2020 GOALS + WORD OF THE YEAR
/Every time I look at 2020, I see balance.
I see a 20 on the left and a 20 on the right.
I’ve always been a lover of symmetry, and last month it hit me…2020 is balanced.
So my word of the year is just that, Balance.
And it’s my goal this year to find balance in so many aspects of my life.
Balance in my faith: How to live a fulfilling life at church, with my church family, during morning devotionals and more.
Balance in my marriage: How to be a better wife and show my husband just how much I love him.
Balance as a mother: How to prioritize all of my duties as mama bear while giving each of my daughters’ the love and attention they need.
Balance in my work: How to juggle my personal brand, our business and all the extra side hustles that entrepreneurs carry.
Balance in my finances: How to find peace with what I have, save more, minimize and spend intentionally.
Balance in my health: How to always find time to put my mental, physical and emotional health first.
Balance in my ambitions: How to accept when things just don’t go my way and continue pressing onward and upward towards more.
Balance in education: How to study harder and continue learning more every day.
You see, balance is hard. And I think it takes a lot of intentional efforts to even remotely find balance in our lives. We must know our priorities, weigh them and tend to them with love and care.
If not, we lose balance.
So this year, I’m getting back to the basics.
I’m focusing on goals that bring my family and I a life of abundant love, abundant joy and abundant balance.
2020 Goals.
Here’s the thing about goals. I think some people read that word and want to run. Setting a goal can be so intimidating to some people that even the thought of it throws you off track.
But can I pray for you right now?
For a grace so forgiving that you know it is OKAY if you don’t reach your goal, but to never stop trying.
For understanding that goal setting is hard, reaching goals is hard, and a goal accomplished is worth celebrating!
For peace in the fight. For peace in the thick of it. For peace in your discipline all the way to the finish line.
Goals are hard, yes. But let’s take the pressure off of them for a second and simply just try. Can you promise me that? Let’s not worry about how hard it’s gonna be to get there:
to be debt free.
to run a marathon.
to buy a house.
to save a marriage.
to lead someone to the Lord.
to learn another language.
to lose 30 pounds.
to quit smoking.
to reconcile a friendship.
Whatever it is. Forget about how hard it is for me, okay?
And let’s just get after it! Let’s erase the timelines and the deadlines and just GO.
Cause I guarantee you the only regret you (and I) will have next year will be that we never tried.
So here’s to 2020, and here’s to our goals. Let’s go.
1.1.2020
Dear future Amy, it’s me. 33 year old Amy.
Let’s start this decade with faith over fear.
Let’s start this decade with focus over distraction.
And let’s start this decade with discipline over complacency.
You are stronger than you know. Don’t give up.
Run a half marathon every 3 months. You used to do this Amy! Stop making excuses. Sign up for them now, and RUN!
Wear more lipstick. You always feel put together when you have lipstick on. Wear it , and stop caring what others think.
Put on more pants with buttons. Whenever you wear leggings and a sweatshirt, you want to relax. It’s your go to outfit and it forces you to want to sit down and watch Netflix. But whenever you actually shower, wash your hair and get ready YOU WORK HARDER. So do that, Amy. Plus, you have all that clothes in your closet. Use it. If not, then why do you have it? … which brings me to your next goal…
Donate more. You have WAY too much stuff girl. Get rid of it. Stop saying you’re gonna sell it, cause that takes way too much time. Just donate it! People need it!
Fold the clothes as soon as it gets out of the dryer. Listen to your mom! It is so much easier to do little by little than all piled up days, weeks, months later! Just do it! Load by load! You Marie Kondo’d your drawers last year and you’re still keeping up with that! Routine becomes habit, see? So stay on top of this!
Read more. Why on God’s green earth do you have so many books if you don’t read them?!?! DO NOT PICK UP YOUR PHONE EVERY TIME YOU GET BORED, LITTLE LADY. READ! You already know what wisdom you need more of in your life. Read those books. And while you’re at it, PLEASE keep reading more and more to your girls.
Laugh more, yell less. You’re not starting strong this year on this one missy. Stop yellin’ at those girls when they do something wrong and lower your voice. Speak gently and watch their response change too. Be a voice of reason, a voice of love and a voice of laughter everywhere you go.
Date more. Get out your calendar and start planning! Ask for help when you need it. Hire someone when you can. BUT DO NOT STOP DATING THAT BALD BEAUTIFUL MAN!
Cook dinners 5 nights a week. Yes, you’re reading that right. And you are on a great run so far! Use your menu board, go grocery shopping often for fresh items, and cook! Your hubby loves it, your kids love it and you’re actually loving it too. But please remember to not waste any leftovers! Plan your meals wisely.
Be intentional with the girls’ activities. You bit off more than you could chew last year. Your life is NOT easy right now. With Everly’s therapies and the business it is not feasible to drive those girls to a million activities right now. So choose them wisely. And don’t just sign them up for stuff cause YOU want it for them. Instead sign them up for things they will truly love. Focus on each child each month and alternate activities so they each get their time.
Eat breakfast. period.
Workout 6 days a week. Continue to use your calendar as you have and plan out your exercises. Be intentional in your workouts and try to run 365 miles this year! You feel better about yourself when you’re in shape and you’re much happier too. Stay on it.
Talk on the phone to those you love more. Why are you such an introvert when it comes to the phone? PICK THAT DANG PHONE UP AND TALK TO PEOPLE THAT LOVE YOU! Don’t be shy. Don’t prioritize other things over that. Do it.
Have more girls’ nights. You have so many amazing girlfriends Amy. Let them REALLY know just how much you love them.
Plan out 4 vacations. Be very intentional and plan for 1 vacation every quarter this year. Nothing crazy big, but some time where you and the family get away.
Clear off your phone and computer. You’ve had this on your goal list for 3 YEARS. make this your year Amy Lou. Think about how devastating it will be if you lose all of that stuff! Clear it off, back it up and don’t let it happen again.
Stay on top of your morning devotionals. Don’t slack off. Go to bed at 10 pm every night, so you can start every single day at 5 am with the Lord. Set you alarm, don’t turn it off, wake up and make your coffee and just be PRESENT with Jesus. and for the life of me (you), DO NOT pick up that phone first thing in the morning. Roll over, kiss your husband and head downstairs. You get so much more done when you don’t start your day on that dang phone.
Go after the 3 big goals you have for the business. You know what they are, I don’t have to write them here. They are SO DEEPLY rooted in your heart, Amy Lou. GO AFTER THEM. At least start. You will regret it next year if you don’t start.
Hire help when you need it. Sitters, business help, etc. Don’t be scared to do that. Budget for that and do it.
Donate more. You’re up to over $25,000 with Mission 31. Can we make it $31,000 this year? Donate $6,200 this year. Let’s do this.
Move. You got a big move coming up this summer. To where? Who knows. But start making the necessary moves now to make that move easier. Moving is a goal in itself. You got this.
Continue to study our world. Continue to learn about politics and finances and climate and culture and religion and always always always be open and willing to listen to others and to learn. Knowledge is power. You are a bright young lady. Don’t ever stop reaching for more knowledge.
Eat more veggies. Try to eat a serving of vegetables every day! (and try to “FORCE” the kids to eat one period…)
Organize the home. You will launch a 6 month organization challenge on the blog soon, and I want you to implement every word of that into your own life. Organize and stay organized. Your future self will love you for it!
Blog. You love love love writing. It’s your journal of life. And Amy…it’s your legacy. Never stop writing. Blog once every week if you can, and if not every couple weeks. Leave your mark on this world.
honorable mentions…wash your face every night + take down your Christmas decorations before summer! (ha!)
How will I make it all happen?
Balance.
And a few trusty paper planners.
One thing the Army taught me so well was the value and necessity for long range planning. It’s one of the first things we do when we’re given a new mission or task. How do we fit “x” into our training calendar, and what are the ramifications of placing “x” there.
I have my personal planner, which holds all of my personal deadlines, doctor appts, tv shows I can’t miss (ha!) and so forth.
I have my workout calendar, which is a visual reference for my daily workouts to ensure I’m targeting my entire body each week and to keep track of the miles I run. I also just love checking things off as I do them!
And I have my business calendar, which holds all of my Ever Co launch dates and deadlines, collaboration and partnership deliverables + timelines and anything that deals with blog or IG content.
These planners are one of the first things I’d grab (aside from my family) if our house caught on fire.
And no, I’m not a tech gal, so don’t try to switch me to something online hehe. My husband’s been trying to convert me for 8 years. But you can’t teach an old dog new tricks; I’ll stick to my paper and pen. ;)
But even more important than writing all of these things down?
Communicating them.
One of my FAVORITE days every month is when Blake and I turn off our phones, turn off the TV and sit at our kitchen table and synch our lives. We do it at the beginning of every month and then we do a quarterly sit down too for a bigger picture view of the year.
I share all of the girls’ school requirements, medical appts, extracurricular activities, business timelines, planned vacations and so forth that he needs to know about, and he adds them to his Google calendar.
He then goes over any work requirements he has that will require him to be in the office all weekend or away from the family for an extended amount of time. He also goes over our family finances with me to ensure everything we are doing is keeping us on budget so we can continue putting 50% of our paycheck into savings or investments every month. Similarly (he does our business accounting) and he goes over that to ensure we are on glidepath to a profitable year.
This ensures we both grant each other enough space to do what’s important in our own lives and to ensure we are prioritizing our family amidst it all too.
It’s our way of synching our ever so busy lives and communicating important events so that we don’t miss out on things. It also allows us to each bring a different piece of pie to the table so we are each pulling our own weight.
And you guessed it…
All for balance.
And guess what?! If you’ve kept reading this far, you’re in for a treat! I created this FREE printable for you to download and print for your own goal setting adventures! Or you can just save this JPG below to your phone and write on it via Instagram stories or in a drawing app to jot down your goals that way too!
My plan is to look this over every month and reflect on my progress/adjust goals where necessary!
I hope and pray this message brought you something useful as you plan your goals this year.
I pray that in seeing me write out my goals that you will write out yours.
But mostIy just pray you too can find balance in your year, however that may look, so that you are equal parts filled with abundant life and equal parts filled with abundant joy + love.
Happy goal setting.
XX, Amy
PS be sure to pin these images if you want to reference back to it in the future!
