2019 is in the books—Should old acquaintance be forgot and never thought upon?—and yesterday, I took a look back. I examined the good, the bad, and the ugly, and I hope you did too. But looking back is only part of the life-examined equation. The examined life sets benchmarks, goals for the new season.

Goals—what should they look like? I’m no productivity guru, but in my estimation, goals should be: 1) Concrete; 2) Measurable; and, 3) Actionable. For example, I’d like to read more, might be actionable, but it’s not concrete or measurable enough to create an achievable goal. On the other hand, I’d like to read Les Miserables this year (see below), is concrete (there is a specific book), measurable (did you finish it or not?), and actionable (pick up the damned book and start turning those pages!).

So, what are my goals for 2020?

Writing:

The Audacious: That each of you would order a copy of The Book of Waking Up and learn to reorder your affections under the Divine Love. What does that mean? Grab the book and find out.
The Difficult Doable: Write a brief piece here each day, excluding spring break, summer vacation, and the week before and after Christmas.
The Stretch(es): Edit a novel I wrote years ago; outline the final book of a non-fiction trilogy (Coming Clean, The Book of Waking, and The Book of [Can you Guess the Topic?]).

Faith:

The Audacious: With Amber, create a home of anchored spirituality, where we can invite family, friends, and neighbors once a month.
The Difficult Doable: To find my way to silent spaces of reflection (and adoration) once a week.
The Stretch: To notice, note, and reflect on moments of JOY in 2020 (even in the dumpster fire that’s sure to be our election season).

Family:

The Audacious: With Amber, create a family purpose statement that’s concrete and governs our decision making.
The Difficult Doable: Meet with my boys each Saturday over coffee to discuss spiritual (and life) practices that will guide them into adulthood.
The Stretch: Identify a go-to piece of property in the Buffalo River Valley where we can return year after year.

Business:

The Audacious, Difficult Doable, and Stretch: [A very concrete, measurable, and actionable goal set involving ideas, strategy, and a pro forma. This goal is not for public consumption.]

Reading:

The Audacious: Finish Victor Hugo’s classic, Les Miserables.
The Difficult Doable: Read two books a month and review each for my defunct newsletter, “The Thread.”
The Stretch: Compile a list of can’t-believe-I-missed-them classics to read in the next decade.

Examine Your Own 2020 Goals

Now it’s your turn. Grab your journal and get after it. Define your categories. (Maybe your categories include something other than Writing, for instance.) Then create concrete, measurable, actionable goals for your 2020. Review it throughout the year and mark your progress. Are you ready? Let’s go.

***TODAY’S TASK: ORDER AND FORWARD***

THE BOOK OF WAKING UP —a book on addiction, attachment, and the Divine Love—launches in just a few short weeks and IT’S TIME TO ORDER YOUR COPY. Today:

1. Order a copy or ten at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or wherever good books are sold; and,

2. Forward this post to a friend and ask them to read along.