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In a recent blog, I shared some of my highlights from 2024. As we enter a new year, I think it is important to try to set some goals and try to build off of the last year. I do not really love the idea of “Resolutions” because they often seem phony and overly drastic. For example, I don’t participate in “Dry January” or suddenly show up in the gym on January 1st. I try to maintain a good workout schedule, and though I could probably stand to drink a little bit less, taking a month off from alcohol for one month at the beginning of the year as if this will somehow influence future habits feels a little bit silly.
I think there is something to be said for setting small goals. Last year was an exceptional year for me in that a lot of “big” things happened – raising a baby, a new home, a new job, publishing a book, running a marathon, and so on. I do not think that success needs to be measured by any of these “big” moments. And when I lead teams, I often share similar advice: focus on your process and your daily habits much more so than the outcomes. You only have control over your inputs.
With that in mind, I want to be intentional about setting goals for 2025. The following goals are some of the most meaningful that come to mind.
5. Be more present
I recently learned that I struggle from some form of Attention Deficit Disorder. Fortunately I am highly productive and organized, but I do struggle to stay focused on one task for a prolonged period of time, and I get bored easily. I know that I spend way too much time on my phone and I need to get better about that. Largely, I just need to be capable of finding meaning in life’s smallest and most banal moments.
Why is this a priority now more than ever? Well, I have a one year old daughter, and time with her seems to be flying very quickly. I feel like it was yesterday that we took her home from the hospital, and yet, here she is, running around and babbling and kicking soccer balls around. I feel like if I blink, she will be a teenager.
We all lead busy lives and sometimes when I am watching my daughter Josie after work, I find myself still checking in to work emails and Slack communications instead of giving her my undivided attention. She is only going to become more and more aware of where my focus is, so now is the time to dial in.
What is the best way to achieve this? I’ve started trying to be a lot more intentional about meditating once every day, usually in the mornings. I am also looking to expand my mindfulness work with breathwork and some research on consciousness.
4. Do more reading
It may seem ironic given that I was an English major and I have published multiple books, but I sometimes struggle to read as much as I would like due to the aforementioned limitations around my attention span. But we live in unprecedented times. I say that because content is accessible in so many different forms now. I do a lot of running, for example, and typically listen to the same playlists over and over again. This time would be much more productively spent listening to Audiobooks. I am going to make it a goal to really hone in on leveraging my workouts to do more reading – about parenting, about my career, and about other things that interest me.
3. Less social media
It’s become too much of a habit to spend time endlessly scrolling through Twitter or Instagram. Though I am proud to have never adopted TikTok, I’m not sure it matters when you spend too much time on social media platforms.
Let’s face it: social media is designed to make you upset. And there have been a lot of things going on in the world for the last year that have made me plenty upset without needing to see specific peoples’ opinions on those issues. Less time on social media helps me achieve my first two goals of being present and doing more reading. In other words, I am trying to swap out toxic media for healthier media and spend my time more contentedly in the present moment.
In the past, the easiest way for me to do this has been to go on a “cleanse” of sorts where I delete these apps for a period of time. Surprisingly, these cleanses have been pretty easy to do. It goes to show you that you really do not need a lot of these platforms that everyone else seems to be using.
2. Build something
I enjoy creating things. I have written books, I have built online course material, and I have done a lot of talks and podcasts and so on and so forth. I enjoy sharing things with the world.
For a long time now, I have been intent on building something via the lens of my personal brand. I started out with a website several years ago and then this morphed into a blog and eventually a book and an online course. I intentionally choose to focus on my full-time job for obvious reasons – that should be my priority in my career. And I cannot stand the LinkedIn weenies who are sales leaders but who seem to spend 90% of their time bragging about themselves online or selling consulting services. I do not mix the two.
With that being said, I’d love to start working towards building something tied to my personal brand in my spare time. Specifically, I have found that early stage tech Founders are often really in the dark about how to perform a lot of basic Go-To-Market functions. I am thinking about building a community or content hub that can help startup founders to be self-reliant.
- Build an amazing team
I’m really proud of the great team I have helped to put together at allwhere thus far. It feels to me like the group I have helped to assemble truly cares about one another and is also quite talented and receptive to feedback and coaching. You cannot ask for anything more as a leader.
I believe 2025 is going to be a year of tremendous growth for the company. With that, I want to continue to build an amazing team. At the end of the day, the people you work with often make or break your personal experience in your professional life. I owe it to the amazing people on our team to surround them with more people who will support them but also push them to be the best versions of themselves.
1a. Take a real vacation
…and I would be remiss if I did not add this one. My wife and I have not had a real vacation since our daughter was born in November of 2023. Hopefully as the dust settles a bit, we can enjoy a real vacation together. She certainly deserves it!
Jeff Kirchick 