Back in January 2023, I was unemployed and feeling very alone in a Brooklyn apartment that I was subletting from a friend of a friend. The previous summer, I had been laid off from my second job in two years. I opened LinkedIn everyday to news about massive tech layoffs and a slowdown in hiring.
I didn’t know what to do and it felt like I would never get out of that state. In that feeling, I started blogging again and posted this about my 2023 goals.
I meant to do a 2023 goal retro in December, and then a new set of goals in 2024. I never got around to the first one because I got into a relationship, I didn’t get around to the second one because it ended.
But time goes on, and I find myself in need of inspiration – so I’m back. My major goal in 2023 was to find a job. I did that. In 2024, my goal is to get out of the focus on career and job searching and back towards building a life I’m proud of and enjoying it.
To that end, I’d like to continue the goals I posted in 2023. They were:
- Plan better
- Identify who I want to be and judge myself by those criteria
- Have strong and healthy relationships in my life (of all kinds)
- Be healthier (mentally and physically)
- Do something constructive towards fighting climate change
- Pursue my interests in cities and urban planning
- Pursue my interests in languages, linguistics, and related topics
- Make progress on a career that fits well for me
- Write and publish things – ideally that are helpful to others
- Read – and try to read things that expand my worldview
But I’d like to add some more things:
- Embrace culture(s)
- Live abroad again at some point in my life
- Have a positive impact on my community
- Intentionally curate joy in my life
- Enjoy and live each day
- Build things that help others
Systems, not goals
My 2023 goals felt more like guiding principles than goals. I did try making them into SMART goals, but I felt like it made them less useful. Trying to track my progress towards my goals ended up taking up more time than it was worth. I think these goals work better as guiding principles, rather than as achievements.
I think the reason this is true is because systems, rather than goals, seem to be more successful. I’d like to think more critically about setting up systems that would lead me to success in these goals, rather than trying to track each goal.