Goal #77 – Tracking Progress
One of the goals on my 101 Goals in 1001 Days list is to review my goals once a year. I love looking back to see the things I’ve accomplished and it also gives me a chance to see what kinds of new projects I’ll be working towards in the coming year.
Since I shared my 101 Goals on July 1 last year, I figured today was a good day to look back.
Here’s the list again so you can keep track of what I’ve accomplished:
101 Goals in 1001 Days: Green Blossom Edition
Completion date: Saturday, February 7, 2015
1. Launch blogsite (Check! You’re reading it :))
2. Blog twice a week for a year (52/52 – check! See the recap here)
3. Write inspiration posts for blog
4. Write FAQ’s for blogsite (Check! See it here)
5. Write a kick-ass ‘About Me’ section for blogsite (Check! See it here)
6. Enter a photo contest
7. Contact a local gallery about selling my work
8. Create a business card (Check! See it here and round two here)
9. Create a marketing postcard (Check! See our 2013 efforts here)
10. Consult with a lawyer to create a contract (check!)
11. Sign up for liability insurance (Check!)
12. Open a business bank account (Check! Read about the business process here)
13. Shoot a wedding as a second photographer (check! See the results here)
14. Purchase a full frame camera
15. Purchase a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens
16. Purchase a 70-200mm g/2.8 lens
17. Try out a new lighting technique
18. Photograph a wedding with my wife (check! See the partnership here)
19. Photograph a same-sex wedding (check! See the first one here)
20. Advertise in a publication geared for same-sex couples
21. Photograph a newborn baby
22. Get portraits taken of me
23. Attend a photography class/ workshop (Check! See the results here)
24. Attend a wedding photography class/ workshop
25. Purchase an iMac (Check!)
26. Purchase CS6 or Lightroom (Check!)
27. Join a photography organization
28. Subscribe to a photography magazine (Check! See which one I chose, here)
29. Subscribe to a wedding magazine
30. Attend a bridal show
31. Host a booth at a bridal show
32. Go to a photography conference
33. Photograph a gymnastics meet (Check! See the three 2013 meets here, here, and here!)
34. Photograph an elite gymnastics meet
35. Photograph a destination wedding
36. Eat a whole lobster
37. Have a wedding featured on Style Me Pretty
38. Buy a car (Check! See the new turbo here)
39. Buy a house
40. Have our first child
41. Give birth naturally
42. Have maternity photos taken
43. Hike the Grand Canyon
44. Go to Hawaii (check! See the fabulous trip here, here, here, and here)
45. Take my wife on a surprise vacation
46. Print gallery wrap canvases for our nursery
47. Photograph a boudoir shoot
48. Finish scrapbooking our wedding album (Check! See it here)
49. Complete 365 Day photo project (Check! See the recaps for September, October, November, December, January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, and the final review)
50. Have a 365 Day photo project party
51. Publish an ad in a local bridal magazine
52. Go to the 2015 gymnastics world championships
53. Purchase a monitor calibrator
54. Go to an equipment try-out at the Denver Zoo
55. Go to the Denver Museum of Science and Nature (check! See the Pompeii exhibit here)
56. Visit Mesa Verda (Check! See the amazing trip here and here)
57. Climb a 14,000 foot mountain
58. Cook every recipe in Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution cookbook (24/131) (See the progress here, here, here, here, and here)
59. Finish transferring my gymnastics VHS tapes to DVD (Check! A 5 year project is finished here)
60. Take voice lessons
61. Join a yoga and spinning studio (Check! Its a regular gym, but it counts!)
62. Join a volleyball league
63. Pay off our credit card debt
64. Buy a dresser (Check! See the DIY project here)
65. Complete the Red Rocks fitness challenge
66. Get a massage
67. Have a spa day with my mom
68. Buy a bike with a basket
69. Knit a blanket for our baby
70. Grow my own herbs
71. Print photographs for my wife’s office (Check! See them on location here.)
72. Attend a concert at Red Rocks (check! See and listen to some music here.)
73. Take a 3-day backpacking trip
74. Host a dinner party complete with stylish table decorations
75. Go on a business planning retreat
76. Create a cozy and inspiring office space
77. Evaluate 101 goals and progress throughout the year (check! 1 year review is here)
78. Photograph a stylized photo shoot for fun and experience (Check! See the fun creation here)
79. Visit a natural hot springs
80. Start figure modeling again
81. Learn off camera lighting set-up with wireless remote
82. Create a list of photography blogs I follow and check weekly (Check! See it here)
83. Introduce myself to photography bloggers I follow (Check! Read about it here)
84. Find photoshop plug-ins I like
85. Define my photographic style
86. Photograph a wedding at the Denver Botanic Gardens
87. Purchase a pair of Vibrum 5 fingers (check! See the new skeletoes here)
88. Run a 5K race in Vibrum 5 fingers
89. Visit the 4 corners (Check! See the magical location here)
90. Go on a wine tour
91. Have lunch with a local wedding photographer whose work I admire
92. Make monkey bread
93. Do a photoshoot with headpieces from Dani Hansen’s ‘From Sprout to Out’ collection
94. Go horseback riding
95. Print my own greeting cards as family Christmas gifts (Check! See them here)
96. Go on a 30-mile bike riding adventure
97. Purchase a case of Chenin Blanc from Goosecross Vineyards
98. Go apple picking
99. Make a dessert from a Martha Stewart recipe (Check! See it here)
100. Go on a 10 mile-run
101. Make my own ice cream
So, in the last 365 days I have accomplished…35 goals! whoohoo! That’s over a third of my list which is a very good track record for the first year. Click on the links above to see a photographic record of the goals I’ve accomplished.
Many of the goals on my list are photographic, which makes sense, since the business is still fairly new and there are many things to learn and do along the way. The photographic goal that I’m most proud of is the styled shoot that I put together with the help of some friends this past October. It felt like a huge achievement to be able to successfully coordinate the details and it was a great opportunity to practice shooting an amazing couple in carefully controlled conditions. I learned a lot that day about my shooting preferences and how to achieve the look I want. Some of my favorite images are from that session, and one image in particular has become the cornerstone of our 2013 marketing efforts. I’m stretching this goal out into the next year, because it will now be an annual goal to do at least one styled shoot per year.
Many of the other photographic goals involved business details, like upgrading our technology, creating our contract, or attending workshops and completing photography projects.
As for the other goals, we’ve had some amazing travel experiences, like our trips to Hawaii and Mesa Verde and we’ve documented some smaller goals like new running shoes and seeing an exhibit at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.
Perhaps one of the goals that just felt like a ‘dream come true’ was having the opportunity to photograph the Denver University Gymnastics team at three of their home meets this year. I’m hoping that goal can stretch into next year, too, because I’m dying to go back and do it again.
Looking ahead, I think there are about 25 or 26 goals that should definitely be achieved in the coming year, and 9 or 10 that could happen depending on how things shake out. I’m optimistic that I’ll be able to check off an additional 35 or so in the next 365 days. Such an exciting prospect!
Keep following to track my progress!
