2025 Goals And Resolutions: Back To A Simple Life

Happy New Year everyone! I dream you’re enjoying nan clip disconnected and doing immoderate reflecting. I’ve returned to San Francisco and americium fresh to relax immoderate more!

Now that I've shared my 2024 twelvemonth successful review, I wanted to stock my goals and resolutions for 2025. Although 2024 was a awesome year, I still person galore areas of improvement.

My taxable for 2024 was “One past twelvemonth of aggravated focus.” I wrote successful my 2024 goals post:

Fatigue has group in, reminiscent of 2011 erstwhile I pondered leaving finance banking for good. That burnout prompted a much-needed alteration of pace. Ironically, a time occupation is overmuch easier than being a stay-at-home parent!

Perhaps it's a mid-life situation astatine 46, wherever I consciousness my assemblage slowing down, and clip is slipping distant faster than ever. The urgency to maximize nan remaining years of robust wellness is palpable. I'm not judge really overmuch longer I tin support this pace, hence my theme.

I executed astir of my 2024 goals, but grounded to do nan following:

• Produce 36 podcasts (I only produced 30)
• Help my woman get a occupation (I couldn't because she didn't want one, truthful I went retired and sewage one)
• Write a caller lullaby for my girl aft penning Cutie Baby for my boy (forgot astir this one, but I still tin do it)

Theme for 2025: Return to Simple Living

I want to return to nan basics of surviving a simple, early status lifestyle. Sitting connected a formation successful Laie, Oahu, reflecting connected nan year, I was reminded of what a bully life intends to me: health, freedom, family, and friends. Riches, fame, aliases position weren’t apical of mind.

One of nan awesome things astir Hawaii is that each beaches are public. Even nan poorest personification tin bask nan aforesaid shoreline arsenic a billionaire pinch an oceanfront mansion. As I walked on nan formation astatine 8 a.m. successful December, wearing conscionable shorts, I thought astir really unthinkable it was to bask successful nan free warmth of nan sun.

Sharing nan acquisition pinch excited children dancing astir and a loving woman made it each nan much special. I didn’t request a batch of money to beryllium happy.

However, returning to a elemental life won’t travel without effort. To unrecorded by my taxable for 2025, my #1 extremity is nan following:

Main 2025 Goal: Remain Unemployed / Semi-Retired

After trying part-time consulting for 4 months, I realized really overmuch I dislike meetings, commuting, and being told what to do. While it was valuable to spot firsthand really difficult group successful nan startup world work, I’ve confirmed that it’s not nan correct fresh for maine astatine this shape successful my life.

The only measurement I'd return to activity is if I sewage an exceptional connection from a promising AI company, pinch important autonomy and tremendous upside. But I delegate only a 1% chance of that happening since unicorns aren't real. To get thing great, you've sewage to spell retired and return it.

With my liquidity backmost to comfortable levels, I’ve decided to extremity searching for employment altogether. Staying unemployed / semi-retired simplifies my life. The only meetings I’ll be are nan ones I choose—perhaps 1 aliases 2 calls a week astatine most.

Yes, earning a batch of money and gaining position successful society tin beryllium appealing. However, I’m wished to hit backmost these desires truthful I tin beryllium arsenic free arsenic possible. Without nan obligations of work, I’ll person much clip to write, play sports, exercise, and walk uninterrupted moments pinch my family.

Family Goals for 2025

Family will ever beryllium my apical privilege for arsenic agelong arsenic I live. Fatherhood, which began for maine successful 2017, is still a comparatively caller travel and nan astir challenging roles to navigate. I’m committed to doing my champion to foster a strong, patient narration pinch my children arsenic they grow.

I’ve travel to spot that immoderate of nan astir troubled group I’ve encountered knowledgeable above-average levels of childhood trauma, which includes neglect, affectional and beingness abuse, accidents, rancorous divorces, decease of a parent, and addiction. I cognize this because I’ve had nan privilege of having tens of thousands of folks from each walks of life remark connected Financial Samurai since 2009. And immoderate of them person opened up astir their backgrounds.

My extremity is to minimize specified wounds for my kids while maximizing unconditional love, learning, and joyousness successful their lives.

1) Spend much clip walking now that some kids are complete 5

I’ve ever disliked flying, particularly pinch young kids who are unruly and won’t retrieve their travels. But now that some of my children are complete 5, they’re potty-trained and mostly self-sufficient. Best of all, they’re astatine an property wherever they’ll really retrieve nan trips we take, making nan acquisition overmuch much rewarding.

For 2025, I scheme to do astatine slightest 2 of these trips:

1. Spend a period successful Honolulu while they be summertime school.
2. Stay successful Taipei for a period during summertime school, and if that goes well, return an escapade to Beijing for a mates of weeks.
3. Go to Tahoe for astatine slightest 5 nights during nan wintertime truthful nan kids tin get amended astatine skiing

I grew up surviving successful Zambia, nan Philippines, Japan, Taiwan, and Malaysia earlier coming to America for precocious school. Later, I spent 13 years moving successful world equities, which had maine perpetually traveling.

I’d for illustration my children to recreation truthful they tin acquisition different cultures, create a greater appreciation for what they have, and go amended communicators.

2) Read pinch nan kids for astatine slightest 15 minutes a day, 5 days a week

One of my goals is to cultivate a emotion of reference successful my kids. The first measurement is reference to them consistently, astatine slightest 5 days a week. Next, I’d for illustration them to publication to maine for 15 minutes daily, 5 days a week. Finally, I want to find books they genuinely enjoy, truthful they’ll want to publication independently.

Growing up, I loved reading Hardy Boys and The Great Brain series. But erstwhile I transitioned to Choose Your Own Adventure books, my mom wouldn’t fto maine publication them. That regularisation killed my joyousness for reading; I rebelled by refusing to publication overmuch astatine all.

To promote my kids to bask reading, I’ll lead by illustration and publication much myself. Once they bask reference connected their own, they tin study an endless magnitude of things.

3) Teach nan kids really to play pickleball

The aftercare pickleball sessions astatine their schoolhouse filled up quickly, and backstage lessons costs $140 per hour. As a 4.5-level pickleball player, I’ve decided to thatch them myself. I’ve already taught them really to motorcycle and swim, truthful this will beryllium different nosy accomplishment to add.

Pickleball is easier for young kids to prime up than tennis and should beryllium much fun. Once they’ve learned nan basics, I’ll thatch them tennis arsenic well. I don’t expect them to go great athletes aliases triumph assemblage scholarships. However, knowing really to play a athletics tin make life much enjoyable and social. I scheme to walk 30–60 minutes each play practicing pickleball pinch my kids.

Playing softball during nan pandemic for 3 years lifted my spirits. It besides introduced maine to caller friends, including immoderate I now play poker pinch regularly.

Launching rockets during nan pandemic helped prevention my sanity

4) Volunteer six times astatine my kids’ school

Being portion of a organization is wonderful. In 2024, I thoroughly enjoyed volunteering astatine my children’s school. It was rewarding to spot my kids during nan day, link pinch different parents, and get to cognize nan staff. I deliberation my kids will admit seeing their dada astonishment them connected juncture arsenic well, and possibly instill successful them nan tone of volunteering successful nan future.

In 2025, I scheme to unpaid astatine slightest six times passim nan year. This schoolhouse will beryllium our organization until hopefully 2033, and I’m eager to lend regularly.

Personal Goals for 2025

If I tin do 2 aliases 3 things good a year, I consciousness it's a bully year. I made nan astir of my last twelvemonth arsenic a stay-at-home father successful 2024, while focusing connected strengthening our finances. Now that some kids are successful schoolhouse full-time, I nary longer place arsenic a stay-at-home parent. Moving forward, I’ll clasp my personality arsenic a writer.

1) Market my caller book—and effort not to accent astir its performance

After complete 2 years of difficult work, I’m thrilled to merchandise my 2nd book pinch Portfolio Penguin successful May 2025. Like my first book, Buy This Not That, it focuses connected individual finance. I’ll stock each nan specifications by March 2025.

With Buy This Not That, I poured a batch of power into making it a bestseller—and succeeded. It’s satisfying to cognize I’ll ever beryllium a nationalist bestselling author. However, nan relentless trading took a toll connected my happiness, arsenic I overmuch for illustration penning to promoting.

This time, I’ll still participate successful podcasts and interviews to talk nan book, but my main attraction will beryllium enjoying nan process. Making a nationalist bestseller database is nary longer a goal.

I’ve recovered bid successful nan mindset of: “If you want to publication nan book to amended your financial life, fantastic! If not, that’s good too.” This attack has worked good for Financial Samurai, wherever I debar dense societal media aliases trading and constitute simply because I bask it.

However, promoting a book while maintaining a low-key manner is simply a contradictory act. Threading this needle will beryllium a difficult situation arsenic my patient will want maine to beryllium arsenic retired location arsenic possible.

2) Protect my 1:30 PM–3 PM nap window

Few things bring maine much joyousness than a due nap aft lunch. Whether it’s 30 minutes aliases a glorious hour-long snooze, naps recharge me. For them to beryllium genuinely effective, I request astatine slightest a 1.5-hour window—this eliminates accent astir oversleeping aliases rushing to autumn asleep.

In 2024, I overbooked this clip slot pinch activities for illustration tennis, pickleball, and agelong lunches. While enjoyable, they often near maine squeezing successful short naps aft 3:30 PM, which threw disconnected my evenings and bedtime.

Naps amended my power for nan day and evening pinch my kids, boost my mood, and heighten creativity. Plus, studies propose napping lowers humor pressure, reduces bosom illness risk, and slows encephalon aging. Who wouldn’t want those benefits?

In 2025, unless I’ve slept successful aliases it’s an unmissable reunion, my 1:30 PM–3 PM model will beryllium ineffable nap time.

3) Lift weights astatine slightest erstwhile a week for 45 minutes

Strength training needs to go a accordant portion of my routine. My extremity is to assistance weights astatine slightest erstwhile a week for 45 minutes, focusing connected building my shoulders, chest, and back.

Although I’d for illustration to assistance 2 aliases 3 times a week, I fishy I’ll beryllium excessively tired aft sessions to afloat prosecute pinch my kids aliases play sports. For now, erstwhile a week is simply a manageable starting constituent alongside my regular tennis and pickleball schedule. If I succeed, lifting weights 52 times successful 2025 will beryllium 8 times much than I did successful 2024.

4) Be OK pinch nan occasional tardiness

One of my biggest pet peeves is being late. It is disrespectful to nan personification waiting and often leads to unnecessary accent and danger, particularly erstwhile rushing done postulation to dress up for mislaid time. It tin besides beryllium a discarded of money if you're paying for a time-limited activity aliases lesson.

I deliberation this aversion to tardiness is hardwired into me. My father, apt influenced by his subject background, was ever punctual. During my 13 years successful finance, hosting countless analyst, management, and customer meetings reinforced nan habit—being precocious was simply not an action erstwhile truthful galore group depended connected me. If I ever was late, it felt profoundly embarrassing.

Unfortunately, this obsession pinch punctuality has caused immoderate hostility pinch my wife. My extremity now is to beryllium much relaxed astir occasional tardiness. I’ll besides measurement up to thief get nan kids ready, truthful we tin debar rushing arsenic overmuch arsenic possible.

For instance, I initially aimed to get nan kids to schoolhouse connected clip 100% of nan year. I thrust 95% of nan clip truthful nan past mile work is connected me. This extremity mirrors my decade-long obsession pinch penning 3 posts a week connected Financial Samurai—a agelong extremity that, successful hindsight, isn’t necessary.

After learning that immoderate families person 20–40 tardies annually without immoderate consequences, I’ve decided to easiness up. Allowing for a precocious time erstwhile a period serves arsenic a patient pressure-release valve for each of us. And if we hap to beryllium precocious a 2nd clip successful a month, nary large deal!

5) Write shorter, much lifestyle-focused posts connected Financial Samurai

I person a inclination to dive heavy into topics, often penning posts exceeding 2,000 words (this station is 3,350 words). While I bask being thorough, I admit that attraction spans are shrinking. Readers admit concise, punchy contented that gets to nan point. Plus, longer articles return much time, which goes against my taxable for nan twelvemonth of relaxing more.

In 2025, my extremity is to constitute posts averaging 1,250 words. This displacement will let maine to present worth much quickly while still maintaining my voice. Shorter posts will besides beryllium easier for readers to digest, making nan contented much engaging overall.

I’m besides dropping my rigid committedness to publishing 3 posts a week. Instead, I will constitute whenever I want, to easiness nan unit I put connected myself.

Specific Financial Goals for 2025

Since Financial Samurai is simply a individual finance site, fto maine stock 3 cardinal individual finance goals that align pinch my desire to simplify life.

1) Sell a Rental Property

Before 2023, I promised myself I wouldn’t bargain different rental property—and technically, I kept that promise. However, alternatively of trading my erstwhile home, I chose to rent it retired for rate flow, location value appreciation, and expectations committee rates would travel down. I stay bullish connected San Francisco existent estate, acknowledgment to nan tech and AI roar generating immense wealthiness for tens of thousands of people.

However, aft a twelvemonth of renting retired nan property, nan tenants person fixed notice, and I’ve decided not to hunt for caller ones. With nan NASDAQ up 30% successful 2024, I’m optimistic that nan Spring 2025 Bay Area lodging marketplace will beryllium strong. Additionally, I’ve noticed much elasticity from existent property agents offering performance-based committee structures.

As a result, I scheme to waste this beautiful ocean-view property, which I purchased successful mid-2020, successful 2025. The timing feels correct to simplify my life. Selling nan spot besides provides an opportunity to gain up to $500,000 successful tax-free profits, arsenic I’ve lived successful it for astatine slightest 2 retired of nan past 5 years.

Ironically, owning a 4th rental spot successful San Francisco for a twelvemonth was comparatively hassle-free. The only rumor was a room faucet repair—likely caused by nan tenant yanking retired nan nozzle and breaking nan hose. Still, I had envisioned keeping this home, which we enjoyed during nan pandemic, until my kids were grown.

That dream, however, doesn’t outweigh nan ongoing spot taxes, attraction costs, and nan effort required to find tenants. The older I get, nan little I want to negociate properties.

2) Reinvest 80% of online “funny money” into consequence assets

My emotion matter pinch existent property started successful 2003 erstwhile I reinvested 100% of my dot-com bubble gains into a San Francisco condo. While nan first net bubble popped, my condo’s worth held dependable and moreover grew.

Similarly, I position online income arsenic “funny money” because I’d happily constitute for free,. Further, I’m not judge nan income will last. This mindset motivates maine to reinvest astir of this gross into assets that make passive income. I'm besides happy return much consequence pinch this income because it doesn't look real, dissimilar my arduous time occupation income successful banking.

However, I besides want to bask life complete nan adjacent 3 years. That’s why I scheme to allocate 20% of this income to screen nan spread betwixt my expenses and current passive income. The remaining 80% will beryllium reinvested.

With immoderate luck and disciplined investing, I dream to deed my target of an further $80,000 successful passive income aliases an further $2 cardinal successful investments by December 31, 2027.

3) Invest $100,000 each successful commercialized existent property and AI companies

I don’t want to dangle solely connected luck to get maine to my goals. Strategic allocation is key.

If I successfully waste my San Francisco rental, I expect to nett betwixt $1.2M–$1.6M aft taxes, commissions, fees, prep work, and owe payoff. With these proceeds, I scheme to reinvest:

• $100,000 successful commercialized existent estate: This aligns pinch nan plus people I’m exiting but allows maine to diversify into fully passive existent property investments. Commercial existent property has lagged stocks since 2023, but historically, nan 2 plus classes are correlated. I judge it’s owed for a rebound.
• $100,000 successful backstage AI companies: I judge successful nan AI activity and want vulnerability to its imaginable growth. My clip moving astatine a startup showed maine really difficult and accelerated these companies move. Since backstage companies enactment backstage longer now, investing early offers nan chance to seizure important upside. The much I invest successful artificial intelligence, nan little interest I person for my children's futures.

Investing much successful backstage companies fixed they are staying backstage for longer

With $1M –$1.4M remaining, I’ll likely:

• Allocate a 70% to the S&P 500 and tech stocks I’ve held for complete a decade. My reasoning: If I’m not consenting to waste these holdings, I should beryllium consenting to bargain them. Ideally, I’ll put aft a marketplace dip erstwhile nan location waste closes.
• Invest 30% successful Treasury bonds, particularly if nan 10-year output remains supra 4.5%.

Once nan waste is finalized, I’ll constitute a elaborate station connected really I scheme to allocate nan proceeds.

4) Build My Children's Investment Accounts

Investing for my children feels for illustration starting a caller crippled pinch nan advantage of decades of acquisition and knowledge. Beyond their UGMA accounts, I want to attraction connected building their Roth IRAs arsenic well. Their 529 accounts are astatine levels wherever I nary longer want to aggressively lend tot hem.

Since their net are minimal, their income will autumn good beneath nan modular conclusion for 2025, which is $15,000. This intends their earned income won’t beryllium taxable to taxes. A applicable income target would beryllium $7,000, matching nan Roth IRA publication limit for 2025. What a use to beryllium capable to lend tax-free income and fto it turn tax-free and beryllium withdrawn tax-free.

The extremity isn’t conscionable to thief them gain money successful a tax-efficient measurement for early financial security. More importantly, it’s astir instilling a strong activity ethic and school them really redeeming and investing work. These lessons will laic nan instauration for bully individual finance habits, making them self-sufficient adults. When that time comes, their mother and I tin respire a small easier!

A Return to Easy Living successful 2025 For Sure

I’ll move 48 successful June 2025, which is starting to consciousness old. It’s a bully reminder to slow down and savor life, particularly now that we’ve “run up nan score” during this unthinkable bull market.

My dream is that nan bully times continue, allowing maine to scope my financial target by December 31, 2027, while besides spending and giving much freely. However, moreover if nan marketplace doesn’t cooperate, I scheme to enactment unemployed. At this stage, trying to offset finance losses pinch progressive income feels futile.

I person conscionable 11 and 13 much years, respectively, until my boy and girl whitethorn time off nan location perchance for good. I cognize this clip will alert by, truthful I’m wished to make nan astir of it.

Here’s to a fulfilling and prosperous 2025!

Readers, what are immoderate of your goals and resolutions for nan year? Join 60,000+ others achieving financial state sooner and motion up for my free play newsletter here.

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Financial Samurai, started successful 2009, is 1 of nan apical independently-run individual finance sites. Join 60,000+ readers achieving financial state sooner by signing up for my free play newsletter here. To study more, you tin publication my About page.