I used to have a rigid routine of reviewing my One Page Life Plan each quarter. The past couple years, it’s been more of an organic happening. I feel a shift in my bones, I listen to it, and I take a couple hours on a weekend to sit with it.
Anyone who knows me well knows that I am a goal-oriented person. As some wise ones have quipped in the past,
“If you aim at nothing, you’ll probably hit it.”
Anonymous
Well, I’m in the opposite boat. I’m certainly aiming at something. The target is, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
The way I get there is by following my One Page Life Plan and setting yearly goals. I’ve been doing this for almost 10 years. And I set them in accordance with the wheel of life.
In this post, I want to break down the season of Summer 2022, on my way toward that target:
- Family Goals
- Author Goals
- Health Goals
- Travel Goals
- Finance Goals
- Spiritual Growth Goals
- Theme of the Year
Family Goals
Family Goal 1: Improve our marriage in consistent, tangible, meaningful ways
Family Goal 2: 1 date per month with each kid, meaning each kid gets 1 per quarter
On the first family goal, my wife and I have had our best year of marriage, for sure. I’ll spare you all the juicy details (maybe share another time), but last year was rough for us. Last summer, we came very close to separating. But I worked on myself in counseling and she kept working on herself in counseling, and we had some very candid conversations to sort through past junk.
This year, our marriage is much better.
Still areas for improvement? Yes.
Still need to continue working on ourselves individually? Yes.
But she would say and I would say, we’re in a much healthier place. Some of this has come through date nights and more intentional time together. But a lot of it has just been better communication: telling each other how we’re feeling, showing each other compassion, and picking up the slack when the other is struggling. Seeing and listening. Really seeing. Really listening.
For the second family goal, I’m right on pace. Each kid has had 2 dates with me so far and the 1-1 time is huge. They really look forward to it, and if you’re a parent, this is a great practice to start.
Author Goals
Author Goal 1: Sell and market my existing books better
Author Goal 2: Revise and re-release an old book with a new spin
The first author goal is going well. I’ve run a couple giveaways, I’ve run Amazon ads, and I was able to have my highest sales month, outside of a launch, with 300+ books sold. My book, On the John: A Devotional for Men, has been selling very consistently all year long.
My re-release is in the making.
Health Goals
Health Goal: workout 3x per week to look chiseled and fit at 35-36
I don’t know if I’ve say I’m chiseled, but you can see my abs at 35. And I am working out 3x per week. Stretching more than lifting.
Travel Goals
Travel Goal: Go to 12 places I’ve never been
I’m just a smidge behind pace on this goal. Gas and flight prices have put a bit of a damper on my original plans. So instead of going long distances to far away lands, I’ve found myself going to more nearby places that I haven’t been to.
Regardless, it’s always fun to get out and get away.
Finance Goals
Finance Goal: Invest set amount per month with 33% return
Finance Goal: Follow budget within 10% and give more consistently
Finance Goal: Max the match on 401K
I’ve been investing very heavily, but in a different direction than I normally would. I would say we’ve been spending over budget because of all the travel we did for baseball this summer and because of Hannah’s Mrs. Wyoming and Mrs. America competition. But I’m happy to be over budget on those things. On pace to max the match.
Spiritual Growth Goals
Spiritual Growth Goal: Write 12 blog series and plan Bible reading
Man, it’s tough to write this one out. I have fallen off my Bible reading plan. I’ve been reading, but it’s been sporadic. And for blog series, I think I’ve completed 4 on the year, when I should be at 7.
Perhaps, I shouldn’t have measured the goal in this way. Because what’s happened is I feel closer to God than I have in awhile. I’ve prayed more, I’ve read more, I’ve been more open to the still small voice.
But if I want to hit the goal as I wrote it out originally, this is the one goal that I really need to improve on so I can finish strong on the back half of the year.
Theme of the Year
Theme: Go BIG! Dream big, plan big, pray big. See what happens.
This has been green all year long. I’m really excited about what I’m working on, where things are heading, and what’s coming.
Keep dreaming big.
Keep planning big.
And keep praying big.
Let’s see what happens!
Omer Redden 