I’ve been racing for a long time. My first OCR was back in 2010, and I knew I was hopelessly addicted as soon as I crossed that finish line covered in mud. I was much stronger then, and found most obstacles to be more fun than challenging. Over the years, I have gained and lost strength, done easy and hard events, run for time and run to help others, and looked for new ways to grow as a person.
As I began 2018, I had trouble defining my goals. I was pretty sure I wanted to focus on tougher more challenging events, but had not made any decisions. Usually, by Jan 1, I am already registered for over half my season, but this year, after The Huff on December 30th, I had 0 races on my schedule. I needed to set my goals so I would know which events I even wanted to do.
I decided to break my goals down into categories: Fitness, Race, Social, Family, Financial, Career and Personal Development. This helped me decide by areas of my life what I would like to focus on for 2018. I was finally able to start setting some general goals for 2018.
Fitness: One-armed handstand, unassisted pull-ups, ability to transition easily on balls/cones/rods, headstand, add yoga back in, work on flexibility, and do something new (paddle boarding).
Race: Do one new race (Bonefrog??), 8 hour Tough Mudder, qualify and race in NAOCRC, Spartan Ultra, 12 hour Suck, and the usual schedule of Savage, Spartan, Rugged Maniac, etc…
Social: Fitness journal daily entries, daily FB/Instagram posts, re-start my blog (check), and work toward additional ambassador/sponsorship opportunities.
Family: Grow Team Moo, connect with LegendBorne Squad members, and attend more Corn Fed events.
Financial: Do the Savings Challenge again this year – bump up dollar amount saved from last year, continue Wisebanyan and Acorns savings plans.
Career: Franchise Group was just purchased by a new franchise group – letting the smoke settle before I define my career goals. Stay positive, happy and try to love my job! Remember that I am helping people make better lives for themselves!!
Find an 2nd stream of income.
Personal Development: Learn something new. Take Project Management, Social Media and Marketing training classes.
I know these aren’t quite SMART goals yet (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely), but I needed to start somewhere.
It’s a new year, a fresh start, I’m healing from my shoulder injury and getting stronger and stronger every day. My 2018 goals are set with plenty of room to add to them as I progress through the year. I’m excited to see where 2018 will take me!