What are you going to do this year? We all know that 2020 had it’s challenges and many of us didn’t accomplish all we wanted to so what will you do in 2021?
Is there a place you want to visit, something you want to accomplish, or a habit you want to establish? What are you going to do this year?
I love making lists and setting goals all year long for each month and even each week, not just at new years.
I typically set some big goals for the new year and then each month I set smaller goals to help me accomplish those big goals.
Setting goals can sometimes be a challenge, it can be hard deciding what things we want to accomplish or change. It takes time to figure out what we want out of the new year or phase of our life.
There are a lot of different ways to set goals, some people like to pick a word of the year to keep the goals focused on a common goal. Others just make a list of things they want to do and still others like to do a sort of self-evaluation as they set goals.
Related Post: New Year, New Goals: 7 areas of your life to take a look at
Word of the Year Ideas
I know several people that like to pick a word or phrase for each year. I think this is a fun idea and a way to keep you focused on what you want to accomplish during the year.
Last year was the first year I picked a word for the year and I haven’t decided yet if it’s something I want to keep doing or not. I will be setting goals though!
There isn’t a specific list of words you can pick to set the theme for your year, it can be anything you want. Some of the words I have seen people use in the past are:
- Intentional
- Joy
- Present
- Simplify
- Work
- Focus
- Mindful
- Inspire
- Balance
- Gratitude
- Grow
- Adventure
- Learn
- Imagine
There are hundreds of other word options these are just a few that came to mind.
Last year my word for the year was work and throughout the year I focused on putting in the work to hit my goals. Even though I didn’t hit all of my goals this year I was a lot closer than I would have without setting goals.
20 Things to do in 2021
For 2021 I have decided to make a list of 20 things I want to do, see and accomplish this year. At the bottom of the post, you can get a fun free printable to write down the 20 things you want to do this year.
Today I wanted to share with you some ideas of things you could include on your list of 20 things to do this year. Some of these items are on my list for this year too!
1. Be Healthier
You could list Be Healthier as one of the 20 things on your list and then further detail what you want to do or you could pick just one or two areas of living healthier that you want to do this year.
A few simple ways to be healthier this year that you might want to try include:
- Drink More Water
- Eat Out Less
- Eat More Vegetables
- Exercise
- Lose Weight
Related Post: Get Fit with Amazon Prime Workouts
2. Travel More
Travel is taking up multiple spaces on my list. Last year even with all the crazy things that happened we were able to travel a little bit and I want to do even more traveling this year!
I have so many places I want to visit, it’s hard to decide which ones to try to visit this coming year. When writing your goals for the new year you can break up different places you want to visit or just have a general travel goal for the year!
Some fun Travel Ideas for 2021
- Visit someplace new
- Hike in a National Park
- Take a Family Road Trip
- Go on a Couples trip
- Spend Time at the Beach
- Explore More of your Hometown
3. Read More
Each year reading makes it onto my list of goals. Some years I have specific books I want to read throughout the year and other times I just set a number of books I want to read.
For several different reasons I personally love holding a book when I read it. When I can’t get to the library and it’s not in the budget to purchase the book I want to read Amazon Kindle Unlimited is a great way to have access to a ton of Kindle books. You can get a free trial here.
If you need ideas of some books to read this next year here are some good ones:
If reading isn’t really your thing, don’t worry you can still have the goal to read books this year. Audible is my husband’s favorite way to “read”. There are so many Audiobook options available on almost any topic you can think of. Get a free Audible trial to see if you like it here!
4. Start a Side Hustle
There are a lot of side hustles out there so you should be able to find something you will enjoy. There is everything from blogging to landscaping to delivering groceries.
5. Manage Screen Time
We have been working on finding a balance of screen time and screen-free time at our house. Somedays we do better than others and I am the mom that my kids get some screen time every day.
It’s about finding the balance that works for your family, so you’re all happy and enjoying life not just the screens.
6. Give Service
Another great goal idea is to give more service. This can be as simple as doing a little extra for a family member or taking dinner to a friend.
There are so many ways to serve our families and our communities, it doesn’t have to be complicated.
Here are just a few acts of kindness that you can easily incorporate into your day.
7. Make Family Memories
As the saying goes the days are long but the years are short. Make the days count by making memories together. Family time doesn’t have to be anything big, the important thing is intentionally spending time together.
Here is a free printable list of 100 easy ways to make memories as a family.,
8. Connect with Old Friends/Extended Family
Living across the country from all of our extended family can make it hard to stay connected. Keeping up those relationships takes time and work.
Next time you think of an old friend or a family member give them a call or send them a text. It’s a quick and easy way to connect with those we don’t see often.
9. Date Night
Date Night is something we have always struggled with making time for. Part of the reason is that we have moved a lot so I have a hard time finding baby sitters that I’m willing to leave my kids with.
This year it’s time to spend more time focused on our marriage. Even if we can’t go out on dates each week, we are going to find time for a date at home or going out each week.
Related Post: Adventure Together – Date Night In Box Review
10. Spend Time Outside
Spending more time outside was one of my goals for this past year and we rocked it until about October. I really want to get back into the habit of spending time outside each day. Even if it’s only a few minute’s time outside is a great reset for all of us.
If you’re not sure what to do outside I have a printable list of 101 outdoor family activities for the summer, a winter list will be getting published soon!
11. Keep a Journal
There are so many different ways to journal about and document your life. A traditional journal is great but there are a lot of fun and unique ways to remember life moments with photographs and video journals as well as written journals.
12. Get out of Debt
If you have debt of any kind this year is a great time to work on paying those off.
Paying of debt has been a goal we have been working on for a couple of years and last year we were finally able to finish paying off the last of our debt. Now we are working on saving up to purchase a home.
13. Save Money
Now is a great time to start saving for retirement, college, a vacation or any other expense that you know will be coming up in the next few months or years.
Even if you don’t have something specific you’re saving for cutting back and saving money is always a good idea. There are a lot of different money-saving challenges out there that might be fun to do for this year.
Related Post: Teaching Young Kids About Money
14. Budget
If you haven’t ever done a budget now is the time to start. Budgeting allows you to take control of your money and tell it what to do instead of having your money control you.
There are a lot of awesome budgeting resources out there and many of them are free!
15. Wake up Earlier
I’m not a morning person by nature but when I do get out of bed early I love how much I can get done in a day.
In the new year, one of my goals is to form the habit of getting up early each day so I’m not only getting up early every once in a while.
16. Learn a New Skill
Is there something that you think it would be fun to learn? Make a goal to learn that skill this year. There are so many things I still want to learn that it’s hard to pick just one.
A new skill could be something like knitting, sewing, cooking, or painting. It could also be a skill that would help you at work or it could be just about anything else you can think of.
17. Be Present
In our fast-paced world filled with so many distractions being present can be hard.
One way we try to be more present is by having set times without technology.
During mealtimes, we stay off our phones and have family conversations and discussions. Getting out in nature together is also a great way to unplug and be present with those we love.
18. Learn a New Language
I have always wanted to learn another language I even took 2 years of spanish in high school and 2 years of portuguese in college.
Yeah, I still don’t speak well at all and I can only understand a little bit. But that’s not stopping me Duo Lingo is my favorite way to continue working on learning new languages.
Duo Lingo free and I can do it instead of mindlessly scrolling social media when I’m on my phone.
19. Discover an Old or New Hobby
As adults, it’s easy to get busy with all the things we have going on and not spend time on our hobbies. Since having kids my hobbies other than blogging have been put on the back burner.
This next year I’m going to change that. Two of my favorite hobbies, when I was younger, were sewing and reading.
This next year I want to sew at least once a month and involve the kids with some projects and I want to spend more time reading books for myself not just picture books.
20. Get Organized
Getting organized is always something I’me working on. I feel like once I get one area organized another one needs help. While keeping things organized is a continual process the more organized things are the easier it is to keep them organized.
One of my favorite parts of organizing is getting rid of the junk we collect and keeping just the things we will actually use. It’s always so nice to get into a closet or drawer and see everything neatly put away.
Getting organized goes beyond just organizing the stuff it’s being able to keep track of schedules, events and all the little details.
A few years ago and houses ago I made a command center and it was a game-changer for our family. The double calendar is a must! Find out how to create a command center for your family here.
Free Printable
Click the link below to download your free printable sheet of 20 Things to do in 2021. This year I have created 2 different color options. A pink list or a blue list.
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