As mentioned before, my monthly balanced life goals are similar to the spokes of a wheel, with the length of each spoke representing my satisfaction in that area of my life, from 1 to 10, with 1 being most dissatisfied and 10 being most satisfied. Ideally, all the spokes are of equal length and the wheel will roll along smoothly. If the spokes are of unequal lengths, then, the resulting wheel will be lop-sided and wobbly. My ratings for each segment are shown within the parentheses, with the beginning of the month ratings in black and the end of the month ratings being shown in blue.
Monthly goals:
Spiritual (10)(10): The goal is to live a spiritually meaningful life:
- Continue with daily prayers, meditation, being grateful, positive, and joyful- Continue to cultivate non-attachment by being generous and giving to the extent I am able
I continued with my daily prayers, meditation, and being grateful; I continue to try being positive, generous, and joyful. I listened to some prayers online and to a discussion about the teachings of a Vietnamese monk who passed away quite recently (thanks to a friend who emailed me the link). I feel that I do live a spiritually meaningful life and I am very pleased with this area of my life! I will continue to keep the rating at 10.
March Spiritual goals will be the same as above.
House (8.5)(8.5): The goal is a home that is pleasant, comfortable, and welcoming:
- Clean - Clean the house as needed
- Organize - Continue to find a place for everything and keep everything in its place
- Well maintained - Keep "erasing the evidence"; implement daily and weekly cleaning schedules
- Decluttered - Continue with the decluttering process
- Clean - Clean the house as needed
- Organize - Continue to find a place for everything and keep everything in its place
- Well maintained - Keep "erasing the evidence"; implement daily and weekly cleaning schedules
- Decluttered - Continue with the decluttering process
The focus this month was keeping the place maintained. I have been keeping it maintained, although, I know there is room for improvement! I took one small baby step to improve one or two of the situations that I am "tolerating", which was a step in the right direction! Decluttering has gone well; I exceeded my goal of decluttering 28 items this month, although the majority of it was from the shed and garage! I am keeping my rating at 8.5.
March House goals will be the same as above, with the addition of cleaning out the garage. I am not sure if the garage should be considered part of the house or the garden as it is a detached garage. But, I will consider is as part of the house for cleaning purposes. I am planning to continue with the decluttering in March, too; the goal is at least 31 items; more if possible.
Garden (9.5)(7*): The goal is a garden that is productive, yet drought tolerant:
- Maintaining (water, fertilize, and weed)
- Focus on the winter vegetable and fruit plants
- Focus on the winter vegetable and fruit plants
- Figure out a trellis for the passionfruit vine and repot it in a larger container
- Clean out the garden shed
The garden continues to do well. The lemon trees and orange tree are still full of fruits, the peach tree is setting fruit, and I'm seeing a few flowers on the plum tree, too. I've continued to harvest peapods and I picked the broccoli florets. M decided to wait on transplanting the passionfruit vine until it is warmer.
The biggest achievement this month was cleaning out the shed! It was something that had been on my to do list for a long time and finally, it is done!
* I am revising my rating system for the garden! Cleaning out the shed would have raised the earlier rating to a 10 and I am not quite ready to raise it to 10 because there is still so much more to do! The front yard needs some additional landscaping even though, right now, the osteospermum plants in full flower are making up for it, the front parkway needs attention, and the side yard needs some attention, too.
March Garden goals will include:
- Maintaining (water, fertilize, and weed)
- Focus on the winter vegetable and fruit plants
- Focus on the winter vegetable and fruit plants
- Repot the passionfruit vine and set up a trellis for it
Daughter (10)(10): The goal is to continue to have a close relationship with her:
- Continue to enjoy the rest of the time together before she has to go back (not sure when, but, probably at the end of this month or beginning of February)
I have continued to enjoy having my daughter home with me. It looks like she will stay down here until the end of March, with returning to the office in person scheduled for the first week in April. I am keeping the rating at 10!
March Daughter goals will include:
- Celebrating her birthday
- Celebrating her birthday
- Continue to enjoy the rest of the time together before she has to go back
Family & Friends (10)(10): The goal is to have a close connection with family and friends:
- Regular phone calls and emails to check on them
- Visit friend A when her health permits
- Visit friend A when her health permits
I interacted with family and friends mainly through phone calls, emails, texts, etc. I declined another invitation to attend a family member's birthday party, but, I took gifts and went to see the family on the day before the party. I was able to have several curbside visits with friend R, too. I was finally able to visit friend A (and her mother, too, who is visiting from Sri Lanka) and I am very grateful that I was able to do so because A is back in hospital as I type this. I am keeping the rating at 10.
March Family and Friends goals will include:
- Regular phone calls and emails to check on them
- Wish those who are celebrating birthdays!
Community (10)(10): The goal is to be involved in my community:
- Continue to participate in the various community groups to the extent possible in the following ways:
- Participate in the blogging community
- Participate in the online organizing group
- Weekly phone calls with neighbor T
- Participate in temple events when safe to do so
- Participate in temple events when safe to do so
I participated in the blogging community and the online organizing group (to a lesser extent). I interacted with my neighbors, too, although I was unable to come to neighbor T's assistance when she fell recently. Neighbor S made sure that my daughter and I had plenty of delicious meals and treats throughout the month! I chose not to attend any Temple events, but, have spoken with the monks from time to time. I'm keeping the rating at 10.
March Community goals will be the same as above.
Finances (10)(10): The goal is financial security:
- Continue budgeting and spending mindfully, with purpose
I continued to budget and spend as mindfully as possible in February. I am keeping the rating at 10.
March Financial goals:
- Continue budgeting and spending mindfully, with purpose
- Do my taxes!
- Do my taxes!
Health & Well Being (8.5)(8.5): The goal is good health:
- Focus on continuing to improve my health through diet, hydration, etc.
- Go for my primary care physician appointment scheduled for later this month
- Go for my primary care physician appointment scheduled for later this month
My health goals are on-going. I went to the doctor's appointment, which went well, although I need to do some additional tests. My weight remained unchanged. I am keeping the satisfaction rating at 8.5.
March Health & Well Being goals:
- Focus on continuing to improve my health through diet, hydration, etc.
- Do the additional tests my doctor wants me to do
- Do the additional tests my doctor wants me to do
Time Management (7)(7): The goal is to spend my time in a mindful manner:
- Spend time purposefully, mindfully
- Spend time purposefully, mindfully
- Continue to focus on making my schedule work for me
- Procrastinate lessTime management is still a bit of a struggle for me as I still tend to procrastinate! I spend too much time on the computer, I think! I will keep the rating at 7.
March Time Management goals are the same as above.
Leisure/Crafts/Hobbies/Self-Care (10)(10): The goal is to relax doing something I enjoy doing for the pleasure of it.
- Continue with craft projects that are in progress
- Continue with craft projects that are in progress
- Participate in the Monthly Photo Challenge and the Winter Photo Scavenger Hunt
- Watch some videos with my daughter
- Watch some videos with my daughter
I continued with some of the craft projects that were in progress, but, I didn't finish many, other than a bit of card making. I participated in the Monthly Photo Challenge, and I need to take more photos for the WPSH. I didn't watch videos with my daughter, but, we both started doing word games online! I am keeping the rating at 10.
March Leisure/Crafts/Hobbies/Self-Care goals include:
- Continue with craft projects that are in progress
- Participate in the Monthly Photo Challenge and the Winter Photo Scavenger Hunt
- Watch some videos with my daughter
- Watch some videos with my daughter
February was a good month, overall. My ratings remained the same for the most part while the garden rating was readjusted. Health/Well Being and Time Management will continue to be the focus areas in March, too.
How was your February? Did you make any monthly goals for a more balanced life? What are your goals for March?
I am impressed! My vote is for the garage to be considered part of the house!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Anne. Yes, I think it makes more sense to consider the garage as part of the house, doesn't it?
DeleteYou're definitely on an even keel and cleaning out your shed was a big accomplishment and it looks great. I don't make monthly goals I'm afraid, I just take each day as it comes.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Eileen. Nothing wrong with not making monthly goals and taking each day as it comes. :) I do this little exercise because it keeps me from feeling I didn't accomplish much.
DeleteI count the garage as part of the garden, mainly because I keep all the gardening paraphernalia in there.
ReplyDeleteYou've had another good month and have been able to maintain your ratings. I can understand why you've reassessed your garden rating and it makes sense with all that you still want to achieve.
I'm focusing on my new 2022 goal, working to remove all the things I've been tolerating.
It makes sense to consider your garage as part of the garden since you have your gardening equipment there. My garage has become a storage room with space for the car!
DeleteYes, a review of the ratings becomes necessary from time to time, to more accurately reflect how I feel about each area of my life.
It sounds like you are on the right track with working on removing the things you've been tolerating. I have a lot of stuff I tolerate, too, and I am becoming more aware of it. But, I guess I have a very high tolerance level! :)
You are a really good example. Sending all good vibes for the coming month.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Lyssa. Good vibes are much needed and appreciated! :D
DeleteI look forward to updates on the cleaning out of the garage! I hope that A will soon be well enough to come out of hospital.
ReplyDeleteI'm treating March as a new start as February started to fall apart because I was tired after the family visit and the floor renovation and I goofed off a lot. I need to get on top of things before we get into maple syrup activities.
Thank you, Bushlady. The garage has become a clutter magnet! But, I will get it cleaned and organized before long.
DeleteYou had a very busy February. A new start in March sounds good - after all, it is a new month and every new month is a new start, isn't it? :)
I need improvement on procrastination and time on the computer, too. :)
ReplyDeleteBetween the blogs and online games, etc., I can easily spend the entire day on the computer! :D
DeleteYou are doing so well, Bless. It must be a great feeling to know you are reaching your monthly goals.
DeleteYou manage to achieve a good balance in your life, and I'm sure we are all guilty of procrastinating. :)
Thank you, Jules. I am happy with my progress, so far. I did dial down the goals when Covid restrictions continued for longer than originally thought, and I am still not ready to resume life as it was prior to Covid, but, I will be re-evaluating the goals over the next month or two to see if I need to readjust them back up. In the meantime, I am happy with the balance. :)
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