2018- End of Year Goals Update

Before I go into the specific goals, I would just like to quickly talk about my impressions of my 2018. I think overall, it has been a good year but not without a quarter or two of high stress. I know I could not meet all that I had set out to achieve in the beginning  of the year. After some reflection, I realise this is mainly due to how I chose to manage my time. I was working longer hours in the last 2 quarters of the year and ended up feeling too tired to work on anything else and also there have been some changes in my priorities. Professionally, I think it was a year of a lot of learning which helped me grow not only as a professional but also in my personal life. Though I may not have managed to achieve what I set out to do but I think I could achieve other things which I did not plan in the beginning of the year. So, I think I just replaced the activities in the time set out for working on my goals with other activities which were also quite important for my growth. I set goals to be a better version of myself and challenge myself to get out of my comfort zone. I think I have achieved this for sure.

Health: Keep up my daily exercise routine and ensure that I work-out atleast 5 days a week. Eat healthy meals every day- monthly once cheat day would be allowed. I would also go to bed at a pre-defined time and wake up everyday at the same time
Year end update: I started this year pretty strong, lost track somewhere in between but I did come back again pretty strong. I can still improve the number of hours that I put in but it is definitely much better than last year.

Sharpening My Culinary Skills: I have decided to not just cook regular homely meals but push myself to prepare more gourmet dishes. I have made some in 2017 as well but would like to take things to another level. I have decided to cook 10 gourmet savoury dishes and 10 gourmet sweet dishes in the year. I will be scheduling this in my monthly planner. It will take an effort to get the recipes and ingredients together. It is a little ambitious but I will do my best.

Year end Update: I started the actual work on this only in Q3 of the year and put an abrupt end to it half way through. However, when I now look back, I think I have exceeded my expectations compared to what I set out to do. When I look back, I did prepare over 10 gourmet dishes in each category. Also, the idea was to sharpen my culinary abilities which I have done, not only by preparing the dishes but also by pushing myself with respect to time. If you remember my mid-year update, I had mentioned, "In a span of 1 hour in the morning, I had to prepare an elaborate breakfast and a 3-4 course lunch for 3 whole months. I was amazed to find myself in the thick of planning and also rapid execution." I think, I should not ignore this dimension of my culinary ability.

Blogging: I have decided to blog once a week in 2018. I do not want to blog sporadically but keep to a schedule. I have been inspired by Mr. Vinod Ekbote who has been blogging for the last 10 years and has been posting every Friday on his blog without fail- click here to check out the blog. I just think I need to set time aside for it and do it every week. I have a diary that is full of things that I would like to put up on my blog but due to several reasons have not been able to do so. However, I am determined to do it in 2018.

Year end Update: I was hoping to have 52 blogs by today but that is not to be, unfortunately. I have been writing regularly but have not been able to publish many. I am happy that I am at least making the effort. I hope to be able to publish some today. I took 2 big breaks this year for travelling and I disconnected myself almost completely from the internet and I enjoyed myself thoroughly through these breaks. I do not regret not publishing all my writing. I also have been reading a bit about how people with full time jobs and working long hours manage to stick to a blogging routine. I have found some useful tips and hope to implement some of them in 2019.

Watercolour Art: I am enjoying learning watercolour art from various online resources. I would make at least 10 proper watercolour paintings in 2018. It just must be scheduled in my monthly planner.

Year end Update: I had mentioned in my mid-year that I have not focussed a lot. This is work in progress and I think I should be able to achieve it tonight :-)

Writing: in my journal everyday and at least one page a day. The goal I had in 2017 was to finish writing on all pages of the journal, which in the hindsight, did not make much sense. The goal for 2018 will not only ensure that I keep to my habit of writing, but also as a bonus, would help me finish writing on all the pages. I hope I will not get demotivated like 2017 and give up.

Year end Update: I have written consistently in the first half of the year but in the 3rd quarter, I just lost way. I must have written a couple of times and that is about it. I will be honest, I really did not focus on writing after mid-year. I really did not have anything to write about. I think, in 2019, I will focus on writing weekly probably. Daily, is quite unrealistic to be honest.

Reading: I have lowered the number of books to read in 2018 to 10. As you can see, there is a lot on my plate and I do not want to make the activity that I love so much to be one that induces stress. I would also like to read some good literature, and not just fun-light reading books. I think reading before bed works for me great and I think a good 15-30 minutes before bed would be great.

Year end Update: Though I have been on track and have been reading regularly and almost everyday, I was unable to finish all 10. This year though, for the very first time, I have read more non-fiction books compared to any of the previous years. I see that as a progress for myself as I always chose to read fiction. I have read non-fiction as well but I not anything like this year.

Travelling: It is my goal to travel to 5 different places in 2018. I better get started on my vacation planning soon.
Year end Update: I have definitely exceeded this goal this year. I took a vacation this year in August and went to several places in the UK and in my second vacation in December, I was able to go to my hometown in Mangalore, several places around it and also Goa :-)