10 Blogging Goals for 2017 + a Few Bucket~List Items

Hi there on the first Monday of 2017. I hope that everyone had a wonderful New Year’s Eve and Day. We had a lovely dinner at home after a full day spent taking down Christmas decorations. We continued the un~decorating on New Year’s Day. The ornaments and lights are now off the tree, my Dicken’s Village is packed away, the Santas, snowmen, and elves have been put to bed for another year. We still have garland to be boxed and Sweet Shark has to remove the tree from the breakfast room. Then it’s cleaning, sweeping and dusting before putting the house back to pre~Christmas decor. Hopefully, by this evening, we will be completely finished. Then I can totally focus on my 10 blogging goals for 2017 + a few personal bucket~list items. I’ve been thing about these goals for several weeks. So I’m sharing with you because then they are official and I can’t go back on them. Keep me honest, friends.

Last week I shared my 10 Reflections on the End of 2016.

10 Blogging Goals for 2017

1. As I mentioned in my reflections post, I met my 2016 page views goal in August. For 2017, my goal is to double my year end number for 2016.

2. Pinterest ~ I love this search engine and I plan to triple my 2016 engagement and followers. Follow me, anyone?

3. Instagram ~ I finally learned how to use this image social media platform in 2016. I love the photography, the engagement with others and seeing what other bloggers are doing. I plan to quadruple my followers in 2017.

4. Photography ~ I signed up for Beth Bryan’s Lightroom Course, The Lazy Girl’s Guide to Lightroom. I started the course over the holidays and absolutely love Beth’s instruction. I can’t recommend it enough. My goal in January is to finish the course and switch from PicMonkey (which I love) to Lightroom. You can check out Beth’s course and purchase it right here.

5. E~mail Marketing ~ I love the engagement with my subscribers every Friday with extra recipes and cooking information. My goal for 2017 is to double my number of 2016 subscribers. I’m still debating the switch to ConvertKit.

6. Work with a Brand ~ I’ll be working with Amy Howard at Home in 2017 and can’t wait to use her products and write about the results. And I will continue the relationship I started in 2016 with HomeRight since I love their products.

7. I’ll definitely be back at Haven in 2017. My biggest goal there is to meet many of the bloggers that I have met and worked with on 2016 blog hops. Lots of hugs to give. Haven is the best way to learn a huge amount of blogger information in a short time.

7. Here’s the big one ~ start making videos. I put this on my list for 2016 and it didn’t happen. I’ve made cooking videos before and I loved doing it, but a professional was doing the filming and editing. It’s the technology that has me hesitating. So, you all out there, hold me accountable and keep asking where are the videos?

9. Publish an E-Book ~ also a goal for 2016 that didn’t happen, but that’s O.K. So many other good things did. I’ve several ideas and I’ll just have to pick one. Because of my culinary background and over 12 years of teaching cooking classes, it will definitely have a food subject. Maybe some help, friends? If you could learn one cooking skill, what would it be?

10. Grow Your Inspired Design Link Party ~ Holly, Diane and I understand the value of hosting and love the fabulous way it introduces us to other bloggers, but it’s alot of work, so we may be looking for others to join us as hostesses in 2017. (Hint, hint.)

I’m printing this list and keeping it front and center in my new office. And speaking of new office (!!!), I’ll be sharing the construction, finish out and decorating over the next few weeks with a big reveal.

My Personal Bucket~List Items

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1. Finish setting up my office office by the end of this week.  It’s coming together just as I envisioned, but there are still some tweaks and organization decisions to make. I can’t wait to share it with you.

2. Learn to use the Cricut machine that I bought a few months ago. It’s still in the box and I really, really want to utilize all the fabulous craft possibilities it offers.

3. Work on my tennis game!!!

4. Make it to Scott’s Antique Show in Atlanta.

5. Read the decorating books that I bought last year: Patina Farm by Brooke Giannetti and Sarah Richardson’s At Home Sarah Style. Both books have beautiful photography and are full of tons of fabulous decorating ideas. Sarah’s book even has recipes!

6. Paint, paint, paint: I have a half dozen large projects, including 2 desks, a secretary, my palette in a box, and repainting my living room bookcase.

7. Cook more Southern foods ~ a regional cuisine that I started focusing on in 2016.

I think that’s enough on my plate for now. What are you goals? Travel, read, take up a new hobby, learn a new skill? Let’s work on our goals together. Ideas, input, recommendations, suggestions. I’m open to any and all.