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Go Getter & Goal Setter

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every week they post a new topic/Top Ten list and invite everyone to share their own answers. I'm so obsessed with lists!

I posted my resolutions for 2013 last Tuesday (four reading resolutions and four blogging resolutions), so I apologize if a few things on my list today seem redundant if you're a regular reader here. I did try to mix it up a little - and I focused only on my reading-related goals (instead of including goals for blogging).

Top Ten Bookish Goals for 2013

1. Read 100 books this year.
I read 127 books in 2011 and 142 in 2012, but I'm still only going to shoot for 100 books so that I don't try to compete with myself to keep reading more. It often sends me into a bad spiral of not spending enough time enjoying what I'm actually reading and not wanting to pick up thicker books because they'll take me longer to read. 

2. Read one classic per month for a total of at least twelve classics.
Because everyone needs more classics in their life - and I genuinely like reading them. I'm hoping that I'll make them more of a priority this year and not keep forgetting about all the ones sitting on my shelves. I'm looking at you, Penguin Clothbound Classics...

3. Re-read two books per month for (hopefully) a total of twenty-four re-reads.
I adore re-reading. There is something so comforting about returning to a favorite book and getting to discover the joy of it all over again. I got so caught in reading the "latest and greatest" last year that I didn't spend nearly as much time on re-reading as I would have liked. Thus, it's a goal for 2013.

4. Take notes while reading and after finishing a book  - and don't start a new book until the notes are written.
This is one of my worst habits, especially because I blog about what I read. If I didn't write on here about books, I'd never take notes while I read (aside from writing down quotes). As it is, I really need to be better about taking notes so that I can remember what I liked and disliked. I know it will help me improve my blog!

5. Try to listen to more audiobooks this year. 
I'm not tying this goal to a specific number because I honestly don't know exactly how many audiobooks I could reasonably listen to in a year. I didn't really jump on the whole audiobook boat until the middle of last year, and I'm quickly falling in love with the experience. So, I just want to continue that practice into 2013.

6. Don't buy a book unless I'll read it immediately (exceptions made for gift card purchases related to birthdays and might be made for Kindle daily deals).
I often buy books that I just have to own right away and let them sit on my shelves or Kindle for months. I have seriously purchased so many books - that I had to have - that I still haven't. In 2013, all that has to change. I can't keep this up. I'm challenging myself to not purchase anything that I don't intend to start immediately. No more Kindle one-click binges where I end up with five or six new books. This will possibly be the most difficult change for me to make this year, but I think it's necessary and will be a good thing in the long run.

7. Read books I already own - and get TBR pile below 50 books.
This is modified from my resolution last year because I needed to be specific and have a measurable goal. I completely updated Goodreads over the weekend, I discovered that I own and have not read about 120 books. Ideally, I'd love to get that number below 50 books, but I think that's a good number to aim for right now. I don't think it will be too hard if I'm focused and purposeful about my reading this year.

8. Finish three series this year.
I think April at Good Books and Good Wine had this as a resolution, and I honestly think it's a great goal. It probably won't be too hard for me to complete - I should be finishing the Matched series by Ally Condie soon. And I can think of one or two others that I could easily finish within the year.

9. Participate in one read-along.
Last year, I participated in the Charles Dickens Bleak House read-along that was hosted by Unputdownables. I really loved doing it, and it helped me stay on track and finish the book. I also loved the feeling of discussing a book with other people - like being in a virtual book club. I may actually beat this goal within the first few months of the year. I'm joining some lovely ladies in a read/re-read of Kristin Cashore's Seven Kingdoms series (Graceling, Fire and Bitterblue). And I'm reading Les Miserables with my cousin... so that's basically two read-alongs!

10. Complete one reading challenge.
I still haven't decided on a reading challenge yet, but I would like to join one this year. It seems like a really fun experience, especially if you join the right one for you. So, I'm still on the search. Let me know if you have any suggestions!

46 comments

  1. You're quite ambitious! My TBR pile is a bit over 50, so if I stopped buying book the entire year I could probably read them all. Realistically it so isn't happening.

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    1. Haha I know! I read 142 books last year, so I think I make a dent in my TBR and still buy new books/get them from the library. It sounded realistic when I came up with it haha but we'll see if it happens!

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  2. I agree with Christine, ambitious goals. I've been doing the Moby Dick Big Read where you download a chapter a day. It's been terrific and I'm so glad I did. Had no idea Moby Dick had so much humor.

    I like your goals. They sound doable and productive.

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    1. Thanks! I haven't read Moby Dick, but I never thought of it as humorous. I love classics though so I'll have to keep it in mind for future reading.

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  3. Great goals. Too many great ones to comment on, but I especially empathize with #5. Good luck.

    Here's mine

    ~Danica Page
    Taking It One Page at a Time

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  4. I love #7 I need to do that one.
    Great list. Feel free to stop by and View My TTT

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    1. Haha I think that's one most book bloggers probably need to do! :)

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  5. Love your list so practical, it's probably what my list should be haha
    my TTT

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    1. Yeah I was trying to think of goals I could actually accomplish and would be productive haha!

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  6. Great list Hannah! I also want to read 100 books and get my TBR list under control, among about a million other things. Good luck with your goals! :)

    My Top Ten Bookish Resolutions

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    1. Yay for 100 books and conquering the TBR! Good luck to you :)

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  7. You should check out the TBR pile challenge (hosted by Evie @ Bookish, as well as a few other bloggers). It's the only one I'm doing this year, since I'm focusing on reading books that I already own and haven't read (like you!) so this might be a good fit for you as well =)

    And I saw your pic of your audiobooks online -- you are going to LOVE The Help on audio. That's how I read the book, and I loved that the audio had multiple narrators, which really helped the story to come alive.

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    1. Thanks for telling me about the TBR Pile challenge. I'll definitely be checking that out! It fits exactly with my goals and what I already want to accomplish.

      I loved The Help as a book, and I think you're going to be so right about the audio. I knew I wanted to listen to it when I saw that there were multiple narrators. I think I'm going to love it even more!

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  8. Yes, the same happens to me when I read a book and I don't take some note. At first I thought: "yeah, I'm going to remember everything, so I don't need them." And then, I tried to write a review and I was: "so, I love the main character who is a girl, or was it a boy?" hahahaha yes, taking notes helps a looot ;)

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    1. Hahaha yes that's it exactly! The worst is when I let too much time pass and then can't even really remember a character's name. I SO need to take notes :)

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  9. Now if your reading challenge was one about tackling the TBR stack ( there's a few out there- I'm doing 'Off the Shelf' and have done Mount TBR last year) then you'd also knock some other resolutions off your lst!

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    1. Great suggestion!! That's the PERFECT way to knock off multiple goals :)

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  10. Wow, so many of your goals are mine too, except some didnt make it to the lsit :) Good luck in all of these. I hope you achieve them all :)

    My Bookish/Blogger Goals

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  11. Great goals! I would really like to participate in a reading challenge too, but am also unsure which one because there are just so many! I think taking notes while reading helps you think about what you're reading and makes review writing easier. Good luck with your goals!

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    1. Thanks! Good luck with your goals as well! And yes, there really are too many reading challenges to choose from.

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  12. Love your list! Rereading is always fun and you had a really good point that although won't be in my list, I might steal it: to make notes and not procrastinate! I HAVE to be better on my reviewing and to not forget everything :)

    My TTT: http://blueskyshelf.blogspot.com/2013/01/top-ten-tuesday-bookish-goals-for-2013.html

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    1. Yeah, I really do need to get better about writing a review as soon as I finish a book OR at least taking more notes while I read. I hate when I assume I'll remember stuff about a book and then my mind is like a blank slate haha

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  13. Well, you know how I feel about audiobooks. And I love the idea of mixing the classic in there, although I don't feel as ambitious about it as you are and for BEING ambitious, I salute you. I do want to read some "classic-type" books, but I want to read some more along the lines of 1984, Brave New World, The Handmaid's Tale, and the like this year instead of the older classics. So would those be modern classics? I'm not exactly sure.

    Finishing the series, that's good! Readalongs, love them! I do them so much behind the wall of blogging and twitter. I love that you'll be trying to do that as well. So much fun!

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    1. Those would definitely count as modern classics! And I'd totally count any of those toward my goal. I know I'm being ambitious - let's just see if I can actually accomplish my goal!

      Yay for finishing series! And you know I'm getting into this whole readalong thing.

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  14. Completing challenges is one of my goals aswell. I'm participating in two challenges and one personal one (which I still need to blog about)..I'm still interested in other challenges, so maybe I will join another one. Two years ago I participated in a couple challenges and I only finished one. Big whoops there. lol. ;)

    Good luck with your goals!

    My FF

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    1. Yeah, I don't want to overcommit with challenges because I have a feeling I won't be able to finish them all. Plus, I like to read whatever I'm in the mood for and I'm scared that joining too many challenges will make me feel like there are too many things I "have" to read.

      Good luck with your challenges this year!

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  15. I love your idea of taking notes! I've avoided that I think because it makes me think I'm taking the fun out of my reading experience. But I guess thats just a theory and if we actually enjoy taking notes for the purpose of blogging, then that notion is obsolete.

    Love your goals! Hope you achieve them all!

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    1. Lately I've just been writing down a few things once I finish a book, and that seems to be working. I like it better than stopping and interrupting my reading to write something down, and it still helps me write my review once I'm done!

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  16. I totally do have finish three series as my resolution -- because I only have one book left in the three series that I want to finish. Yay.

    Also. I am so jealous that you might be able to get your TBR below 50 books. SO SO JEALOUS.

    Good luck!

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    1. I can think of three series with only one book left so it totally appealed to me for the same reason hah!

      And don't be jealous until I actually do it! Until then, let's see if I have enough self-discipline to stop buying so many books.

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  17. Great goals, Hannah! I don't even know how many books are on my shelves that are TBR. Like you, I should go through them and make a specific goodreads list for that sole purpose. My goal is to really limit what I'm spending money on this year. Until the end of 2012, any book that went on my kindle was read pretty much immediately. Now I somehow have 17 books on there because of the $1.99 kindle deals I kept finding. Seriously? That's almost obnoxious. I need to stop the madness!

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    1. Yeah, I'm so glad I got things organized on Goodreads. I was surprised at just how many books I owned and hadn't read, so I hope I focus more on books I already own this year.

      I've always had a problem on my Kindle! I always end up buying books in bulk and ending up with like at least 20 on there just waiting for me to read.

      Yes, I SO need to stop the madness!

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  18. Great resolutions! I think it'd be pretty impossible to get my TBR below 50, so I've put myself on a year long buying ban instead (won't work, as I'm still allowed to buy books for my baby so there are still ridiculous amounts coming in!)

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    1. Haha I tried a book buying ban last year, and it lasted like a week! That's why I revised it this year to be a ban unless I am going to read it right away. If I will, then I'm allowing myself to get it.

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  19. Terrific goals. I hope to sign up for a read-a-long too this year. I haven't ever participated in one yet. I signed up for my first two challenges for 2013. Very exciting.

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  20. Yay more audios.

    Dude I am SO bad with series.

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    1. I'm like the serial series dropper.

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    2. That's funny! I love series most of the time. I kind of hate how many series I've started with only one or two books published. I don't always read them back to back, but I want to be able to if I'm really into it. With such long breaks in between books I end up needing to re-read to remember what was going on.

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  21. I love rereading, too! I need to do more of that this year, too. I have a few that I want to get through this week. And I need to take notes, too ... it helps SO MUCH when it comes time to write reviews! And I'm soooo bad for buying books and then letting them sit on my shelf forever. Reading them right away would make things so much easier!

    Great goals. :)

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    1. Yay for re-reading! I love finding out people like to re-read. I know so many people who don't! And yes, I really need to take notes, even if they are just jotting down some quick thoughts. I have legit decided not to review books before because I can't remember enough about them to actually write a review.

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  22. Ambitious! Wow, I like the classics one! I should add some classics to my TBR list this year. Good luck!

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    1. Haha I'm hoping I'm successful and ambitious! We shall see :)

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  23. Good choices for your resolutions this year! I commented on a few of these in your previous post, but I have more to say about a few of the items on this list.

    I think it's a great idea to want to finish a series! I have a few hanging up in the air unfinished as of the moment, and hopefully, I get around to finishing them this year as well.

    Also, I love read-alongs! If we ever have a book in common on our TBR, we should totally do one.

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    1. I have a few series in mind that I know I can finish, so it will be nice to be able to wrap them this year.

      And I'm even more excited now about our upcoming read-along! WOOHOO!

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