Not a Typo: A Look Back at My 2009 Goals
A Year Decade in Review
Twenty-nineteen was a busy year.
Literally, every single person can say that about every single year, but I’m saying it to justify why I never got around to writing down my 2019 goals—I was just so busy!
Ya know, just busy doing important life stuff.
But in all the moving and shaking of 2019, I found a scrap of paper spelling out exactly what my goals for the year were...one decade ago. In 2009, I was a 20-years-old college student in the midst of figuring out who she was, what she wanted, and how she was going to get there—and my goals embody all that and more.
So now on the brink of not only a new year but a whole new decade, I thought I’d take a look back at my list of goals from 2009 and see how well I did at accomplishing them.
You had some lofty aspirations, little 20-year-old Cali. Let me enlighten you on how they all panned out.
2009: I am wearing a purple fedora un-ironically.
Get Involved with the NT Daily
As a Journalism major with big reporter dreams, getting involved with the North Texas Daily student newspaper was a literal requirement for your degree, college Cali, but good for you putting it on your personal goal list for 2009 too.
And hey guess what—you did it! In 2009, you wrote 13 articles for UNT’s student paper, from ‘Human Errors’ Cause Enrollment Problems to Shoeless Students Possess Freedom to Explore Campus, with some making the front page!
But after a solid semester knockin’ it out for the NT Daily, you decide to switch the focus of your major from News Reporting to Advertising/PR. You got a taste and said no thanks, but you did 100% achieve that goal—and achieving it helped shift your overall career goal to set you on a more well-adjusted path for your writing style (and anxiety).
So in all sincerity, good for you, college Cali.
Make New Friends Around Campus/Apartments
God, making real friendships that lasted beyond a semester or a stint waiting tables in college is so hard. One minute you’re all in the trenches together—cramming for exams, delegating group projects, handling the Friday night restaurant rush, catering big work parties, throwing your own big parties, cleaning up after your own big parties—then the next minute everyone is long gone in new trenches with new comrades.
When you’re in there, though, those trenches feel endless and you appreciate those companions just as endlessly. But only a handful of those trench-forged friendships will make it past graduation.
Yet you learn from those college days and embed yourself in new trenches to build connections—you take aerial arts classes after work and volunteer with nonprofits and attend events and shows. You put yourself out there and get involved and force yourself to get in that trench to support other people.
Making new friends doesn’t get any easier, but at least in 2009 you begin to figure out where to start.
Complete a Painting
It would be pretty sad if I told you that in the 10 years since you wrote this list you have yet to complete a painting, so I am happy to tell you that not only did you complete plenty of paintings but you sold a few as well!
I have zero recollection of finishing any pieces of art in 2009, but I can say you get that creative mojo back in a big way in 2017 by volunteering as a writer for a philanthropic arts organization called Arts Conspiracy, writing press releases and interviewing artists. And yes, contributing your own artistic skills for the nonprofit as well.
For their annual fall event, you got the honor of having your painting “Remember the Alamosaurus” auctioned off with the proceeds going towards youth art programs in Dallas. Real money for your piece of dinosaur-inspired artwork.
So this goal gets a big gold star next to it. Bravo.
Raise GPA to 3.4
Honestly, I don’t know if this ever happened. But honestly I can tell you that GPA has never once come up in conversation since graduation.
I mean, you graduate and use your degree for what it was intended for so really who cares about this one?
Photo by Junebug Clark
Go to a Show Without Boyfriend
Oh, little Cali, this goal is simply an attempt to alleviate a symptom without fully understanding the root cause. You, my dear, are the very definition of codependent and deep down inside you know it even if you don’t know the exact word for it. But it will take a long, long time to identify and strives towards becoming truly independent.
And 2009 was definitely not the year.
But over the decade you will go to plenty of shows, movies, parties, and travel across the country several times without a partner. You will explore places, try out new hobbies, celebrate successes, and weather through defeats all on your own. You will be happily single (a concept that makes your little brain explode in 2009) and eventually find a healthy relationship thanks to the things you figure out about yourself during those single days.
This was a good goal for 20-year-old Cali. It shows a glimmer of hope that you’d break free from needing someone else to enjoy things or make decisions or just to validate your life.
You weren’t there quite yet, but it is an optimistic forecast of personal growth to come.
Look into Internships
So you never actually get an internship, but you do join the student-run Advertising and PR agency called SWOOP. In fact, you become president of the organization in your final semester of college.
But, more importantly, your drive to continue learning from the professionals doesn’t end with graduation. You attend conferences and participate in events all geared to furthering your industry knowledge and networking with your career peers—and continue to pursue it these things to this day.
You may not have snagged that internship, but you never lose your commitment to learning.
Keep a Job I’m Happy With
These words are wiser than your years, 20-year-old Cali, mainly because they will drive you forward in so many different ways over the decade.
Finding fulfillment in your work will always remain a goal for you—in 2009, though, you’re talking about hopping from restaurant to restaurant because the potential for better tips always seems greener on the other side.
But you will further refine this core concept as you get older and let it be your compass through your adult career:
Never stop pursuing what you want, even if you have it pretty good in your status quo.
College Cali waiting tables, knowing something better is out there.
Someday keeping a job you’re happy with will mean finding a real outlet for your brain and creativity. But in college that pursuit of happiness is keeping your poor broke head above water so you can graduate. For you, 2009 Cali, a lucrative job is a happy job.
No matter what, though, that concept still rings true.
Save Over $1,000
This was ambitious for you in 2009 (see goal above), but your frugal determination pays off over time. Literally. Sure, your budgets and bank accounts fluctuate, but the essence of this goal lives on.
Work on Body-Image/Self-Esteem
Well little lady, let’s just start by saying it takes a lot of self-restraint for 30-year-old Cali to not tell 20-year-old Cali to shut up and enjoy that metabolism while it lasts, but that’s not really in the spirit of 2019’s body-positivity efforts.
You’re gonna struggle with this almost every single day, but you do make some pretty significant breakthroughs thanks to one big thing: aerials.
You are always stronger than you give yourself credit for. Photo by Brian Ledden
In 2017, you enter your first aerial hoop class with all the self-doubt in the world but leave with a sense of self-confidence you never thought possible. And not because you’re good at it. No, no, no, because you actually believe in yourself enough to try something completely outside your comfort zone.
You expose your weakness, your scars, your cellulite, your awkwardness, all the things that have haunted your body image and self-esteem your entire life—and you learn how to throw all those insecurities out the window by spinning around upside down.
You find a tangible strength you can continuously build and the unexpected beauty that comes with it. You discover an outlet you can love yourself in.
Sure, it’s not 100% every day. But you’ll be surprised what that body is truly capable.
Say What I Mean/Feel the First Time, Be Honest/Open/Real
Oh, girl…what can I say? (I guess that sums up how well you’ve accomplished it.) This goal is so heavy and never-ending, but understandable, even admirable, to have on the list.
In 2009, you write it like an atonement, a harsh judgment for simply being 20-years-old and still learning how to navigate being an adult. Hell, you’re still learning how to do it at 30.
In 2019, this goal is still on the list, but in a much more optimistic way. You make a lot of progress, little Cali, and you should be really proud of that. I mean, after a decade of therapy and self-help books, you gotta give yourself some credit for trying to tackle this existential sort of thing.
And you never stop trying. So yeah, you’re kinda getting there.
Don’t give up.
Travel Somewhere You’ve Never Been Before
Again, it would be pretty sad if I told you that in the 10 years since you made this list you haven’t traveled anywhere new. Breathe easy—you travel a lot. You even travel by yourself!
A few months after writing this list, 2009 Cali actually spends a summer living in a place she’d never been before—beautiful, dreamy Seattle! You take a big chance and have an adventure and experience a whole different life for a few fleeting months (before you come back to start the new school semester).
Home for summer 2009.
And a piece of your heart will always be there, dreaming about watching the sunrise over the mountains on the bus ride downtown to your barista job. You cherish those memories, and it continues to inspire you to explore and create new memories plotted along the map.
So big checkmark for this one.
Don’t Get Married/Pregnant
All of these goals you listed out above just scream that you are not ready to completely commit to anything (except student loan debt) and that at age 20 you are still just trying to figure yourself out.
You know you struggle with self-confidence and codependency. You know you are not financially stable or set on a real career path yet. You know there are so many memories you want to make that aren’t tied or connected to anyone else. You want to be selfish—you have to be selfish—to find the defining points of your independent character. You need to learn how to love yourself alone, not just sustain yourself off love from someone else or pour your own love completely into others.
You need to feel strong all on your own before you can add strength to a team, and you definitely are not that strong yet, 2009 Cali.
So kudos to you, girl, for putting this last goal on there to remind yourself that you are just not ready for any of that yet.
Twenty-teens—Thanks for the Memories
Much like finding a time capsule, these goals from 10 years ago are a glimpse into a different era. It’s hard to believe that 2009 was that long ago, but running down this list makes it feel like more than a lifetime ago.
Looking back, I didn’t do too bad. I checked a lot of boxes, went surprisingly farther than anticipated, and I’ve even kept a few evolving over the years.
The twenty-teens (is that what we call the last decade?) have been busy. Everybody can say that. But I’m happy that little 20-year-old Cali decided to make a list of what she wanted to accomplish, the type of person she aspired to become, and even the things she wanted to avoid.
Maybe I’ll get around to writing another list. Check back with me in 2029.
