I hope all of you are having a nice holiday spending time with family and friends. This year is rapidly coming to a close and it’s a time when we’re all reflecting on our accomplishments, failures, and starting to put together our goals for 2013.
I feel like this year started off pretty slow, but once October arrived, the rest of the year was one big blur. Hopefully all of you had a productive year overall with lots of happy memories and progress on your finances. As Yakezie folks we all love paying off debt, creating new income streams, and building our savings after all!
It’s So Easy To Forget
I’ve been working on a couple year end related posts lately, including a summary of my 2012 highlights and failures, and it’s crazy how easy it is to forget and lose track of all the things that can happen in a twelve month period. I have to write everything down these days or I can’t remember what I need to do, or what I’ve already done. So it’s always a lot of fun when I get to pull out my list of action items and see how many things I actually completed. And it also gets me motivated to push through and knock off the things that I’ve been neglecting.
I feel like anytime it comes to budgeting, setting goals, and coming up with New Year’s resolutions, we need to write things down. I love blogging for this reason because it’s so easy to look back at my old posts and see what I was doing at various times of the year and keep track of things I’ve done and want to get complete like my bucket list ideas. I also try to log some of my travels that I take like my trip escaping the grind in Bruges, Belgium that I took earlier this year (I highly recommend it!). Otherwise it’s so easy to forget we actually did and what we wanted to get to but didn’t, and then we tend not to hold ourselves accountable.
It’s Time To Raise The Bar
I try to push myself a little further each year with larger financial goals, eliminating more of my weaknesses, and accomplishing more things. I still struggle with the speed that I’m able to accomplish things, especially writing, so I want to work harder at that in 2013. I traveled so much this year that I felt exhausted and distracted a lot, which really set me back on some of my goals, especially in this last quarter. I need to suck it up and just sit down and focus!
Plus after spending time with my little nieces and nephews this month, I also recognize that I really do have way more time now than I realize. I applaud all of you who are parents, especially to young children, because raising kids takes so much time, energy, and patience. And since I am currently kidless, I need to remind myself more often that I really don’t know what tired is yet! I really want to raise the bar on my productivity in 2013 and work harder to maximize the time I have, because I know my life will be even more hectic if/when I become a mom. It’s all about making the most of what you have in the moment and prioritizing the things that are most important each day.
Noteworthy Yakezie Network Posts You Might Have Missed
In closing, here are a few great reads across the Yakezie Network that caught my eye recently that I think you’ll enjoy.
Finding Hope In A Spaghetti Jar by Frugal Confessions. Amanda dives into the hard issue of homelessness, which is something I’ve had many emotions about myself. San Francisco has had a lot of problems with homelessness for all the years I’ve lived here, and they aren’t getting any better. We’ve all been approached by pan handlers on the streets and in our cars and it’s hard not to wonder how they got into their current situation, if they’re legitimately down on their luck or even faking it. Amanda has been spreading generous messages of hope and is a fabulous inspiration, especially in the spirit of the holidays.
How Does The Bottom 5th Of America Live? by Everything Finance. Tushar takes a look into what it is like living off of $10,000 a year and discusses ways to break free. I was shocked to find out that over 24 million households fall into this income bracket. That’s a lot of families struggling to get by living paycheck to paycheck and with the help of loans and government aid.
Dreams by LiveReal, Now. Jason gives us an inside look into the costs involved with boarding and owning horses. He’s been busy working towards making his wife’s dream of owning horses come true. I have a soft spot for horses myself and although my parents couldn’t afford horse back riding lessons for me as a kid, I was able to tag along with a friend of mine a time or two. Horses are incredible animals and if you’ve never had a chance to go horseback riding, I highly recommend it! Just don’t plan on going on a long hike the next day because your legs will be sore!
Produce No Waste: Adventures In Vermicomposting by 101 Centavos. 101C continues to showcase his impressive green thumb with his experience composting firsthand. Those of you with an keen interest in living a green life who don’t mind getting your hands dirty will get a kick out of this post. Plus you’ll get lots of helpful tips too.
Financial Advantages of Being Young by 20’$ Finances. Corey highlights the financial advantages of being a young adult today. A lot sure has changed since many of us graduated from college. I know I certainly wish I had the type of technology we have now when I graduated from college. It’s so much easier to start a business nowadays and I see more and more Gen Y’ers and Millennials embracing the entrepreneurial spirit and saving money living at home with their parents.
Why Are Americans Clueless About Canadians? asks Eddie at Finance Fox. Eddie is right in that I bet most Americans can’t name the Canadian Premier, but most Canadians know who Obama is!
What Would You Do If You Have No Car Payments? by Elle from Couple Money. Maybe use the “extra” money to go buy another car! Just kidding.
Bullshit Free Bride: Boiling It Down To The Essentials by NZMuse. It’s always interesting to hear stats about the average American wedding cost of $25,000. NZMuse looks forward to a wedding 1/5th the cost that’s small and cozy.
Memories – One of the best written Yakezie Writing Contest finalists ever. Makes you want to cherish your family and loved ones!
Happy Holidays And Happy New Year everyone!
What are some of your favorite moments from 2012? Did you do anything special for the holidays this year? Care to share one of your 2013 goals – are you raising the bar on yourself for next year?
Solid roundup. Funny, I’m totally with you how 2012 started off sorta slow, than it flew right by – but for me that started in like May. Thanks for the mention!!
Thanks Eddie. Hopefully 2013 will move slower overall for us both. I feel like it’s going to be a super fast Q1 though with a bunch of work projects I’ve got to get through. At least I don’t feel as bad working extra hours when it’s dark and rainy outside. I’d much rather have a light load in the summer months when we can actually enjoy the daylight/evening hours outside!
I want to say I am ready for 2013, just as I thought I was for 2012, but life will definitely bring a load of surprises no matter how prepared I am, so prepare my plans for 2012, but I am definitely open to surprises.
So true on the unexpected surprises. I had my fair share of those this year. We always like to think we won’t have to juggle more of those but life is unpredictable. We just have to do the best we can getting prepared.
Sydney, Personally, I’m trying to put one foot in front of the other, every day. Do something for others, and keep on track of my personal goals and objectives. Also trying to avoid worrying too much about what others do, it just gets in the way. Looks like you did a great job sith the link round up. Eddie, I am feeling a bit guilty.. but I do know your Prime Minister is Stephen Harper :).
I hear ya and sounds like you know what your limits are which is important. We can’t always get to do everything we’d like to each day but every little step counts. Hang in there Barb!
Definitely want to kick it up a notch next year. I came in at just under a quarter of my monetization goal. Should be easier in 2013 because I’m now more focused and have a better idea of what I’m doing.
Nice! I like your attitude and drive Edward. Yeah it’s nice when things get easier with time and experience. I remember earlier this year I was super stressed about all sorts of tax related stuff and even though I still dread all the work and the forms, things make a lot more sense now and it should get easier (assuming the government and California doesn’t change a ton of things over time).
I have no kids and suffer from the same lack of focus you do, so today I have posted my 2013 financial goals in hope of accountability and easy tracking! My main goal is to grow my net worth by 30%.
Nice Pauline! I don’t remember being so easily distracted five years ago. I don’t know if it’s me getting older, or just having more things running through my head that keep splitting my focus. Hopefully both of us will get better at focusing in 2013!
2012 flew by very quickly. I quit my corporate job and Baby RB40 kept me super busy ever since. I’m pretty sure 2013 will fly by as well. I’ll try to raise the bar, but it’s hard when you have a kid hanging around when you’re typing..
Yeah that’s exactly what I’m anticipating will happen to me if/when I have kids. I need to learn how to increase my efficiency and focus now while I can because I know having a little one around will make it really hard for me to get anything done since I have problems focusing when there are distractions around me.
Good post! I hadn’t really thought of how looking back at past blog posts can be helpful to remember where you’ve been. I am a big resolution maker, and I think there is great power in actually writing goals down. A few that are on every list include saving more, reducing debt, increasing my net worth every month, learning something new, one major home improvement, and trips with my kids. So far, so good. I get a lot of inspiration from the Yakezie community, and I appreciate you highlighting some of this year’s good articles!
Thanks! Sounds like you’ve got a solid start on your resolutions and I always get happy when I hear other people say they like to write goals down. I’m a big list person too, I have lists for all sorts of things. Partially because I have a bad memory, but also because it’s convenient to reference and keeps us accountable.
Buying another car with the cash saved?! -LOL! I hoping to increasing the quality of my posts for 2013. Doing the 5,000 word challenge over the last couple of weeks has gotten me to thinking about changing up my format a bit. We’ll see how it goes…
:) Nice job participating in the 5,000 word challenge! As far as writing goes for me, I want to improve on my speed. I’ve gotten a little better year over year, but I still feel like I over-edit and could be more efficient.
Life is busy with 2 kids, but I’m excited and fired up over 2013. As I am every year, fired up for the new year just before it starts. Already getting a head start with things now! Health, relationships, and finances…they all tie together in some way.
Nice Squirrelers! I get really excited too. There’s just something about the start of a new year that gets me all recharged and ready to tackle new things.
Ha, I actually saw this post in my reader but managed to overlook your link to me entirely till I saw the pingback in WP! Thanks muchly. Aside from pulling off a wedding and honeymoon, hoping to make some regular $ from blogging in 2013 without selling out (too much).
:) You’re welcome. I’m hoping to generate more affiliate income myself and continue building some passive income streams in 2013. I try to push myself a little farther each year with my savings goals and it’s so rewarding looking back each year and seeing how things grow.
Like many years, it flew by quickly! I am really looking forward to 2013 because 2012 was difficult physically. New teaching assignment twice is challenging too. At least my children are adults. My wife and I visited Bruges (Venice of northern Europe) a few years ago and really enjoyed it.
I hope 2013 pans out better for you too! And nice to hear you’re a fan of Bruges too. I love evening strolls there when the hustle and bustle is gone and the charm of the surroundings seem that much more enchanting. I’m so glad I made it there because I almost didn’t make it with my health scare.
This was a busy year for me in the real world (not the blogging world), where I live we were battling Super Storm Sandy and helping many people get their lives back to normal (including friends). I hope the next coming year will be both fun and fruiful for me and I promise to blog more than ever…
[…] always found this time of year to be invigorating, and welcome the challenge new goals and raising the bar. I used to be content being lazy and sitting around watching TV all the time, but the truth was I […]