Looking to 2012-A Few Goals

Like many others on the web, I've been trying to set some basic goals for the coming year.  While I'm not a big one for "resolutions", I've kind of being going on autopilot for the last few months.  In general I prefer a lifestyle that goes with the flow. I'm not one to have a large list of  goals for life in writing, in any sense of the word. But I do want to have a bit of a basic plan to work with for the coming year, so I've been looking ahead a bit. Here's what I have so far-a very flexible list:

On the financial front, I want and need to fine tune my expenses even more. I'm still working on that realistic budget and cuts to be made.  Eventually I will share with everyone and let it all hang out there. Generally though, I'll be looking to be more careful with food expenses-I need to eat well, but control costs. I'm looking to lower some regular expenses such as cable and Internet. I also need to increase my income streams a bit, and begin building some savings. I also need to go back to using a debit card and/or tracking all of my expenses with my Quicken software. This area needs to be fleshed out and I am not above sharing specifics with the world.

On the immediate family front, I need to work on my son being financially in dependent.  In his case it's not a failure to launch issue. the terrible job market is a base cause. Late maturity and low self confidence, along with virtually no working experience (due to living locations and the type of higher education) just exacerbate the situation. He has one very tiny business that brings in a few dollars a week. If he cannot find a "real job" then together we need to find other ways of making money. He needs to be independent and I cannot support his expenses other than those of living in this house, really.

I need to work on becoming even more healthy, and try and go back to some further weight loss. this means finding cold weather exercise opportunities that are not painful, and making small diet changes-I'll never be a carrots and celery for snacks kind of girl, but if I can increase activity a bit and lower calories a bit, that should help, along with lowering the fat

I want to increase my travel experiences.  My travel for the past year has been non existent except for a side trip or so on one of my visits up to Denver to visit my family.  My goal is a day trip or weekend trip monthly in this area, and at least two longer road trips-one along the gulf coast.  I'll be putting money aside for these adventures, as well as doing lots and lots of advanced planning.

In terms of personal development if you will, I want to continue my learning. I will probably drastically cut the hours I spend, but this is something I enjoy.  Even if I don't use what I am learning to make money, I feel it is worthwhile if I am able to contribute these skills and interests through my non profit work.  I've thought about my comfort level of doing this with financial aid, and I've decided that as long as I am contributing here on earth, it's a fair trade off, "job" or not.  In the same vein, I want to increase my volunteer level.  For the past six months my contribution has been being the coordinator for a few organizations. While that's valuable, I need to be a hands on person. To that end, I'll be volunteering a day a week in the new year-at least that's the goal.  Lastly, I want to add meditation and prayer time to my day. Again, finding the time to do this three times a day is a goal, and I won't be shy about sharing my success or failure in this area.

When it comes to my house and surroundings, my goal is to "simplesize" (love that new word) just a bit.  I'll never be a member of the simple movement, but would like to make life a tad more organized. More importantly, I plan to do some upgrades to my home and surroundings.  Yes, someday I may downsize.  Meanwhile, there are large and small changes I want to make to improve life quality and lower costs.. These range from extending the patio to make room for a container garden, to new landscaping to small in home improvements. Obviously, the success of this goal depends on the success of my financial goals.

Finally (at least for now), I want to me more self sufficient. I know,I know,  this is one of those overused phrases that means ten things to ten different people and is difficult to define. In my world this I surely don't want to hide in my home or become antisocial. Avoiding society is not my thing. I do want to be able to rely on myself first as much as is reasonably possible-in all areas, including financial.  I'll be fleshing out the specifics of this goal,and what I can do to get there, soon.

I'm sure there are things that I will be adding or subtracting from this ever changing list, but I now have a place to begin. As the saying goes, onward and forward!