Ok, so you know people preach that setting goals is the best way to move through life.  I’ve never thought of myself as a goal setter.  I really just think of myself as one that floats along like a water buoy and if someone bumps in a particular direction, I go that way, someone bigger comes along and bumps me and I change directions.

However, at the ripe age of 40, I think it is high time I set some goals.  I mean, I have lived 40 years and I can say that I have some accomplishments to show for those years but for some reason, I keep finding myself chatting with others and saying, “my goal is…..”. 

With that, I’m going to give you a few of my goals and my reason behind those goals (this could get to be a long list, don’t be surprised if it continues into another post…..:) )

In the immediate future (between now and the beginning of 2010):

1. Lost at least 15 pounds, I need to lost much more than that, but to say I am going to lose 80 pounds sounds pretty ridiculous and to be honest with you, over the course of the last 6 months while wearing this cast, I’ve not put much thought into losing weight because obviously I was non-weight bearing and couldn’t get a heck of a lot of activity.  I haven’t necessarily considered myself “on  diet” or even “watching my food intake” and I’ve lost 10 pounds.  Now given, it’s the same 10 pounds I’ve lost about 8 times in the last 2 years since i was diagnosed with diabetes and Hashimoto’s (thyroid dysfunction).  But, I haven’t even been getting on my scales because, hello, I had this big ol’ heavy cast on my leg and who in the heck wants to know how much you weight with all that added weight.  So, I am going to set my goal reasonable here and not be so lofty (trust me, I have some lofty goals going on too).
2. I am going to Blogher and I am going to come home with at least 25 new blogging friends.  Not acquaintances, not people I read their blog but never comment but people that I talked to, I learned from and I read their blogs and comment to them regularly.
3. I hope to attend Type A Momfluence, Blog World Expo and Izeafest.  Lofty, indeed.  Cam it happen?  Of course it can, will it?  I am planning on it.
4. I am going to work this virtual assistance position and I am going to succeed at writing good quality articles and doing good quality technical work (along with the help of Boy Genius)
5. I am launching a group blog and by the time 2010 rolls in, I hope that blog is receiving at least 10K hits a month.  That might not sound too lofty for most of you, but for me, that’s big.
6. I am going to launch my online education site.  I am going to construct e-books and do some online interactive training through vlogging and podcasts.  Now, reality tells me it will probably be one e-book, one vlog and one podcast but hey, that’s one more than I did last year.

Looking through to 2010:

1. I want to attend as many networking events as possible.
2. I want to find a sponsor for my efforts so that I have something concrete and I am not continuously begging everyone I know (and some I don’t) to help me out.
3. I have been writing TV Boyfriends for over 2 years and I have managed to connect with two of the men who I have featured at some time in the last few months.  One Googled himself, found my blog and emailed me.  The other I found his blog and commented and he has been DM’ing me through twitter  Pretty cool, would love more of that, it makes writing so much easier when I feel like I know someone.
4. I am going to move forward with the group blog and hopefully make a big enough impact that I can resign from a few blogs and concentrate my efforts in just 2 or 3 places instead of the 10 or 12 I handle now.
5. I am going to lose at least 30 pounds in 2010.  If I can lost 15 in half of this year, it only stands to reason I can lost 30 next year.  This has many motives, my own health being the move obvious but my kids are getting old enough now to know that mommy is over-weight and I don’t want them to think it is ok nor do I want to embarrass them at school functions.
6. I am going to move forward with e-books, vlogging and podcasts or maybe just e-learning in general.  By move forward I mean I am going to turn a profit in it, not just do it because I am a crazy woman.

All the time:

1. I want to make more time for my mother, my husband and my kids (and not necessarily in that order).
2. I want to teach my children instead of feeling like I only serve to discipline them.
3. I want to promote other bloggers more than I promote myself. 
4. I want to take more than one true vacation with my family per year. 

I’m sure there is a ton more….and there might be another post on the same subject.  But, for now, I’m desperately working on some of those goals for the rest of 2009 and if you miss me, shoot me an email and remind me to get myself over here and update the ol’ blog.  You can reach me at jareason (at) gmail (dot) com.