Happy New Year!

Tis the season for goal setting and new year’s resolutions. Every January, our culture is abuzz with self-improvement talk. The turning of a new year is a natural opportunity to reflect on the previous year and make plans for the new one. 

However, in recent years I’ve also noticed a lot of push back to the tradition of making new year’s resolutions. Resolutions almost always fail, the cynics say. January 1st is an arbitrary date anyway. Goals can be set any time of the year. Furthermore, they argue, resolutions are usually motivated by social pressure, or worse, a feeling of low self-worth. When the unrealistic goals inevitably fail, the individual is left only with the shame of failure. 

I disagree. I believe that goal setting is empowering. I’ve legitimately changed my life through new year’s resolutions. Previous goals have led me to learn new skills like fishing, weight lifting, and pottery. I have learned to love reading, improved my physical fitness, saved enough money to take a mini-retirement, started a blog, and thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail. 

Though it’s true that goals can be set any time, why not at the beginning of a new year? There’s nothing inherently special about January, but the turning of the calendar can simply serve as a reminder. The new year is a little nudge prompting you to reflect on what you’d like to accomplish in the coming months. If you failed, abandoned, or forgot previous goals, the beginning of a new year is a cue to reset. 

If you change your mind midway though the year, no harm done. One important but often skipped step in goal setting is giving yourself permission to pivot. Allow your goals to be changed, consciously abandoned, or redirected. It is easier to steer a moving ship than one sitting in the docks.

My 2024 Goals 

This month not only marks a new year, but also the midway point of my mini-retirement. Because I have the opportunity to take two years away from my career to pursue other interests, I feel particularly motivated to use my time wisely. It would be a shame and a waste to squander this time. When I return to work in 2025, I need to have something to show for my time off! It’s an extra layer of pressure, but I don’t mind. It puts a fire under my butt to accomplish some big things. 

Research shows that goals are more likely to succeed when written down and even more likely if shared with others. So here are some of mine.

Walk from Mexico to Canada.

I plan to begin my hike of the Pacific Crest Trail at the Mexican border this spring and hike the 2,650 miles north to the Canadian border. 

Complete a sloppy first draft of a memoir of at least 50,000 words.

After I’ve completed the draft, I give myself permission to abandon the project. The first draft will be embarrassingly bad, which I’m told is normal. If I choose to proceed with the book, I’ll make it better in subsequent drafts. With these caveats in place, the task feels less scary.

Correct lower body muscle imbalances.

I believe a lot of my foot pain is related to a muscle imbalance in my hamstrings, glutes, and quads. With at least one more long hike in my near future, I want to make sure I’m doing everything I can to be in tip top shape. I’ve adapted my usual work out routine to focus on this. My hope is that this will reduce my foot pain on the trail. 

Kayak from Maryland to North Carolina.

I can paddle through all of Virginia by following the barrier islands down the Eastern Shore, then kayaking the Lynnhaven River to the Intracoastal Waterway. I plan to paddle these 150 miles in 10-20 mile sections, little by little.

Write 50 blog posts.

I published 47 in 2023, so 50 should be very achievable, roughly one per week. I also have recently been invited to blog for theTrek.co, which is an opportunity to expand my readership. This mini-retirement blog isn’t going anywhere, but all of my trail-related content will also be posted to the Trek.

Journal every day.

Even if just a sentence or two.

Create 50 tangible things.

What has emerged in these past few months, my off season from hiking, is a urge to develop my creativity. I find myself gravitating toward creativity-oriented goals this year. I already have several goals about writing (memoir, blog, journaling), so I wanted to include something more physical. Tangible objects ground me in the physical world. I’m counting everything except food. Small crafts, signs for the community garden, a new garden bed, Christmas ornaments, little drawings, etc. 

Memorize 2 poems.

I think this will be a good project for thru-hiking. It’s something I can do while hiking, when my brain is bored and my body is tired. I actually have always hated poetry; it seems so pretentious and fussy. I should give it a chance though. Maybe I’ll learn to appreciate it a little more.

Read 28 books.

I read 20 in 2022, and 24 in 2023. I think I can do a few more. 

Post my progress.

Halfway through the year I’ll post my progress and any updates to these resolutions. At the end of the year I’ll post the final results.