My goals for 2023.

I won't be making any resolutions this year as I do not want to make a firm decision to do or not do something in case it doesn't happen. Instead, I will be making a list of possible goals to aspire to, some will be more achievable than others but if I only complete one of them then I believe I can still consider the next year a success.

There is one principal category - Investment: "an act of devoting time, effort, or energy to a particular undertaking with the expectation of a worthwhile result". This is split into three categories; physical & mental well-being and personal finance.

1. Physical investment.

In the past couple of years, I have been eating better foods and exercising more and in the last year I have given up alcohol. My weight has decreased from 270 lbs to 200 lbs and this year I hope to lose a few more lbs, tone up a bit and look after my skin and general health better. I will be hitting 40 this year and I would like to be in better shape than ever, especially with a very active 4-year-old to run around after! As part of this, I want to find a hobby which can help both my physical and mental health.

2. Mental investment.

A lot of my reading over the last 10 months has been around mental health and well-being and I plan to continue working my way through various types of books again this year. In 2022 'The Chimp Paradox' by Prof Steve Peters probably provided me with the greatest insight into how my brain operates and it has definitely helped me train how I think, act and speak in a more positive way. Having started 'Atomic Habits' by James Clear I can see that this may have a similar impact on me in 2023. There has been a lot of promotion of hustle culture on social media which can lead to burnout. I want to make sure I take time out when needed. As I now work from home I need to keep my daily work and home life separate. Hopefully, we can have a family holiday for the three of us to recharge our batteries and make some new memories. In the last couple of months, I have started meditating and it will be interesting to see how that develops.

3. Financial investment.

With my change in jobs at the end of 2022 I am amalgamating my pensions together into a SIPP and will be doing a review of my investment choices. I also want to make changes to my ISA, switching some of my portfolio into dividend stocks and shares. Hopefully, my blog will continue to grow and eventually provide a small side income whilst I am planning to start a YouTube channel based on the blog. Finally, as a surveyor, I really want to get into property investment and development which could be residential or commercial. This year may be too early for that but if I wish, hope and dream big then who knows, by all means, I may do it!

So that rounds up my aspirations for 2023; I look forward to an end-of-year review to see how much has been achieved.