What are your goals for 2022?

[laterbloomer]

I want to lose about another 20 lbs, stop the leaks in my monthly spending, hit my retirement investment goal and use my camper a LOT next summer.

[Ava]

Well, I haven't even started my own list yet. With work and traveling for the holidays, I'm overwhelmed.

But I know some of my goals.

-Drink more water

-Drink more green tea

-Join the TOPS group I visited in November

-Improve my job performance

- Prioritize my social life

-Be on top of my health and medical appointments

- Pamper myself and upgrade my life, it's time. Things like having my 50s birthday in Uruguay and throw a party. Travel business class and have a transportation service to and from the airport.

-Work towards maxing catch-up contributions. I do the full contribution now but I turn 50 next year, so I need to start increasing the percentage of salary I put into retirement accounts. It is a huge let down for me, it's a sacrifice to max them, now I get even more room. I could not do it, but I started saving for retirement at 42 so I need to take advantage of this.

- Focus more on my physical appearance. I feel better when I take care of my skin, my nails, my brows, my clothes. Being home so much since March 2020, it's like I've let myself go.

-Start my cottage food business in February

And then the "perennials". I call them that because they are on my list every year; improve my eating habits and exercise more. I always fall short on those two. This year, though, I decided I'm going to get a nutritionist. 

I know my list looks huge, and it would be overwhelming for some. But having goals gives me direction and a sense of purpose. Otherwise, I flounder. I don't expect to accomplish everything, but I hope to get some of them done.

[laterbloomer]

bump

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

I'd like to be happier professional wise.  That's kinda nebulous but I've figured out the type of person I should reach out to for help.   

I'd like to move either out of biological sciences entirely or off the bench. I need someone to help me look at my resume/skills and see what other options there are for me outside of lab technician. 

Then help me craft a resume so I don't sound like a dumbass.  Advertising my soft/non tech skills is not something that comes naturally to me.

I also want to develop skills to recognize a place is toxic before I am in over my head.  I am so tired of this pattern I get myself into.  It's not my fault per se it's how I am wired. However it's high time that I learn mechanisms to get me away from the situation before it's too late.  It shouldn't have to be explosively toxic before I catch on.

[Opti]

I'll come up with goals in the lunar New Year in February. For now, most of my goals are short term. Have NJ finally approve my unemployment. Successfully make it through the SNAP application this time. Apply for heating assistance. Get a job, apply for jobs. Get a combo that pays all my bills and ideally allows me to replace my car.

Develop better routines for when I am not working a regular FT job.
Walk enough to get my Covid and Trump stress weight off.

[Deleted]

I would like to learn how to address issues correctly without being a biotch, or feeling like one because I didn't see doormat on my forehead in the mirror.  It's a narrow path for me I guess

[Deleted]

First, I want to just survive.

I’m inclined to say I want to make as much money in 2022 as I can, without harming myself. I have not chased money in over 15 years, so pray for me, please.


I will try to figure out savings goals over the next few days.

I also need to figure out my life.

When I do “figure out my life”, I know there’s a good chance that money will be involved, one way or another. So making sure my money is right for whatever, is all I can come up with while I figure out the rest.

So, my biggest goal for 2022 so far, after surviving….. is make money.

[teen persuasion]

I'm not one to make goals for the year, usually. But I definitely need to work on decluttering the house in the near future.

This is a more long term set of goals, but they also revolve around the house - getting us off carbon based fuels. So every year or so we do a project to shift us to electric, and culminate with then adding an energy generation system sized for the electric load we'd have then. We want to get an electric car (no more gasoline), switch to geothermal heat/hot water, swap propane stove for electric, add solar panels (possibly wind turbine), add battery power storage. Along the way we'll need to insulate better, seal better, replace old stuff.

[resolution]

1. Reglaze all the windows in the house and install storm windows before next winter. We are paying an absurd amount for heat, and the windows are making a large contribution to that.
A stretch goal is to insulate between the floors/ceilings of each floor in the house.

2. Edit some of the videos hubby is recording of himself working on the house.

3. Develop some ideas on how to spend my time once I retire.

[minnesotapaintlady]

I am only good at sticking to financial goals and I've raised the bar on savings ever single year the past 15 years.  I think I've kind of maxed out what I can do with my income there...or I just don't care as much anymore because I'm not running out to change my allocations.  I need to make more, but I don't want to work more.     This year might just be a repeat of 2021 with everything there. 

No goals for the house except to declutter.  I am very content with everything and want for very little. Nothing bothers me enough to make it a goal to get taken care of/replaced.  I really should have someone look at the rotting siding to see how desperate it's getting and I want to dig out the one back window to see why it's leaking so much cold air under the sill.  I think all the flooding have destroyed the insulation between the foundation and the window.

I'm also hoping to get the boys on another road trip next summer, but if they didn't just throw out his jury duty older son will be on call June/July/August.  He also wants to take an online class and work fulltime at an actual job and not DoorDash, so it might be tough working around his schedule.  
 

[Lizard Queen]

I maxed-maxed my 401k for the first time in this year, and our NW is $967k. Hopefully, hit $1M next year, go on a nice vacation and finish up our remodeling projects. I turn 50 next year, so not sure how it will go with maxing with the extra. We'll see. Gotta lose weight, all the usual stuff.

[jeffreymo]

1. Buy a bigger house.
2. Expand my knowledge base at work.
3. Create value and make myself indispensable.
4. Obtain a certification.
5. Earn a significant salary increase or outside job offer

My wife did 2-5 last year so I know it’s possible.

[nittanycheme]

Dec 28, 2021 17:11:35 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

I'd like to be happier professional wise.  That's kinda nebulous but I've figured out the type of person I should reach out to for help.   

I'd like to move either out of biological sciences entirely or off the bench. I need someone to help me look at my resume/skills and see what other options there are for me outside of lab technician. 

Then help me craft a resume so I don't sound like a dumbass.  Advertising my soft/non tech skills is not something that comes naturally to me.

I also want to develop skills to recognize a place is toxic before I am in over my head.  I am so tired of this pattern I get myself into.  It's not my fault per se it's how I am wired. However it's high time that I learn mechanisms to get me away from the situation before it's too late.  It shouldn't have to be explosively toxic before I catch on.

I've been reading a really good site that provides at least some of that type of information, although not necessarily your other job options.  Although I go down rabbits holes of crazy stories quite a bit on that site.  Its askamanager.org  

I'm working on my 2022 goals.   Although staying alive is right up there.

[mamasita99]

Since we are moving in a month, I will be taking some time off of work until we figure out how long we will be living there. We just have to try it out and get a more realistic idea of what we are going to do long term. In the meantime:
1. Lose 10 stinking pounds.
-Change my food habits. I head to junk food when I am under stress or feeling miserable but I know better.
2. Learn something new professionally.
-Finish online data analysis certificate program.
3. Make my savings last since we will be overseas and I will be jobless for some time.

[minnesotapaintlady]

I bought a Family Emergency/Legacy file because my "If I Die" book in the cupboard was seriously outdated.  I may have wasted $30 on it because I could have done this all on my own for free and a lot of the stuff in there, while things I hadn't thought of, are things I probably wouldn't fill out anyhow. 

I have a goal of getting that all completed this year with copies on a USB drive and maybe doing a will, but I still can't get on board with needing one of those.

[Deleted]

Dec 30, 2021 9:31:57 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I have a goal of getting that all completed this year with copies on a USB drive and maybe doing a will, but I still can't get on board with needing one of those.

I highly recommend WillMaker if you have a fairly simple situation.  It does allow you to name guardians for minor children.  It leads you though an interview format and based on your answers it generates a will, which you then have to have signed and witnessed.   When I was married to the Ex I couldn't get him to see a lawyer and make one so we used WillMaker. I am NOT a lawyer but I worked summers in a law office when I was in college.  They did a lot of title and estate work so I knew what a standard will should look like and this looked OK to me.

I've got a USB drive and hard copies of my Will, Trust, Healthcare POA, etc. stored in a place that DS and DDIL know about.  The USB drive gets updated with my tax returns and brokerage statements every year-end.  

[giramomma]

Dec 30, 2021 9:31:57 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I bought a Family Emergency/Legacy file because my "If I Die" book in the cupboard was seriously outdated.  I may have wasted $30 on it because I could have done this all on my own for free and a lot of the stuff in there, while things I hadn't thought of, are things I probably wouldn't fill out anyhow. 

I have a goal of getting that all completed this year with copies on a USB drive and maybe doing a will, but I still can't get on board with needing one of those.

I would never wish that you come down with something.

It was nice for DH and I to quietly take 3 minutes on our own to know how much I'm worth if I die, and then move on because everything else was taken care of...wills, etc.

Trying to sort out wills, ontop of everything else would have driven me over the edge. I can't imagine trying to get a will done at any point in treatment, or on the heals of my dad passing away. Plus there are two of us to divide and conquer.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Dec 30, 2021 10:29:32 GMT -5 giramomma said:

Dec 30, 2021 9:31:57 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I bought a Family Emergency/Legacy file because my "If I Die" book in the cupboard was seriously outdated.  I may have wasted $30 on it because I could have done this all on my own for free and a lot of the stuff in there, while things I hadn't thought of, are things I probably wouldn't fill out anyhow. 

I have a goal of getting that all completed this year with copies on a USB drive and maybe doing a will, but I still can't get on board with needing one of those.

I would never wish that you come down with something.

It was nice for DH and I to quietly take 3 minutes on our own to know how much I'm worth if I die, and then move on because everything else was taken care of...wills, etc.

Trying to sort out wills, ontop of everything else would have driven me over the edge. I can't imagine trying to get a will done at any point in treatment, or on the heals of my dad passing away. Plus there are two of us to divide and conquer.

But what exactly do I need a will for?  I really don't understand.  If I die, Carrot goes to his dad.  Not necessarily something I would be thrilled with, but it's what would happen anyhow (which is why I can't die yet). 

Who gets my stuff?  All the accounts and life insurance have the kids listed as beneficiaries or POD.  Carrot is an issue as he's a minor, so I guess who guards his money until he's of age so his dad doesn't get that too, but that would be more of a trust thing.

[giramomma]

Dec 30, 2021 10:43:05 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Dec 30, 2021 10:29:32 GMT -5 giramomma said:

I would never wish that you come down with something.

It was nice for DH and I to quietly take 3 minutes on our own to know how much I'm worth if I die, and then move on because everything else was taken care of...wills, etc.

Trying to sort out wills, ontop of everything else would have driven me over the edge. I can't imagine trying to get a will done at any point in treatment, or on the heals of my dad passing away. Plus there are two of us to divide and conquer.

But what exactly do I need a will for?  I really don't understand.  If I die, Carrot goes to his dad.  Not necessarily something I would be thrilled with, but it's what would happen anyhow (which is why I can't die yet). 

Who gets my stuff?  All the accounts and life insurance have the kids listed as beneficiaries or POD.  Carrot is an issue as he's a minor, so I guess who guards his money until he's of age so his dad doesn't get that too, but that would be more of a trust thing.

All the stuff goes to your kids. But someone has to take care of all the paperwork that goes along with when a person dies. After seeing what my mom went through, there's no way I'd ask a young adult to do that. I'm not sure any of your exes can. So, if nothing else, I would have a will to appoint someone to deal with all of the paperwork. Say you go, and you have life insurance. Someone is going to have to mail in your death certificate (or a copy). Someone is going to have to monitor to ensure that you get the check or the deposit (if it's direct deposit, is the account set up?) Someone is going to have to work with SS to ensure that Carrot gets SS money. The list goes on and on.

So, I guess I'm saying, you need to appoint someone to ensure that your house is sold, that the right people have been notified that you have passed, and can deal with all of that.

As an aside, we also have separate folks looking over the money vs who would take the kids.

And also, I would want my wishes outlined and the type of funeral I want documented. Not because I think I'd go early. But because that's way too much to put on a young adult with a minor sibling. Unless your DS has the where with all to tell your mom no.

Again. There is no way DS could make funeral decisions for me in a year or two. He's also a mama's boy. Which doesn't help.

[azucena]

Our trust is set up not only to take care of the money while our kids are underage, but it also spaces out the distributions as we didn't want to hand them $1-2M at age 18.  Our trustee has a lot of leeway though as we trust his judgment.  The potential guardians weren't comfortable dealing with that amount of money though.

[minnesotapaintlady]

You ask either of my kids what to do for a funeral and they already know.  "Mom wants us to just bury her in the backyard, but since that's not legal, cremation and cheapest urn you got, thank you since we're just going to her out in the backyard later anyhow". 

[TheOtherMe]

I was advised when I bought my first house I needed a will.  I have had one ever since that time.  The current one looks nothing like that one.

My life and my wishes have changed over the years.  I review it yearly and have necessary changes made.  And I use a do it yourself will and get it notarized.

I changed it with the help of an attorney after dad died because I did not want to have a situation in my will like he had with his oldest daughter.

[giramomma]

Grief, death, loss does strange things to people.

Of course I will be dead, so the likelihood that I'll give a shit about what happens in the aftermath is 0.

But, I would like to spare others from potentially having a poor experience while they are also grieving me.  Given my kids' reaction when I told them I had cancer, I'm going to make the assumption that my death will not be a walk in the woods for them to process and deal with.

[jerseygirl]

Now it’s Jerseyguy who is beneficiary with our 3 adult kids after that
I’ve been thinking instead of 1/3 going to each of our kids to add in the 5 grandkids . So maybe 60% going to 3 kids (20% each with 30% to grands (6% each)
If kids get IRAs they will mostly be in higher tax brackets than grands. I’d prefer not to have so much go to government and keep more in family
Yet again wishing I had transferred more to Roth

[NastyWoman]

Dec 30, 2021 13:13:27 GMT -5 jerseygirl said:

Now it’s Jerseyguy who is beneficiary with our 3 adult kids after that
I’ve been thinking instead of 1/3 going to each of our kids to add in the 5 grandkids . So maybe 60% going to 3 kids (20% each with 30% to grands (6% each)
If kids get IRAs they will mostly be in higher tax brackets than grands. I’d prefer not to have so much go to government and keep more in family
Yet again wishing I had transferred more to Roth

I don't know the ages of your children but are you sure there won't be anymore grandkids? It would be horrible if there were an "oopsie" grandchild that would be cut out of your will just because s/he would arrive too late for you to include that baby

[jerseygirl]

Dec 30, 2021 13:22:23 GMT -5 NastyWoman said:

Dec 30, 2021 13:13:27 GMT -5 jerseygirl said:

Now it’s Jerseyguy who is beneficiary with our 3 adult kids after that
I’ve been thinking instead of 1/3 going to each of our kids to add in the 5 grandkids . So maybe 60% going to 3 kids (20% each with 30% to grands (6% each)
If kids get IRAs they will mostly be in higher tax brackets than grands. I’d prefer not to have so much go to government and keep more in family
Yet again wishing I had transferred more to Roth

I don't know the ages of your children but are you sure there won't be anymore grandkids? It would be horrible if there were an "oopsie" grandchild that would be cut out of your will just because s/he would arrive too late for you to include that baby

Yes need to account for that will need to ask attorney about that . Think term is per stipes. ODS and DIL have an embryo that they and all of us hope can be carried by a surrogate. They were ready to go when Covid hit and hoping to restart

[minnesotapaintlady]

Dec 30, 2021 11:21:22 GMT -5 azucena said:

Our trust is set up not only to take care of the money while our kids are underage, but it also spaces out the distributions as we didn't want to hand them $1-2M at age 18.  Our trustee has a lot of leeway though as we trust his judgment.  The potential guardians weren't comfortable dealing with that amount of money though.

My ex would be comfortable with being handed a million dollars which is what he could end up with if I died tomorrow and he was the one "handling" Carrot's take.  Not wanting him in charge of the money is really the only thing I care about enough to actually get a will. I'd rather he didn't get custody either, but that wouldn't happen.

How did you pick a trustee?  I can't think of anyone besides my parents and aunts and uncles that I could trust with that kind of money.  I love my siblings, but I don't think any of them are very well off financially. Not that I think they would ever intentionally mismanage funds, but I think it could be a source of stress for them.

Can you just have a law firm do it?

[azucena]

DHs best friend is someone I've actually known longer than he has, since childhood. They met as teens. He's a CPA and partner in an acctg firm so he was an easy choice.

[skeeter]

Dec 30, 2021 15:45:15 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Dec 30, 2021 11:21:22 GMT -5 azucena said:

Our trust is set up not only to take care of the money while our kids are underage, but it also spaces out the distributions as we didn't want to hand them $1-2M at age 18.  Our trustee has a lot of leeway though as we trust his judgment.  The potential guardians weren't comfortable dealing with that amount of money though.

My ex would be comfortable with being handed a million dollars which is what he could end up with if I died tomorrow and he was the one "handling" Carrot's take.  Not wanting him in charge of the money is really the only thing I care about enough to actually get a will. I'd rather he didn't get custody either, but that wouldn't happen.

How did you pick a trustee?  I can't think of anyone besides my parents and aunts and uncles that I could trust with that kind of money.  I love my siblings, but I don't think any of them are very well off financially. Not that I think they would ever intentionally mismanage funds, but I think it could be a source of stress for them.

Can you just have a law firm do it?

A bank's TRUST DEPT. would be a good choice in your case.  Of course, they would charge a fee for this service, but at least you'd know they are insured and your wishes would be carried out.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Ex 2.0's brother has his own successful law firm and is also Carrot's godfather.  No kids of his own and I really like him and his wife.  He's close with Ex 2.0 and the rest of that nut job family, but refused to represent him in our divorce or help him with custody stuff, so I think I could trust him to handle the funds...or his firm anyhow.  Maybe he'd give me a deal on setting up a trust if he was the trustee.