjoy the long ride on the tight plane, get off the plane, wait for bags, find rental car or uber, get to place, relax for 5 days, repeat again in a week. It certainly sucks!

However, once you’re there, the trips can be awesome. I loved my Hawaii trip in 2018 and loved my Atlanta trip in 2019. Vacations have really become more enjoyable for me now that I can plan them and do all the things I want to do.

Plus, now that my wife has gotten me a scratch-off map of all the places we’ve been, I want to keep that journey going. We’ve already scratched a few places but the majority of the map is untouched.

There are still plenty of places we have to go to and I want to visit two new places in 2020. We’re already planning a trip to Spain during the spring but we’ll have to figure out another place to go during the year as well.

After all, there’s many places we still have to visit and a lot of states and countries we’ve yet to scratch off together! Travel isn’t for everyone. Some can just hate the travel aspect of it and I get that. Plus, it can be very expensive but if you have the means and enjoy it, making travel part of your goals can be a good way to experience something new every year.

Goal Five – Pick Up a New Hobby or Skill

We all like to do stuff. I enjoy writing, reading, video games, television, board games, investing and probably some other stuff.

My wife shares similar interests but replace writing and investing with drawing/coloring and knitting. We’re all well rounded bunch of introverted at home sitters when it comes to our hobbies(aside from Hiking but based on my steps we don’t do that often enough).

This year, I want to do something new. I want to learn to love something as much as I love doing the above stuff. I’m thinking photography although I don’t really have a good camera.

Maybe it’s time to upgrade my old crappy phone for something new. The camera on mine is fine but it’s not lighting the world on fire in terms of image quality.

I’m not sure I want to buy a DSLR as I can see myself never using it. However, the phone is always with me and allows for easy on the go photography. If I like it, and stick with it, maybe I can then invest in a nicer DSLR camera.

In fact since we’re going to be traveling more in 2020, it’d be nice to have some photos from that to document here!

However, there’s a lot of new hobbies to try. It’s possible we’ll buy a home in 2020 so maybe gardening will be on the menu once the weather warms up. I’ve always wanted to learn how to do card tricks or learn a musical instrument.

The best thing about hobbies in 2020 is that websites like YouTube have made learning something new pretty easy. There’s thousands of instructional videos on how to do stuff these days so hopefully I can use that to learn some new stuff and find some fund new things to do in 2020!

Yes, this one is kind of vague but you never know what 2020 brings and what I’ll end up enjoying. I’m 99% sure it’ll be photography at this point but I also don’t want to limit myself in case photography doesn’t spark my creative bug.

Goal Six – Volunteer Three Times

Not one, not two, not three, not four, not five, not six, not seven, wait it’s three, Lebron, stop. That’s an NBA/Miami Heat reference for those who missed it.

I volunteered once this year and my wife did the same. It’s always nice to be able to find somewhere you can help but other stuff ends up getting in the way. That’s why I’m making it my goal to volunteer at least three times this year.

Hopefully we can do more but at least three should be doable. This one is simple. Find a few places that can use volunteers and get out there and do it.

Goal Seven – Read Twenty-Five Books in 2020

One of the great things about Goodreads is that they have a reading challenge tracker each year. You can use it to track how many books you’ve read which makes a goal like this very easy.

I’ve not done it actively in the past but a lot of my friends(and my wife do it) so I’ll jump in this year as well.

Just mark a book on there as read you’re good to go. I love reading, I do it every night so this goal shouldn’t be too hard. However, it does mean a book every two weeks which is likely a bit above my current pace. Still, more reading will mean less TV and video games which is a great thing for me!

I’ve already got two meditation books to read(see goal three) so I’ve got a good start!

Goal Eight – Try Three New Recipes

I cook but I always find myself cooking the same thing.

There’s so many recipes out there that I want to learn a few new things to add to my repertoire. This is another one where the internet makes a big difference.

Before you had to rely on cookbooks but now you’re just one google search away from a world of various things. I’m the cook of the house so it’ll be nice to introduce a few new things to the dinner table throughout the year.

Goal Nine – Treat Myself Three Times

TREAT YO’SELF 2020!

This is a financial blog and I can be a frugal person by nature. However, sometimes it’s important to treat yo’self as the scene from one of the best comedy shows ever shows. If you’re not familiar with parks and recreation(you should make it a goal for 2020 to watch it), it’s a day where two of the characters just go all out and treat themselves to whatever they want.

I’m not going to make it a day but I want to try myself to three things this year.

I don’t know what yet but it’ll be three things that cost $100+ that I can get anytime during the year(stuff I’ve already planned like travel won’t count). I want this to be something I wouldn’t normally get.

Right now, I’m thinking dinner at a Michelin starred restaurant in Spain and maybe a new phone to help take better photos.

I don’t really know yet. This is supposed to be stuff that I’d typically say, eh I don’t really need this because I have X. Well now, I’ll just say, TREAT YO’SELF 2020!

Goal Ten – Write 40 Blog Posts in 2020

This one is simple enough.

I have a blog and enjoy writing stuff on it. I want to continue that into 2020 and 40 blog posts is a reasonable goal to set into the new year. My style of writing doesn’t lent itself to frequent posts and I don’t want to force out stuff for the sake of content.

That means a slightly slower than once a week schedule suits me. Again, this one is easy to track and attainable without being overbearing.

For others, who don’t have a blog, find another current hobby you have and set some goals around it. Anything can work. Watch 5 new television shows in 2020 or 5 new games in 2020.

Tracking 2020 Resolutions

Now you’ve read my ten 2020 resolutions. Hopefully you have gotten some ideas on your own goals here as well.

That’s the beauty of goals, they can be adjusted to fit anyone as long as you have the basic templates. I believe any of the goals above can be adjusted to anyone reading this article. You might not have the same hobbies or skills but can take these goals and apply them to your own life.

The best part about them is that they are specific and easily tracked. That’s what I wanted to do when I set out to set these goals for myself this year. In the past, I was too vague setting goals that were impossible to track or impossible to hit(the every day goals).

This year, I have goals that I can track easily and best of all I have goals that I won’t fail a week into the year. All of these goals are ones that I can still hit even if I don’t start them right away.

It’ll also be important to see how I’m doing halfway through the year so I’ll revisit these goals then.

I have many ways to track them as well whether it be via websites like Goodreads for the books or via my phone for the steps. Beyond those, many of these goals don’t require much tracking at all. Can I row 5,000m in one sitting or not? Have I picked up a new hobby that I enjoy? Have I tried three new recipes or treated myself three times? These are goals that require nothing but your memory or the physical aptitude to do something and that’s why they’re great.

That’s why I like them and I hope you will too. Beyond that, smile more, don’t stress so much and just do it! GOALS! In all seriousness, good luck on your 2020 resolutions and a happy new year to all! Here’s to a great 2020 and a brand new you a decade from now.