Happy New Year! I hope you had a fun, or perhaps even a relaxing New Year’s Eve and were able to take some time today to set your intention for 2020 — the new year is upon us and I already feel a new energy surrounding it.

Here were the goals I set for 2019:

Attend an estate sale
Be intentional
Keep actively living
Get to San Francisco
Be brave
Make time for creativity
Don’t contribute to credit card debt
Develop a useful morning routine
Change your thinking
Recycle
Get back to podcasts

Some of these goals didn’t end up fitting into my life as a full-time contractor, so they fell to the wayside, but I accomplished a solid chunk of these and I’m proud of the things I can check off the list for last year.

Now, here’s a fresh batch of goals for 2020:

Be more eco-friendly

Last year, I vowed to recycle more, which was much easier than I thought. But, I also learned how little of the stuff I take to the recycling bin actually gets recycled and I want to be better about buying less disposable stuff. So, I asked for things to help me for Christmas and I got reusable ziplock bags, reusable coffee filters, reusable paper towels, cotton mesh produce bags, a travel silicon straw and some reusable beeswax paper to wrap food in. Amazing!

Being more eco-friendly to me also means continuing to shop small, shop local and supporting businesses that help important causes, including our environment.

Get rid of burdens

I’ve had a few things weighing on me that I need to either resolve or let go. These are pretty personal, so I don’t feel comfortable going into detail here, but I know holding on to these things is not serving me.

Read the books I already have

I have been reading books from the library for the last several years, so it’s not a financial goal. But, I realized this year that I can easily let going to the library be an obstacle to reading. This sounds silly, but the library is sort of far away and I’ve just got so many books (at least 15) on my shelves that I haven’t read. Not only am I looking forward to reading some of these books that I’ve had for years, but this way, I can donate them if they aren’t keepers. I think this will also help me be a little more intentional about my reading instead of just reading whatever book is next up on my reserve list.

Find healthy coping mechanisms

I am always dealing with some type of stress, fatigue, anxiety or depression and I want to really focus on self-care that helps me. This could be meditation, yoga, dance, essential oils, and learning more about chakras and crystals. Many of these things I already do, but I’m not doing them with intention and I often left myself skip out if I’m feeling low… even if I know they will help. So, more focus on the mental benefits!

Follow positive role models

I have a really bad habit of mindlessly scrolling on social media. Most of the time, it’s entertaining, but social media can easily leave me feeling less-than. So, I’ve picked three positive, hard-working women to follow so I can still get my fix but keep things upbeat and focused on my goals.

Make progress on memoir number 4

During the second half of 2019, I started tinkering with a new book idea… so I want to bring that to life in 2020.

Get published. Anywhere

I have more than 600 bylines from over the years… but it’s been a MINUTE. I miss the grind of reporting, so even if it’s a tiny, neighborhood pub, I wanna get back at it. If you are in the publishing world and have ideas or writing needs… email me at Holly@thebitterlemon.com.

Find a health routine that works for me

My schedule is a little insane. But 2019 was my “test year” for all things entrepreneurial. Now that I’m familiar with my day-to-day schedule, I want to find ways to fit more yoga and dance classes in (again, back to the mental health aspect). But this also includes my diet. I have less time to cook, so I’ve been ordering Green Chef and Blue Apron to curb eating frozen dinners, and I want to look into other, healthier delivery options that don’t kill the environment.

Attend an estate sale

Here’s this one again… ha! It’s the goal I keep putting off.

Carry me away

This is a John Mayer song that came out at the end of last year and it really resonated with me. It has romantic undertones, but I’m more so interested in this idea of getting carried away from a strict schedule and letting myself get lost in a good book. Spend an afternoon with my phone off, doing some writing. Have an extra long dinner. Go to a yoga class during lunch. This idea of getting carried away is my focus phrase for the year in hopes of being present and focusing on passions that are important to me.