2016 Archives - Michelle Amanda Wilson

The first day of a new year is such a refreshing time. I love the feeling of starting fresh, and it’s exciting to think about the year ahead! 2015 was a great year for me (it’s hard to not have a good year when it’s the year you got married), and I’m really thinking that 2016 will be even better! I’ve been thinking about some goals I want to set for the new year, and to keep myself accountable, I’ve been thinking of lettering my goals into some sort of poster that I can hang above my desk. Here’s what I want to accomplish in 2016:

Take More (Nice) Pictures

I feel like since the dawn of smartphone, people have been focusing on taking more pictures, and not on taking more good pictures. This year, I want to start taking more pictures with my nice DSLR, and I want to be taking pictures that document my life in the way I want to remember it. This means less pictures of meals and details and more pictures of experiences and memories.

Post Consistently

Since I’m still brand-new to the blogging game, I am going to set a goal for posting. I’m hoping to do 3 posts a week minimum, which means I’ll be devoting more of my free time to creating content and less time to netflix (which is probably good). I feel like it’s important for me to be involved in some sort of creative endeavor, especially once I finish school, since I think it may feel like I have little to accomplish after school is over.

Finish School + Start a Job

This will hopefully be a pretty easy goal to fulfill – I’m definitely planning on graduating in the spring – I should be good as long as I can get some sort of a job. It’s exciting to feel like I’m really moving onto the next stage in my life (since I got married before finishing college, it can feel a little weird to still be in school), and I’m looking forward to starting a career!

Travel Somewhere New

In 2016, I want to go somewhere I’ve never been before. Scott and I have been saving to take a vacation, and I’m hoping we can go someplace new. We’re both interested in visiting the Pacific Northwest, so if we can afford it, I think we will likely travel there!

Keep Learning

I think it can be all too easy to stop learning new things after school is done – especially things that aren’t directly useful to your job. I’m hoping to learn more about blogging and photography next year, especially the business side of things. I am also hoping to really dig in with the She Reads Truth Bible studies this year, which I think is a great thing to devote my learning time to!

Read One Book per Month

College has killed my love of reading – when you have to read over a hundred pages per week of scientific articles and textbooks, it can be difficult to want to read anything else. I have at least 12 books in our apartment that I’ve been wanting to read but haven’t yet, so I’m hoping to get to those this year!

What are your goals for 2016, and how are you going to make sure you meet those goals? Are you using a goal tracking worksheet or having an accountability partner? Let me know in the comments!

This post may contain affiliate links. If you choose to make a purchase, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you, and I only recommend products I love. Thanks for helping to support this blog!

2016 is coming up faster than I anticipated, and with a new year comes time to start a new planner. I love to keep my planner updated because it helps me feel productive, stay on track, and meet my goals (not to mention, it’s just very satisfying to cross things off). I’ve rounded up some of my favorite 2016 planners to get you started for the new year!

Daily Simplified Planner by Emily Ley
I love basically everything about this planner – if I didn’t already have one for 2016, this is the one I would probably buy. First of all, the gold pineapple print is so cute and clean. I also think the daily page layout is so nice – if you’re like me and want to write down everything you need to do each day, this one has ample space (there’s a whole page for every day!). Each day includes space for the day’s schedule, to-do, dinner plans, and notes, and the layout is simple and clean.

Passion Planner
The Passion Planner was developed to help people achieve their goals, and I think this planner is perfect for small business owners, or anyone who wants to create a better work/life balance (which is mostly everyone, I guess). It features dual work and personal to-do lists, space for weekly and daily goals, and even has space to write down good things that happen each week. Another favorite thing about this planner is that the weekly pages aren’t dated (you date them yourself), so if you’re like me and forget to write in your planner for a few weeks (or months), you don’t have to waste any pages – just continue with the current week.

Birch Floral Planner by Rifle Paper Co
This planner is just so beautiful – it could be totally blank inside and I would still want it. As with anything done by Rifle Paper Company, it’s gorgeous, and it also has pretty but clean monthly and daily layouts. The planner also includes space to write important dates each month and contact information.

Marbled 2016 Planner by A Beautiful Mess
This planner is perfect for anyone who wants a little bright and colorful inspiration every day. There are full pages of inspirational quotes and space to record your goals each season. The planner also has weekly and monthly layouts, is spiral bound, and closes with an elastic band to keep the pages neat and the planner shut.

2016 Kraft Planner by Sugar Paper
I love the week at a glance pages in this planner. There isn’t a ton of space for individual days, so this would be great for people who don’t like detailed daily to-do lists and instead like to focus more on the bigger picture. Each weekly page gives you space to record people to call and email, things to buy, a weekly goal, the week’s top three, and a to-do list for the week.

I’ve linked this post up here: