I’m just over halfway through 2017, and I wanted to revisit my goals for the year. Let’s see how I’m doing.

Minimalize (now)#

COMPLETE

Got rid of a ton of stuff across the board, sending carloads of things to St. Vincent de Paul. Gave away my big desk and started using a drawer-less table, forcing me to only keep essentials. I sold my treasured foosball table. I cut my wardrobe down drastically.

There’s still work to do. I could definitely get rid of some shoes. There are some decorations and furniture in storage that I’ll probably never use. I need to get my motorcycle running and sell it… even though I swore to myself I never would. But even if I don’t do these things, I’m good with how far I made it.

Start a Business (soon)#

STRUGGLING

For months I’ve pursued buying a multi-family property in the Greater Cincinnati area pretty feverishly. Listened to TONS of Bigger Pockets Podcast episodes to learn the ropes. Came up with a system for property valuations. Seen plenty of properties on and off the market.

Heres the thing: Everything is too expensive right now.

So I can’t find properties that meet my investment standards. I thought I had found one, until the property inspection revealed that the home needed about $10K in serious repairs. The owner was unwilling to fix this stuff from his pocket, killing the deal for me. So I walked away.

I’ve learned quite a few things, I’m just unsure if real estate is going to work out for me. I have some other things in the works, but I’m starting to feel skeptical I’ll achieve this goal.

Routine Reading (once a month)#

ON TRACK

Reading an actual book in bed is basically impossible now that I live with an infant. But since listening to national news is basically unbearable with Trump in The White House, I’ve been crushing audio books for the past month. I listen on my commute, which gives me about an hour a day of listening.

I’ve read/listened to 6 books in 6 months, so I’m on par. Click the image to track my progress at Goodreads.

Take Better Photos (once a week)#

FAILING

I signed up for the Dogwood52 Challenge, and I’m failing miserably.

If I average 1.6 photos a week I can catch up, but since I’m averaging about 0.5 photos a week, I’m not feeling good about this one.

Walk Oliver (once a day)

ON TRACK

Most nights after dinner I have a little alone time when Lauren goes to bed early. Finn finally got big enough to fit in the Baby Bjorn carrier, so I’ve been enjoying short walks around the neighborhood with him and Oliver.

Everyone’s happy, but it’ll get harder once it gets colder outside.