Over the past 10 years, I have completed two sets of 5 year goals, once from 2009 and once form 2014. For the first set of goals, I completely nailed it. In the second set, not so much. And yet the last five years have been momentous for me. In particular, I consciously changed those goals in 2015 when presented with a new opportunity. When speaking with a textbook publisher, they provided me with the opportunity to write my own textbook in e-commerce. Doing this necessarily entailed a change in focus of my work. However, it allowed me to accomplish the one 5 year goal that best aligned with my Central Purpose in Life.

Lessons

1. Don’t let your 5 year goals get in the way of new opportunities, if those opportunities align with your CPL.
2. Choose goals that allow you to take advantage of opportunities
3. Choose goals for all aspects of your life

New goals

1. Career: Promotion to full professor and write a new textbook.
There are many things I could pursue career wise over the next few years. All of them could align with my CPL. However, the one thing that will give me the most flexibility is getting promoted to full professor and all that is entailed for me to get there. Whether writing more textbooks, going into administration, or becoming a consultant, attaining full professor status will help me gain credibility and perspective.

But I also want to write another textbook. More on that will come later, though. 😉

2. Finance: Increase savings rate to 25% of income, without sacrificing our standard of living.
The key here is to increase our income. As we increase income, I can put more, ever increasing percentage of that income into some sort of investment or savings vehicle. Ideally this rate will accelerate as investment income gets reinvested, causing compound growth.

3. Spiritual: Plan a major new family adventure every year
I’m not a religious man, but I do need spiritual revitalization. For me, that’s taking adventures with my family. The last few years have been slower in that front due to all of us having more to do. But our trip to Russia/Belarus this past summer has made me realize just how great it can and should be. That’s not to say I won’t pursue other spiritually fulfilling stuff, but this is one that would have the biggest impact on my happiness long term. I want each new trip to have some theme or adventure that will make it memorable and meaningful.

4. Personal development: Improving writing speed 10% per year
I love the challenge of writing. In spite of this, writing has never been my strength. Whether this blog, textbooks, or research, my speed at writing is slow. Since writing is a big part of my career, it’s natural that I should want to do well at this. But this is one area where I need to quantify and actively work to improve. I’ve read several books and articles on how to write faster and better. Now it’s time to put it into action.

5. Health: To have the fitness level to race in three sprint distance triathlons (or multi-skill race) per year.
I struggled with this one, in part because I just couldn’t get excited enough about any goal that could sustain me for 5 years. I know health is important and its certainly something I want to maintain. But where’s the excitement? I also didn’t want to pick some arbitrary or unrealistic goal. So why three sprint tri’s? First, I picked tri’s because they require an all around fitness level. Second, I’ve done tri’s before and enjoy the challenge. Third, by selecting three different races means I’ll have to travel to get there. That’s something that could make this enjoyable. Also, multiple races will mean I’ll have to maintain healthy eating habits so I can race more often.

So there you have it. From my lessons learned, I’ve picked five new five-year-goals.