Goals for 2016

Since 2011 I create goals for each year. It’s a great way to motivate myself to grow and improve. Last year I failed to complete most of my goals. But I’m not discouraged, I have new new goals and brand new strategy.

Why I failed last year?

Last year I did few things wrong and made it impossible for myself to succeed. Here’s why:

• To ambitious, unrealistic goals
• Too many goals
• No one to keep me accountable
• No periodical reviews

What will change?

This year I plan to make few changes:

• Simple and easy to track goals
• Only few goals
• My wife will help me keep track of those goals
• I will revisit goals every month

This year it’s all about building good habits. To build habits I need time. I also need to start with little things, repeat, repeat, repeat… and slowly add more things. This way I won’t become overwhelmed right out of the box.

My Personal Goals in 2016

Take all 30 days of holidays

At wiredot we get a maximum of 30 days of holidays per year. Having plenty of rest is essential to keep a high level of efficiency. It really works, but only when you take the holidays. In 2015 I took around 12 days. That’s not enough.

This year I plan to use all holidays. I’ve already planned 25 days and left 5 days for some special occasions. I’ve added it to my calendar, told my wife and my developer about it. They will keep me accountable.

Read at least 1 book per month

I had this goal every single year since 2011. I have never succeeded. But this year it will be different. Back in December 2015 I’ve started working on my reading habit. Since then I’ve read 3 books and continue to read every single day. I plan to keep it that way and read at least 12 books.

Take control of finances

I really struggle with tracking my home finances. I spend a lot more than I should, I don’t budget. I also keep on forgetting to pay bills. I know, I’m not alone. This year though, it will be different. I’ve started tracking all my spendings already (together with my wife), plan to start budgeting every month later this year. I’ve also put a small container on my desk for all unpaid bills, my wife will mock me if she sees anything there.

My Work Goals in 2016

Launch 2 products

I’ve been planning this for years. Enough planning, time to do something. I will start with 2 simple free WordPress plugins and maybe create a Pro version later this year. I’m already almost finished with the first plugin and plan to launch it next month. Looks good so far.

Speak at a conference

Last year I spoke at WordCamp Switzerland. It was unplanned, but was a great experience. This year I plan to apply to speak at few conferences and hopefully I will be able to do it at least once. This might be the most difficult goal, we will see.

+30% in revenue

2015 was not as good as 2014. I plan to increase the revenue by at least 30% which would make this year, the best year ever. That’s ambitious, but not impossible. There are already few plans in place and everything looks good so far.

Let’s go

2016 has already begun and it’s time to take all I have learned last year and put it in action. I’m looking forward to this year, can’t wait to learn even more. And I’m looking forward to working on my goals this year. Hopefully all will be accomplished.