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I know this is a little late, but I finally had time to sit down and think. I wanted my goals this year to be important to me. Weight loss, health, and money are great, but I really wanted to think of my core values. With that in mind, here are my goals for 2012:
1) Take at least 2 solid vacations with Mr. BFS with as little work as possible.
Our current plan is to go to Las Vegas again this summer and to take another 7 day cruise sometime this year as well. Now that we both work as needed to keep the online business running as smoothly as possible, I figure we will need some time to just connect as a couple and not as coworkers. The cruise will be internet-free and Las Vegas will be internet-minimal.
2) Take at least one solid trip with our inner circle of friends.
A few of our close friends would like to take a trip together. I agree it would be a blast. Now we all have to make it happen. I don’t care where we go or what we do as long as we all get to hang out together. I would aim for more than one trip, but it is hard to coordinate a group trip so I will see what I can get out of them all.
3) Visit blogging buddies at least 3 times in 2012.
I already visited Suba in L.A. and had a blast. I owe Jesse (co-owner of some of my other blogs) a visit and will need to go back to Suba’s so we can hang with Kay Lynn from Bucksome Boomer way more. I am sure more buddies and opportunities will present themselves, but at least 3 visits a year to my closest friends online should be doable.
4) Stay healthy – Exercise 150 times.
I want to stay healthy for as long as possible. With that in mind, I am aiming to exercise at least 3 times every week. I know I will not hit that goal every time, so my overall annual goal is to be able to honestly say that I exercised 150 times or more in 2012. Racquetball, walking, dancing, etc. Solid exercise at least 150 times this year.
Hopefully this will also lead me to weighing 135-140 pounds by the end of the year (currently at 154), but that is secondary to me at this point. It would just be the icing on the cake.
I will attempt to check in with you about these 2012 goals in April, July, October, and at the very end of the year or the beginning of 2013.
What core goal(s) do you have for 2012? Not just the normal resolutions…what’s important to you to actually achieve this year?
The following is a guest post from YFS, the owner and author of Your Finances Simplified. He was born and raised in West Philadelphia and is now a financial adviser, IT contractor, landlord, and treasurer of a non-profit. He created his blog partly due to his desire to help people with their finances. Join YFS’s mailing list for straight forward easy to understand financial advice by clicking here.
Improving your credit score seems like it should be a fairly easy thing. Pay your bills on time, and you should have a good credit score, right? Well, that is not always the case. While it is always a good idea to pay your bills and to pay them on time, simply paying on time will not always guarantee a great credit score because other factors are involved.
I spent last weekend in Los Angeles, California hanging out with my close blogging buddy, Suba from Wealth Informatics, and meeting up with a bunch of other bloggers along the way. It ended up feeling like I was just hanging out with my friends back home – it was that relaxing and awesome.
Day 1 – Thursday
I didn’t land until past dinner time on Thursday. Suba picked me up at the airport and we headed home. I had been avoiding Indian food since college (I had some bad experiences, lol), but Suba had cooked and I was not going to be a douche. I learned four things:
1. I still don’t like curry…even the really mild type that Suba made just for my no-spice palate. Sorry Suba, I suck. 2. I love soy cheese with a tomato and onion broth. 3. I really love Nan (think Indian pita . . . → Read More: Hanging with Blogging Buddies – Just What I Needed
It’s been a while since I checked in on my older posts at How I Make Money Blogging, but I completely overlooked a question by The Financial Blogger in response to the rates I quoted in September 2011. I answered it at HIMMB, but figured that I have more readers here at BFS that could benefit too:
I’m curious to know what you define as prime location for text links and how many links did you actually sold at $80-150/month (not banner or widget, just link right?). I actually sell my links (on PR4 and 5) between $50-$75/month (paypal subscription) and I’m able to keep my advertising space full. However, I get several declines from advertisers telling me my rates are too low [I think he meant high]. This is why I’m curious about who did pay more than $100 for a link on a monthly basis. Do you have . . . → Read More: Please Don’t Sell Yourself Short
Yes, you read that right. Mr. BFS resigned from his position as a school librarian last week!!! Last Friday was his last day! Today is his first official day working with me at home!!! HOLY MOLY – WE ARE SMALL BUSINESS ALL THE WAY!!!
Building a Blog and a Business
This all became a possibility towards the end of last year. My client base was growing very quickly, my income doubled, and my work days were edging up from 8-10 hours a week day to 12-14 hours and big chunks of my weekends too.
For anyone who may have just started reading recently, up until July 2010, I was making about $35,000 a year in a cubicle position. I started BFS in February 2010 and I started my ad business, Crystal-For-Hire, in April 2011. By July 2011, my online income was surpassing my day job income and I quit to . . . → Read More: My Husband is Now WORKING FROM HOME WITH ME!!!
A re-habbed spendaholic, The Happy Homeowner began blogging as a way to stay accountable and to chronicle her quest for financial freedom. From paying off over $14,000 in credit card debt in one year to purchasing her own condo in the expensive Boston real estate market (on her own!), she shares her financial ramblings, musings, and fabulously frugal ideas here.
I have a confession to make: I used to be a complete financial disaster. Not only did I carry mountains of credit card debt (over $14K at one point), but I had no semblance of a budget, I had no idea where my money was going or how I was spending it, and I developed habits of sticking my head in the sand and shredding statements before even opening the envelopes.
The following is a guest post from W at Off-Road Finance that I was excited to receive since he had left so many good tips on Ellen’s post, Vegas on a Budget. Thank you for the inside perspective, W!
Long before I achieved blogsphere celebrity (yeah, right) teaching people how to trade over at Off-Road Finance, I was a semi-pro gambler. When most people walk into a casino and see a never-ending party fueled by poor financial decisions. I see an office where I can make money off other people’s poor financial decisions. And I used to spend a lot of time at the office, especially the Vegas casinos. I still vacation there a couple of times a year. There’s something really vital and alive about Las Vegas – I’ve heard it describes as the quintessential American city, both good and bad, and there’s some truth to that.
If your finances are getting on top of you consider a debt management plan to help
DISCLAIMER
I am not a professional or a financial advisor. BFS posts are informational opinions only. Please make your own financial decisions based on personal research or see a financial advisor.
Also, there are paid links on this site. There is no obligation on your part to purchase any products advertised on this website.
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