New Year New Goals

Reflecting on 2024 Goals and Setting New Milestones for 2025

As the year draws to a close, it's time to reflect on the goals I set for 2024. This exercise has helped me understand what I achieved, where I fell short, and, most importantly, how I grew. While I didn’t meet all my goals, the process of setting and working toward them taught me valuable lessons. Here’s a recap of my 2024 goals and their outcomes:

2024 Goals Met or Not?

1. Goal: Get 2 Promotions at Civil Air Patrol
   Outcome: I only got one promotion since I missed lots of meetings during summer travel and on returning still had my long hair for the first meeting on Blue Uniform. I do have all the criterion met now and should be getting promoted shortly. This experience taught me the importance of consistency and preparation.

2. Goal: Build Greater Appreciation for Reading (3 Books a Month)
   Outcome: I didn’t achieve this due to the fact I only limited my reading to the ones I needed to do in school. I realized I need to make time for reading outside of academic obligations and explore books that genuinely interest me.

3. Goal: Participate in STP 2024 and RSVP
   Outcome: Another missed goal due to travel schedule. My sister’s summer program at Cambridge took priority, and while I couldn’t participate in STP, I enjoyed traveling and exploring with my family.

4. Goal: Start High School with a Bang
   Outcome: This goal was a luck of the draw because I ended up at Interlake High School. My courses include IB Spanish II, Honors English, and AP Human Geography (HUG). Honors math wasn’t an option, so I’m doing Algebra II while prepping for AMC. This goal highlighted how flexibility and making the most of available opportunities matter.

5. Goal: Improve Writing by Focusing on Non-Math Subjects
   Outcome: I achieved this since I am taking Honors English and AP HUG, which require lots of writing. I’ve grown more confident in my ability to express ideas clearly and effectively.

6. Goal: Get More Organized (Fix Closet Every Saturday)
   Outcome: I achieved the goal but didn’t really clean it every weekend. I did two big rounds of cleanup and organizing and then just regular mindfulness helped me keep it nice and tidy. This taught me that consistency doesn’t have to be rigid—mindful maintenance works, too.

Lessons Learned

Although I didn’t meet all my goals, keeping them was beneficial and kept me in a growth mindset. I was mindful about my goals and continued to learn about external limitations and my own shortcomings. Keeping this practice alive, I want to now set 2025 goals, here we go:

Goals for 2025

1. Get 2 Promotions at Civil Air Patrol
   With a stronger plan for attending meetings and meeting criteria, I’m determined to achieve this.

2. Start a Twitch Channel for Daily Game Streams
   Combining my love for gaming with creativity, I’ll create and grow a Twitch channel.

3. Complete STP 2025 with a Group of Interlake Friends
   Travel permitting, I’ll plan better to ensure participation this time.

4. Kick Off Semester 2 with a Blast
   Semester 1 didn’t go my way academically as I ended up with two high B’s in quarter 1. I aim to make sure I keep my grades up and have all A’s

5. Get into a Summer Internship Program (SIP)
   I want to explore career-oriented experiences and excel in a meaningful SIP.

6. Post More Blogs
   My stretch goal is to write and post four blogs a month—one each week—to improve my writing and share my journey.

Reflecting on 2024 has shown me the value of setting goals, even when life throws unexpected challenges. For 2025, I’m building on these experiences with a renewed sense of purpose. Here’s to a year of growth, learning, and achievement!