MY TOP 19 GOALS FOR 2019

19 goals for an awesome year.

This isn’t a TOTALLY comprehensive list of my 2019 goals. First off, it would change too many times so I’m always changing & adding to it. Second, I like keeping some goals secrets until I’ve actually done them so then they can be surprises. And third, it would be too long 😀

Anyways, here is a list of 19 of my top goals for 2019.

  1. Write, direct, produce, & publish a feature film.

    I’ve wanted to make an ACTUAL film for a long time. I didn’t make any short films at all from mid-2015-most of 2018 but now I’m making a bunch. I have a ton of great ideas & a vision for what the film would be like, & I think as a filmmaker it’s an amazing goal to make something longer than a short film, not to mention a fun challenge!

    Free-Photos / Pixabay

  2. Build a cement roadside dinosaur.

    I AM OBSESSED WITH ROADSIDE DINOSAURS. I found this article of all the ones in Florida. I’ve seen several of them but someday I’d like to see them all. And I hope to seeing the Cabazon Dinosaurs this year in my travels. AND I’m photographing cement roadside dinosaurs for a photography book I’m making. But this year, I’d like to MAKE a roadside dinosaur so other people can enjoy a new one too.

  3. Start a circus.

    I don’t know what format it will be in or how it will be structured, but I would LOVE to start a circus full of amazing acts. Circuses (that don’t involve animals, I must note) are amazing & so seriously funky & whimsical so it would be so super cool to START A CIRCUS.

    ckirner / Pixabay

  4. Set up a funky museum.

    I want the THEME of it to be a surprise, but you can bet it’ll be funky, totally surprising, & one-of-a-kind. It will likely be small, weird, & one of those awesome attractions you’d find on Atlas Obscura. Collecting & curating a specialty collection & creating a really special place where people can gather & marvel at how weird & wacky the world is, is a big goal of mine.

    Couleur / Pixabay

  5. Buy an used ice cream truck.

    I’m not sure what I’ll use it for (I have SOME ideas though!) but it too will be amazing & funky. I just love the whimsical idea of owning one.

    Momentmal / Pixabay

  6. Write & publish 12+ books.

    In 2016 I did 10. In 2017 I did 11. In 2018 I did 12. I have so many great books in the works & I am SO EXCITED to be putting them out in 2019. Oh, & in 2019 I’ll also publish my 100th book! Woohoo! As of the publication of this article, I’ve already published already!

  7. Take a mini vacation each month.

    I live in the Grand Old State of Florida, & despite what my teenaged self believed, there are TONS of great places to visit & amazing things to do without even leaving my state. Of course, I have some plans to travel a lot further than just within my state, but making the effort to go to a new place, at least for a day trip, each month sounds awesome. I want to visit the Florida Keys & Miami again & see more stuff in northern Florida! Currently, I haven’t got to do this yet for either January or February, so I guess I’ll just have to take two vacations in two of the months!

    moorpheus / Pixabay

  8. Publish 3 Udemy courses!

    As of currently, I have FINALLY released my first course, “How to Make 3 Styles of Plush Bumblebees”. But what I’m most excited about is my super-comprehensive “101 Ways to Love Yourself” course, which should be out within the next few months, as well as a guided meditation course.

  9. Make enough income from growing my business, books, music, art etc that I get to spend 95% of each day everyday doing things I enjoy & feeling great & making an abundant living working for myself.

    rawpixel / Pixabay

  10. Live a completely outlandish, magical day like Pippi Longstocking does in my favorite childhood movie “The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking” but with me being an adult American with parents 😂

    HansLinde / Pixabay

  11. Get an acting role in a mid-to-big budget film.

    I have wanted to do this since I was a kid, because I love acting & I love films. So why not?

    skeeze / Pixabay

  12. Start living my version of the “Millionaire Lifestyle” regardless of whether I’m a millionaire (yet) or not.

    I just read Tim Ferriss’ “The 4-Hour Workweek” for the first time & it’s one of the most inspiring books I’ve read. It’s made me realize that even without having a millionaire’s income (yet!) that I can still live the lifestyle I would live as a millionaire.

    maya_7966 / Pixabay

  13. Walk a marathon.

    As of me publishing this article, this has been done! It was super challenging & took me 8 hours of walking through a local park to achieve, but it taught me so much about resilience & I’m so proud I did it.

    Free-Photos / Pixabay

  14. Go on a California road trip!

    I’ve loved the idea of California for a long time, & they’ve got so many great things out there. Los Angeles, the redwoods, ostriches, oceans, & dinosaurs are just a few things I’m looking forward to seeing.

    12019 / Pixabay

  15. PETS:

    Upgrade my 10 gallon aquarium 55 gallon aquarium. I love my freshwater aquarium, where I keep some small catfish & minnows & a snail. When I was 11 I had a 20-gallon aquarium, but I want to get a nice big aquarium so my fish have more room to swim & so I can have a more robust tank. I will be adding live plants & more fish! By the end of the year, I also would like all my pet reptiles & amphibians to be in spacious, bioactive vivariums, & I want to find my dog a food or something that isn’t steroids that helps his chronic skin problems (Malassezia pachydermatis).

    seagul / Pixabay

  16. Build, grow, & turn my own special miniature world into something that takes on a life & space of its own so others can enjoy it & nourish& nurture it too.

    harryHermione / Pixabay

  17. Read 100 books.

    Last year, I read 67 books (my goal was 75). But I hadn’t discovered the free Hoopla library of audiobooks until about halfway through the year. Or audiobooks in general. Audiobooks revolutionized reading for me. I have a lot of down time at work & driving time in general, so I can read a few books a week without spending additional time thanks to audiobooks!

    Free-Photos / Pixabay

  18. Write & perform at an actual venue a successful one-person show. 

    It will be a mix of comedy, theatre, music, puppets, & good-old-fashioned quirkiness. SO EXCITED TO BRING THIS ONE TO YOU!

    skeeze / Pixabay

  19. EXPERIENCES:

    Grouped together, because these are smaller & easier to achieve, & don’t require their own paragraphs: go snorkeling with manatees, milk a cow (done!!!), camp overnight on an island, pick blueberries, pick oranges, go on a 40+ mile bike ride, attend the Strawberry Festival in Plant City FL, go to the Florida state fair (done!), eat at at least 10 restaurants I’ve never been to before (one so far!), photograph roadside dinosaurs, buy more vinyl albums, sit in the front row of a medium sized concert & shake hands with the band members (DONE!!!), complete a rope adventure course, complete an obstacle course, go indoor skydiving, touch a sloth, touch a flamingo, tour the deep Everglades, get into parkour, go pescetarian for a month, take at least a few circus arts classes, connect more spiritually with the Universe, & more.

    suju / Pixabay

Here’s to a freaking amazing year <3

2018 WEEK 18: ACCOUNTABILITY UPDATE

What I did the week of April 29 – May 5 to make my life awesome.

cocoparisienne / Pixabay

  1. Decided to live my life by this idea: “If I were living an exceptional life, would I do this?”
  2. Finished writing & PUBLISHED a new book – 50 Adorable Moose Facts!
  3. Cleaned a lot in my house to get ready for moving & to become more of a minimalist.
  4. Colored 3 pages worth of the illustrations for my upcoming Apple iMessage sticker app! Edited the images & began working on app.
  5. Published 2 YouTube videos (Episode 045 of The Ashlee Craft Show & a video of my dog eating a taco) using my new microphone, so the sound quality is much better!
  6. Watched Jim Rohn’s The Art of Exceptional Living
  7. Looked up some prices for travel plans I have for this year.
  8. Made a big list of goals for this year, a really nice updated one!
  9. Researched best disinfectants for reptile cages other than bleach.
  10. Did research on some more pet reptiles I’m interested in getting.
  11. Made 2 Instagram posts.
  12. Made 1 illustration for my upcoming book.
  13. Did a lot of editing on my Epic Florida Road Trip Book.
  14. Saw Bobby Lee Rodgers Trio, Blackfoot, Jimmie Vaughn, & Lynyrd Skynyrd in concert at the MidFlorida Credit Unit Ampitheatre.
  15. Worked on updating my Shopify store with new product categories!

2018 WEEK 17: ACCOUNTABILITY UPDATE

What I did the week of April 22 thru 28 to make my life AMAZING.

Schwoaze / Pixabay

  1. Worked a lot on revamping & expanding my Shopify store. Shoutout to the Shopify plugin Buddha MegaMenu for allowing me to make sub-sub-categories for my menu!
  2. Came up with a great idea for a new sticker app, which you’ll hear about soon! Drew all the stickers for it!
  3. Drew more illustrations for one of my upcoming books!
  4. Drew 1 new design & numerous illustrations.
  5. Made 5 Instagram posts.
  6. Practiced being more sociable, opening up to people more, & not over-monitoring what I’m doing when interacting with people (that’s been a big problem of mine for a long time).
  7. Helped my mom harvest vegetables from our yard. They were so good!
  8. Cleaned & organized all my craft supply bins to make it easier for me to find them.
  9. Had fun running around inside Life.
  10. Saw Carl Palmer’s ELP Legacy & Alan Parsons Project in concert at Ruth Eckerd Hall!

2018 WEEK 16 :: ACCOUNTABILITY UPDATE

artyangel / Pixabay

  1. Thought a lot about how to make life more fun & how to live by fun as a principle.
  2. Worked a lot on revamping my Shopify store by doing a MAJOR redesign & expansion of the categories to prepare for TONS OF NEW PRODUCTS we’re adding soon!
  3. Published 2 YouTube videos (Episode 043 of The Ashlee Craft Show & a video about my first time at the skatepark).
  4. Made 5 Instagram posts.
  5. Wrote 3 poems.
  6. Published 1 blog post.
  7. Made list of marketing ideas.
  8. Researched some new cool things I’d like to get more into & add to my repertoire.
  9. Researched “shadowbanned” Instagram hashtags so I can avoid them.
  10. Went to a skatepark for the first time & got awesome footage for a video!

2018 WEEK 15 :: ACCOUNTABILITY UPDATE

What I did the week of April 8 – 14 to make my life awesome.

manfredrichter / Pixabay

  1. Published 2 YouTube videos (an episode of The Ashlee Craft Show & the first video in my Produce Exploration series, about Rome Apples). Made video intro for Produce Exploration show.
  2. Learned & did tons of research on dropshipping. Brainstormed a ton of ideas about things I want to try with this & new ideas for products. Read the Shopify dropshipping guide.
  3. Made list of companies I can do illustrations for.
  4. Made 1 new design
  5. Ordered the free Shopify card chip reader that plugs into your phone so soon I can sell things in person & not just online.
  6. Wrote & published 1 blog post.
  7. Connected with 1 new person!
  8. Made 4 Instagram posts.
  9. Added 24 new products to SHOP Ashlee Craft & released 1 new design on Society6.
  10. Sent out one marketing newsletter to my email list.
  11. Planned a new book I’m working on.
  12. Bought another awesome enamel pin from PinPartyPost for my enamel pin collection.
  13. Made 1 art collage.
  14. Sent an illustration to one person I want to connect with to add value to them & sent them a friend request.
  15. Bought some stuff I needed in order to make some new products I’ll be releasing soon!
  16. Saw Jimmy Buffet + The Eagles concert at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, FL.
  17. Cleaned a lot in my house to get closer to my minimalism goals, including 85+ books to donate.

2018 WEEK 12: ACCOUNTABILITY UPDATE

What I did March 18 – 25 to make 2018 amazing.

  1. Sorted a lot more of my garage & got rid of a lot more things I no longer needed, as part of my goal of becoming a minimalist this year. Found a ton of stuff to donate!
  2. Recorded a new song, called “I Will Find You”, & mixed it! Soon I’ll be ready to release it! Mixed two other songs I’ve previously recorded, including my cover of Crowded House’s Archers Arrows.
  3. Posted first Fiverr gig EVER! It’s for doing illustrations in my unique style. Set up Fiver profile & added 3 additional gigs (illustrated banner logo, pet portraits, & proofreading). Made a lot of illustrations to be samples for these gigs to show people what they’re getting & to promote the gigs.
  4. Published 1 YouTube videos (Episode 039 of The Ashlee Craft Show)
  5. Made 4 Instagram posts.
  6. Published 3 new products to my online store!
  7. Looked up how to pick a good monologue for acting auditions.
  8. Signed up for Backstage.com. Took new headshots & updated acting resume.
  9. Started editing more of the slideshow images for my Udemy course!
  10. Took another photo for my film photography book.
  11. Considered & brainstormed ways to get acting jobs after I realized how much I wanted to do this.
  12. Applied for 5 acting jobs! Got scheduled for one audition, which I did.
  13. Reconsidered & got further clarity about what kind of LIFESTYLE I want to have, as a whole, instead of just focusing on things that will provide one thing at the expense of others (i.e. making more money at the expense of freedom).
  14. Donated one illustration to a charity with the hopes they’ll want to use it. If they agree, I will link to their website on my website & help promote their charity, & I’ll add the illustration to my portfolio.
  15. Looked up more money making ideas online. Looked into proofreading, part-time, virtual assistant, & entertainment jobs.
  16. Worked on signing up to be a Groupon Merchant.
  17. Colored in five of my illustrations.
  18. Saw Foreigner in concert with the Rock Symphony Orchestra!
  19. Saw Al Stewart, Three Dog Night, Lords of 52nd Street, & Firefall in concert at Ruth Eckerd Hall!
  20. Began reading The Courage to Be Rich by Suze Orman & Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz. Bought a copy of Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers from the library so now I can finally read it!
  21. Made more strides in owning a home.
  22. Gave my mom a life coaching session to help her level up her life this year too.
  23. Signed up for Zazzle & added 9 products made from 1 design. Signed up for Society6 & added a bunch of products made from 2 designs.
  24. Wrote 1 blog post.
  25. Improved environment by cleaning up clutter in my house & putting items back in their places.
  26. Learned about investing in ETFs & low-cost index funds.

2018 WEEK 11: ACCOUNTABILITY UPDATE

What I did in Week 11 (March 11–17) to make 2018 AWESOME.

Week 11 turned out to be a great week! I did a lot of awesome things, made a TON of art, & got a huge number of things done. I’m proud of how productive I was this week!

  1. Made & published 3 YouTube videos (Episode 038 of The Ashlee Craft Show, How to Grow Wheatgrass, Bearded Dragons). Launched a new YouTube show called “The Feel-Good Life with Ashlee Craft”. Finally published my video about how to grow wheatgrass, which I’ve been working on off & on for the past few months!
  2. Spent a LOT of time cleaning & getting rid of unneeded things in my garage to become more of a minimalist. Found a ton of stuff to donate to the Veterans Administration.
  3. Wrote 13 poems.
  4. Edited 15 slideshows that I’ll use for my Udemy course based on my 101 Ways to Love Yourself book. Done with Round 2 edits!
  5. Followed Tony Robbins on LinkedIn so I can fill my feed with even more good insights.
  6. Edited 3 blog articles for future publication.
  7. Drew 2 illustrations & 7 designs (including one I’m donating to a local charity if they choose to use it).
  8. Took a TON of photos for the film photography book I’m working on about buildings in my area.
  9. Wrote 4 blog articles.
  10. Published 1 blog post.
  11. Made 3 Instagram posts.
  12. Finished reading Be Obsessed or Be Average by Grant Cardone & The Biology of Belief by Dr. Bruce Lipton. Started reading a book about bears.
  13. Bought three copies of one of my books to give to a local store for free so they can test the market & then order more copies. I will deliver the copies to them in the next week or two!
  14. Sent blog interview questions to one more person & wrote a review for someone’s book.
  15. Bought shorts to make demo version of fashion design I’m working on so I can send it to my favorite brand!
  16. Added 3 new designs of posters & t-shirts to shop.ashleecraft.com. Posted 2 more additional products. Renewed eBay listings!
  17. Sent out an email newsletter.

2018 Week 4: Accountability Update

Here’s what I accomplished in Week 3 of 2018! It was a great week.

  1. Bought another domain name, which I will be building a website on very soon!
  2. Made 20 slideshows for the Udemy course I am working on (it will be based on my book “101 Ways to Love Yourself“).
  3. Published 3 blog posts (The Seven Levels of WhyMy 2018 Goal List, & Week 3 Accountability Update).
  4. Filmed clips for the first episode of my new YouTube show “Produce Exploration”, which is an educational show about various types of fruits & vegetables, what they taste like, & how to use them. The first episode is about Red Rome Apples, & the video should be up later this week.
  5. Put my 2nd custom jean jacket (“RENEGADE“) in my online shop!
  6. Wrote 1 chapter of the Tarot card definition book I am working on.
  7. Promoted my YouTube videos & original products on websites like Pinterest & Twitter.
  8. Asked another person for a blog interview. She said yes, & I sent her the interview questions.
  9. Networked with 5 new people!
  10. Downloaded DaVinci Resolve video editing software (I haven’t got a chance to use it yet).
  11. Made 2 new illustrations to be used as designs for t-shirts, posters, etc.
  12. Planned a farm animal-themed coloring book.
  13. Drew illustrations for my “The Seven Levels of Why” blog article. I’ve never really illustrated an article of mine before. It was a lot of fun, & I really like the end result.
  14. Recorded the bass guitar for my cover of the Crowded House song “Archer’s Arrows”. I hopefully will finish my cover of the song in the upcoming week.
  15. Put another design of t-shirts & posters on my website.
  16. Published the 10th episode of my podcast.
  17. Made & put out 2 YouTube videos – the 32nd episode of my weekly show, plus one pet video about my pet corydoras catfish.
  18. Finished reading “So Good They Can’t Ignore You” by Cal Newport. Started reading a book about Superfood snacks.
  19. Bought some of the supplies for the pet tortoise I’ll be getting later in February.
  20. Did excellent on my health goals – exercised almost every day, reduced my added sugar intake significantly, & ate at least five servings of vegetables six days this week!

I feel like I’m gaining a lot of momentum & making a ton of progress! I’m so excited to see how this year unfolds!

My 2018 Goal List

My 2018 Goal List :: A photo by Gareth Harper. unsplash.com/photos/yACpBcInUos
2017 was definitely an outstanding year. I went on my Epic Florida Road Trip. I rode on a plane for the first time (to go to Houston to see Queen in concert). I saw a lot of amazing bands in concert. l produced a lot of creative work & added to my business. I released my first app, & I published 11 books.
But 2018 is going to be THAT MUCH MORE AMAZING.
Because 2017 gave me the tools & the confidence I need to level up even more this year. For me, the theme of 2018 is: “DO DIFFICULT THINGS WELL”. I really want to challenge myself & grow as a person, so I specifically designed these goals to do just that.
Here’s what I have planned for 2018:
  • Become a self-made millionaire. This is my top goal because it will help a lot of my other goals happen. I’m going out there to get the good things that I deserve. I do this because I love myself, & I also love a good challenge.
  • Start eating healthy consistently & exercising daily. Over the past year, I have IMPROVED, but I’m still way behind where I’d like to be as far as healthy habits. I know I could do better. I end up only eating 1-2 servings of vegetables a day. This is due to my “addiction” to processed sugar & non-vegetable foods. I also walk a bit each day, but I can be quite sedentary at times & don’t exercise the recommended 30 minutes a day. Sometimes, I also eat too much sugar. But I want to eat healthier, I know it will help me feel my best & have the most energy, so I’m going to do this.
  • Live with passion every day. Like Tony Robbins talks about. I’m going to make 2018 my happiest year yet. Making sure I’m living with passion & taking time for self-care are habits that will help me do this.
  • Publish more books. This year’s book list includes: my Epic Florida Road Trip book. A photography album of artistic photos of the Tampa Bay area. A seven-zine series of photos I took on my road trip. The second zine in my Flowers series of photography zines. A zine of botanical garden photos. Several poetry books. My essay book, Not a Dime a Dozen. A Tarot card dictionary. Several more books for my Wonderful Wildlife & 50 Adorable Facts animal series. The second book in the Summer Hayes series. More issues of Assemblage.
  • Release my third album of music. I released my second album, “confusion is over”, in 2015. I’ve done some cover songs, but I have not released any more albums or singles since then.
  • Get a pet tortoise & pet crested geckos. I’m currently prepping for a red foot tortoise hatchling right now & I’m doing a ton of research. Tortoises are fascinating & so sweet. I’m really looking forward to adding one to my critter family. Sometime later in the year, I plan on getting some baby crested geckos too.
  • Create & release my first Udemy course. I’m working on a course RIGHT NOW that’s based on my 101 Ways to Love Yourself course. I still have a pretty long way to go on it, but it’s going to be an amazing, comprehensive course. It will have more than 100 videos, many worksheets, podcast versions of each episode, & much more.
  • Go to A LOT more amazing concerts & other awesome places/events. I have some of these activities planned already. I’m making sure I always have something to look forward to doing. I learned in the past year that adding to my “experience library” is something that adds immense value to my life.
  • Release at least two more apps for iOS devices. Last year, I released my “Adorable Fall Stickers” app for iOS devices, & I have a few more apps in the works.
  • Travel to a state I’ve never been to, travel somewhere else in Florida, & travel to another country. This was on the list last year. I did go somewhere else in Florida & to another state, both of which were goals on the previous list. I’m refreshing this goal because I want to do the same thing this year but with different places.
  • Become a certified ethical hacker. Ethical hacking has always fascinated me. If nothing more it will help me educate myself about web security for my own benefit. I bought the Udemy course, & now I just have to DO THE COURSE.
  • Go on another road trip. An RV would be amazing to help me achieve my road trip goals. I would love the feeling of being able to have a mini-home I can take anywhere.
  • Buy an RV. An RV would be amazing to help me achieve my road trip goals, & I would love the feeling of being able to have a mini-home I can take anywhere.
  • Become a life coach. I love helping & coaching other people achieve their goals & live their best lives. I realized that last year, so becoming a life coach is definitely going to be something I pursue in 2018.
  • Direct, produce, write, film, & act in a full-length indie film. This was on last year’s list & I didn’t do it. Which means I HAVE to do it this year. I love film, I love acting, & I think it would be super-awesome to actually make my own film. I’ve completed four short films, but I’m taking the bull by the horns this time & making a feature-length film.
  • Expand my network & make genuine friends. Everybody can benefit from this, & it’s something I definitely need to do. It’s also outside of my current comfort zone, so you know what that means? I have to do it to grow.
  • Get all the domains I have purchased but never made websites out of made into websites & making money for me. I currently own 10 or 11 domains, & I’m only using three of them. I’ve owned some of the domains for years & still haven’t made them public. This is embarrassing. They’re sitting around costing me money & no one can see them. So VERY SOON, all these sites are going to be up & running, & I’m going to post links to them on this blog when I do!
  • Become a fashion designer & start selling my first original clothing design. I have some great designs that I will release over the next few months. I’m so excited about seeing them when they’re done. I’ll be even more thrilled to be able to wear them myself, & being able to share them with others.
  • Walk a marathon. Last year, I walked a 5k. I need to challenge myself physically. I don’t enjoy running, but I did want a goal that was out of my (current) league, so I chose this. I know it will require a lot of training, but I’m ready to train. This will also help me achieve my goal of making 2018 my healthiest year yet.
  • Launch several products that I have in the works. Many of these are things I’ve wanted to do for forever. It’s time I made them something you can buy!
  • Complete all the online courses I have purchased. I bought them, & like my domains, they can’t benefit me until I use them.
  • Read 75 books. In 2016, I read almost no books. In 2017, I read 57 books. My goal for 2018 is 75 books. Another stretch goal, but I’m going to do my best! Besides, for a book-lover like me, the idea of reading 75 books & gaining all that knowledge makes me drool.
  • Interview more people for my blog. I love doing this, & I have a few people slated for this right now. It’s so much fun, I love the value I’m able to provide whomever I’m interviewing, & I always learn a ton.
  • Grow my online store. I have so many products, product ideas, & new designs that I can’t wait to show you!
  • Become more of a minimalist. I made progress here in the last year (it was on the 2017 list too) but I have a lot more progress to make. To echo what I said in my 2017 blurb about it,

    “This means excluding things – physical things, mental things, wasted time, unhappiness – to make more room for the things that really do feel good. I’m not trying to have as few things as possible, but as many things that make me happy with as few unnecessary things as possible. I really like this quote from this article I was reading earlier, titled Like Henry David Thoreau, but with Wi-Fi. ‘Everything in my life become my favorite thing.’ I want to live my life like that. “

  • Become a contributor to the Entrepreneur Magazine website. They’re one of my favorite websites. It would be an honor to be considered “good enough” to be a contributor. This will require me to improve & hone my writing skills, so it’s a good challenge.
  • Partner up with some of my favorite brands & companies in a way which benefits us both. With these new products & new ideas that I will launch in 2018, I’m going to add a LOT of value to the brands I partner up with.
You can stay updated on these projects & follow me on my favorite platforms with these links: