Jan 4, 2024

Much has been said about the ‘New Year, New Me’ trend. We have gone through the pros, cons, grey areas, and more. While I understand the appeal, in reality, a ‘New Year, New Me’ philosophy does not do much for me. Yes, I do get a mental boost when I think 2023 is over and some random cosmic changes would mean 2024 will be better for all of us. I am not sure the reality is in line with that kind of hopeful thinking. I think it is totally up to us to build sustainable habits that result in a better me and not fancy New Year resolutions that only end up irritating us in a week or so. So I follow more of a ‘New year, not so new me’ planning. Yes, there are a few important aspects that I still focus on that are affected by a change in calendar year but I plan for those months in advance incorporating new habits slowly and incrementally instead of at the turn of a calendar.

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Financial

Sometime in Q4 of each year, I start planning for the next year. There are some critical aspects of this planning:

– Tax-Related Planning:

Arguably the most important part of my goal-planning exercise and also the most time-consuming. I make contributions to my RRSP, TFSA and Investments on a bi-weekly basis, throughout the year. In Q4, I assess how much more room I have left and plan to ensure I am contributing to the full limit and also make sure that I have not over-contributed to avoid fines. I will also set reminders in my planner for all the tax-related documents like T4/T5 that I would need to collect for the tax season. Doing this in advance means that I don’t have to scramble at the last minute.

– Savings Goals

Next comes my savings goals for next year. This is more of a detailed planning and action stage. I look into my goals and create plans to ensure I achieve them. In most cases, I will start implementing the habits straight away so that I am set up for success. Adopting habits early ensures that I am not scrambling to adjust to something new at the beginning of the year. Here is what I typically do and how much time it takes me:

• Review all Debt – 1 day
• Review all Assets – 1 day
• Review Income Plan – 1 day
• Review Investment Plan(this takes a lot of research and tracking) – 30 days
• Identify big-ticket items(some of the more expensive items like travel or new appliances etc.) – 15 days
• Set monthly budget – 30 days
• Identify tools that will help in tracking my progress(like creating my own budget excel, setting up auto-deposits/payments/investments, reading, researching etc.) – 2 months

The tricky part is not the planning but changing your lifestyle to meet your goals. I find that making changes in early Q4 works out best for me since that gives me ample time to review and adjust my action plan before the new year. If you are interested in the tools I use personally you can head over to my Etsy shop.

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Career

This might look different to everyone but for me, this is pretty straightforward. I like money and recognition when it comes to my professional life. To me, it is all about balance. While I enjoy my career, I do my best when I have a good work-life balance. For me, that means not spending all my waking hours thinking about getting ahead but more about building a sustainable pace that allows me to pursue other personal interests. So when it comes to my career, I use my peers and mentors as sounding boards to identify what’s next. Here’s what I do:

• Add 1 skill and 1 certification – this is how I identify new ones:
  • Talk to your direct manager
  • Talk to peers
  • Talk to your Mentor
  • Join different forums related to your field
  • Review market trends
  • Evaluate own interests
• Part-time job/Freelancing – if your organization allows this, the best way to earn some extra money is to take on a part-time job or freelance. These are safer avenues as opposed to the gimmicky ‘Digital Marketing’ reels or videos you see every day. It is also an excellent way to sharpen your skills in your professional domain or an area of interest. This however ties into my financial planning and is thoroughly considered when I ‘Review my Income Plans’.
• Volunteer – If you have the time, volunteering is the best way to get some good experience, and provide value to others while adding weight to your resume. This is also an excellent way of networking with like-minded individuals which can lead to exciting opportunities. Plan ahead to find time in your calendar to fit in some volunteer work.

I also go through an exercise every December to build a sort of action plan for 2024 that is tailored to my current role within my organization. If you are looking for a career change, that is a whole different topic and that is a more involved process that requires its own post.

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Personal

This is where I have the most fun and I must admit, where I lack accountability. So for this year, I have changed my approach to this and built in more tracking and checkpoints to hold myself accountable.

Health

Not gonna lie, 2023 was my worst year as far as health goes, both mental and physical. I started implementing most of these in Q4 2023 so that I could figure out what works best. Here is what I am doing this year to make changes:

• Physical
  • Yearly health check with my doctor at the beginning of 2023
  • Setting up reminders in my calendar for medications and exercises
  • Invested in equipment and tools(like a standing desk and weights)
  • Habit Tracking
• Mental
  • Taking more breaks for my mental health – timed using the FLOW app
  • Invest in a good quality journal and writing tools
  • Reading goals – I usually set myself a reading goal each year
  • Habit Tracking

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Creativity

I prefer to have a creative outlet that is not tied to my financial or professional goals. These are areas where I want to track my improvements but not necessarily get caught up in them.

While it will look completely different for everyone, some basic principles still apply. Here is my process:

• Identify metrics – what should I measure(likes, subscribes, patrons, scores, projects)
• Create the opportunity to gather feedback – whether it be a trusted friend, a teacher, peers or a stranger, it is important to generate feedback consistently to measure your progress and get crucial details on how to do better
• Take a Class/Course
• Schedule time and frequency to practice – keep track of each session

There is much more you can do but I tend to stick to the basics so the creative process remains enjoyable and not just another mechanical data point in my trackers. The idea here is to improve, indulge in some me time, have fun and still stay accountable to oneself through the process. Impose some rules on yourself but not too many.

There you have it. My entire process for goal setting. While some aspects and interests change every year, the majority of it stays the same. There is no ‘New Me’ here, just an older and probably a wiser me. It’s still the same me though. I am sharing this in the hopes that this helps you plan some of your goals. There are a lot of methods and theories out there that might be the ideal way but this is more practical for me. I have had a fair bit of success using this as a guideline every year. Remember, the most important part is periodically tracking, reviewing and adjusting goals. If you don’t set up the frequency, the tracking mechanism and the reminders during the planning phase, you may have made no or unsustainable progress at the end of the year.

Let’s have the best year yet!