My 2021 Goals Review

This is my first goals review. I'm pretty nervous about writing this since it will show me the lack of effort put into 2021. In this post, I will rewrite the goals I had placed for myself in 2021 and comment on how I did, what I think I went wrong, and how to move forward.

Goals to achieve by Dec 25th 2021

1. I will reach 25% body fat (currently 57kg) How did I do? My body has not changed since; my current weight fluctuates between 57 to 58kg. I rarely do activities, and I didn't meal prep. I have a food tracker that I fill in non consistently, and when I look at it, I don't eat on a schedule. I tried intermittent fasting by skipping breakfast, but I just crave food even when I'm not hungry with no restrain on my part. When I see my workmate buying food from the cafeteria, I just want to buy some too. I only behave when eating when I am alone at work. This is also seen when I am with my partner, and we automatically decide to eat out because it's a habit of ours. Reasons: I didn't do well because I am an emotional and visual eater. I use food as a coping mechanism to deal with stress and anxiety. Having low body self-esteem doesn't help either. I eat food when I am alone. After all, I am thinking of ideas or daydreaming, which distracts me from hunger, whereas when I am with others, I want to eat because someone else is. When in hyper stress mode or anxiety, I eat more to feel better. The biggest struggle I find is something to stick to. I quickly get bored with diets and schedules; since I have no real dedication to something, it becomes easy to lose interest. I like to try different diets and can bounce from one thing to another or none, which hinders my goal. How to move forward from here: Looking at my behaviour above, the best solution is to relax and not be strict or self-punishing when it comes to food diets and just rely on making healthy choices. Doing anything severe will distract me and stress me out, triggering unhealthy eating. I am a somewhat spontaneous person; therefore, I will need flexibility, so having healthy snacks around the home or car is better. Also, finding something I truly believe in will help maintain the lifestyle, e.g. vegan, zero waste lifestyle.
   

2. I will finish a beginner level Japanese textbook (Genki 1 textbook) How did I do? I didn't finish the textbook; however, I am still practising since I have found that I am too lazy to sit down and study through a book. I have switched to audio learning as it lets me learn when I am doing something tedious or idling at work. In terms of the effectiveness of learning, I am not sure. Still, honestly, I am learning for fun and nothing serious. Due to the virus going around, it was clear I wasn't going to be overseas anytime soon. In terms of this goal, I would say that my growth in learning is equivalent to finishing the textbook, so I am pretty happy with the progress. Moving forward: I will continue to do what I have been doing in 2021 and into 2022. I wouldn't want to change anything at this moment since it's just a fun hobby, and it's something I do habitually.
   

3. I will be engaged before this year ends. Unfortunately, this didn't happen. As a female, I waited for my partner to do the deed, but it never came about. I did hint (not really a hint) to him about getting engaged but for some reason, he never said anything specific even when the topic comes up; he just facepalms or says nothing. As much as I want to be engaged, I also do not want to force it upon him, but it does give me anxiety when people ask me about it, and I get disappointed looks. How to move forward from this? I guess I just have to work on my self-esteem because, from my perspective, it looks like I only care about how people see me than the act of being engaged. I could also find ways to explain why I don't need to get engaged so that when people ask, it doesn't get me anxious but has a response that I am happy with.
   

4. I will make 5K per month consistently from my Etsy store. How did I do? This could have been very close to easy, but my store got shut down last year, and my level of confidence to get it back up is low, especially when I have to be more careful with my products since I don't want it to get closed again. My new store doesn't consistently generate a good amount of money. At the moment, it's just some money coming in here and there, unlike before when it was always making around 2-3k a month. Reason: My passion for it definitely has died because of the shutdown. My anxiety and stress level has taken over my life. It always requires quick fixes like binge eating, daydreaming, pleasure reading or wasting time watching Anime. Moving forward: I still want to continue with this since it is generating money, and it won't be hard to reach that goal than starting from scratch on another project. As much as I hate routine and schedules, I think it is essential to set one up for scaling the business. I am a big picture person, so I will plan from the big picture down to the details instead of starting from the details to the big picture. My plan will also not be strict because business is all about flexibility; however, I need to learn how to show up consistently every day so that I am at least moving forward and not at a standstill or backwards.
   

5. I will save 40K for either my wedding or the down payment on a property. How did I do? I am pretty close, but I didn't complete this goal, unfortunately. I would have achieved the goal, but I got distracted by cryptocurrency and stocks. I put some of my savings into these asset buildings because I had FOMO. If I added my assets to my savings, I would have reached my goal, but I didn't add my assets to the goal since it wouldn't be used as a down payment. Moving forward: I will continue to increase my capital for a down payment for a house, but I will be more strict since I want to get a place very soon, preferably within the next 3 months. I will budget my expenses and increase my income with my Etsy store.
   

6. I will buy an investment property. Goal not completed since it is not a goal I am pursuing anymore. I want to buy a house to live in and will worry about investment property later on. I plan to focus on stocks and other assets and use them to buy me an investment property.

Thanks for reading for those who found my site. I am blessed to be able to share my goals with you all. I will continue to do more of these as it also helps me ground myself. Merry belated Christmas and an early happy new year. Bring on 2022.