Welcome to my second 2015 goals update! I set some goals that I want to focus on this year and I keep quarterly tract of them here. You can check out update 1 to see how I’ve been faring this year. I can’t believe that it’s been half of a year already! Where has the time gone?
As to be expected, I’m lagging in a couple of goals and doing well in a couple others.
1. Pay off my remaining private student loans
In my last post, I mentioned that my focus for the year is to pay off my two remaining private student loans. I started the year with $21,205 in private student loans (across two loans). I’m now at $14,137.25 which means I’ve paid off $7,068 in principal on my private loans since the beginning of the year! I paid off $3,722 in Q2 which is a slight improvement over what I contributed in Q1 ($3,346).
At this rate, I’ve only paid off 1/3 of the principal that I’m aiming to pay off this year. That seems like a tall order for the rest of the year, but I don’t want to call it yet due to the fact that I’m going to be receiving my bonus and stuff in September, plus I have one more 3-paycheck month. So jury’s still out!
2. Contribute 25% of my take home pay to savings and extra student loan payments
In an effort to make sure I’m staying on track with my savings goals, I am aiming to save 25% of my take home pay this year. This 25% is comprised of savings that go towards my emergency fund and my extra student loan payments.
For the year, I’m proud to say that I have a 33% savings rate, which happens to be exactly what it was at the end of March. I took advantage of May being a 3-paycheck month to pump a lot into my savings. In June, I pulled a bit out of my short-term savings to cover some of my additional expenses (like my wisdom teeth). I’m feeling pretty confident that I’m going to pull out of this year above 25% and hopefully in the 30% range of things.
3. Take at least 20 days of PTO
In an effort to improve my work-life fit, I decided to aim for taking 20 days of PTO off this year. So far, I have taken six days of PTO – 49.25 hours to be exact. I’m taking a vacation in September where I will be taking off 5 days, so I think I’m going to be pretty on track to reach this goal.
4. Be a backyard tourist in DC at least once a month
One of my goals for the year is to make a concentrated effort to get out and explore my new backyard. In April I didn’t do anything, in May we walked around the monuments when our friends Jen and Dan came to visit and also went to Georgetown for dinner, and in June Richard and I went on a couple of bike rides exploring Arlington.
5. Work out 200 times
In an effort to focus on my health and fitness, I decided to add a workout-focused goal. I didn’t articulate this goal until February, so I’m a little behind the game. Good thing there is plenty of time to catch up! As of today, I’ve worked out 72 times in 2015. I’m still not caught up and I just missed my quarterly goal by 5 workouts – I worked out 45 times in Q2 instead of 50 which would be on pace.
If you’re interested in a breakdown of how I’ve been working out: I’ve bouldered/rock climbed 28 times, ran 35 times, cycled 7 times, and lifted weights twice.
As you’ll notice, I added biking to the mix. I’ve started cycling on the weekend with Richard (when time and weather permits) and I’ve started to bike to work a couple of times per week. When I bike to work, I count that as one workout, despite the fact that I am biking in two discreet segments.
2015 Goals Update: Looking Good!
Overall, I’d say that things are looking good! It’s still too early to assess if I will or won’t achieve some of the goals, but I’m happy with the progress that I’m making so far. In 3 months, I’ll be back with another update.
How are you doing on your yearly goals?
