[Yearly Review] Part 3: goals for 2017

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

It's part three of my traditional end of year set of posts. I've done my review of 2016, and had a look at how well I did with my goals (lets not call them resolutions) for the year. This time around I'll be setting a new set of goals for the coming year.

After several years of poor success, 2016 saw an upturn in my completion rate for these goals. There was still a certain amount of over-ambition going on though I feel, so I'll be reining in some of the particularly unsuccessful categories a little in an effort to gain some more.

General

• Save a net £2000 (With a guaranteed £200 a month going into my Help-to-Buy ISA, this should be achievable if I don't overspend too much.)
• Keep my weight between 12st and 13st. (I'm pretty happy with my weight at the moment. It would be nice to convert a bit more to muscle, but it's not too bad.)
• Go swimming once per week for more than two-thirds of the year. (I managed half of the year easily, so I'm pushing myself further in 2017.)
• Swim 2km in a session at least once.  (I was a long way from making this one, but I'd like to keep it as a goal.)
• Swim a total of 50km or more throughout the year.  (This makes a grand total of three swimming goals, but I'm experimenting with different ways of motivating myself to do enough exercise.)
• Go on one or more cycle rides of at least 10miles.  (Same as above, it's an ideal that I'd like to meet.)
• Publish at least one blog post every two months, not including the end of year review posts. (I did manage a bit more blogging in 2016, but it was very much concentrated in the first half of the year. I'd like to spread it out more in 2017.)
• Buy a house. (Yes please!)
• Attend at least two Wasps matches.  (I already have one booked for next weekend, so I'd like to get to a second.)
• Attend at least two Blaze matches. (Again, I already have one in the diary so a second would be good.)
• See at least one play or musical in the West End.  (I'm opening this one up a little)
• Attend at least one BBC Prom (not counting Proms in the Park).   (I've really enjoyed the Proms that I've been to, and would like to continue attending them.)
• Drink no Coca Cola / Pepsi / equivalent cola-based drinks.  (Towards the end of 2016 I was starting to get worried about my teeth, so I decided to cut out these drinks, which are notoriously bad for teeth. This doesn't mean no soft drinks at all, but it should help.)
• Visit a Snowdome at least twice for skiing practice.  (I want to stay on top of my skiing to help the progress that I'm making actually stick!)

Work

• Publish at least two peer-reviewed papers (I thought I'd manage this in 2016. I didn't. But I feel as though this should be standard for my research each year)
• Attend at least one international-level conference. (A minor rewording to account for 'international' conferences that happen to take place in the UK.)
• Go on at least one observing run. (This goal is at the mercy of the TAC gods, but there are a couple of projects I'm involved in that could supply observing time)
• Arrive at work before 9:30 for more than half of the days I'm in the office.  (To encourage me to make it to the office at a 'sensible' hour!)
• Drive to work less than 1/3 of days I'm in the office.  (I failed this one in 2016, but would like to try and meet it this year.)

Reading

• Read 35 fiction books. (I want to increase the amount I read again)
• Read 5 non-fiction books. (In 2016 managed this for the first time in about five years. I'd like to keep it up)
• Buy fewer than ten physical books. (I have even less space than last year, so can't afford to fill it with books!)
• Read all of the books in my bedroom that I haven't read before (as of January 1st).  (I have two left, and I will finish them.)
• Read a total of 50 books. (Let's push myself this year)
• Read at least 5 full magazines from my pile.  (I really need to cut the pile down to size a bit!)

TV and film

• Watch one TV shows from my collection (that I haven't previously watched).
• Watch at least five complete seasons of TV shows (different or the same show)  (Increasing this one from the previous year)
• Watch at least one film from my collection (that I haven't previously watched).
• Watch more than 30 films (combined between cinema trips, home, film nights, etc.)

Wargaming

• Paint 10 models.  (I've reduced this one considerably to try and give encouragement rather than have it be a daunting task)
• Play at least one game of Warmachine / Hordes with a fully painted army.
• Build my WW2 tanks.
• Build my Battlestar Galactica Viper.
• Play at least one game of at least two different systems.
• Attend at least one event (excluding SmogCon)  (I've not been to any events for a while other than SmogCon, and I'd like to get back to that a little more as I miss them.)
• Acquire some more X-Wing models.
• Achieve a Warmachine/Hordes win rate of at least 50%

Board gaming

• Play at least fifteen new games.
• Acquire at least three new games.
• Achieve a win rate of at least 50%
• Play at least one game with my girlfriend.
• Play (or run) at least one RPG session.

Computer gaming

• Finish 1 game's single-player campaigns.  (I find myself with less gaming time, so I've reduced this one accordingly)

Lifesaving
I've really reduced this category for 2017, as I've found myself dropping away from lifesaving a bit

• Be Head Referee at one or more BULSCA competitions.
• Write one SERC.
• Volunteer at one or more RLSS event(s).

Lets see if I can increase my success rate a little further in 2017. Maybe I can make 50% completion!