Jan 12, 2025 | 2025 Goals

This year is the first time I’m writing long essays publicly about all my learnings and observations about myself, my life and everything that bothers me. I covered the 2024 recap here.

For many years, I used to plan my goals for next year as a list of outcomes:

1. Increase my wealth by $100,000

2. Build a profitable business

3. Lose 20 kilos

4. Visit 5 new countries

5. And so on.

All these goals were always binary. You either hit them, or you didn’t.

I realized that this approach doesn’t really work for me. Every time I failed to check a box, it made me feel like a failure. Even when I made progress, I was left with a persistent sense that I hadn’t accomplished anything at all.

This year I want to try something different.

This year, I’m changing how I set my goals.

Prioritizing internal state and process

This year, when setting goals, I will focus on the internal state they create for me.

This state should be consistent, unchanging, and sustainable over time. Instead of focusing on temporary emotions tied to specific accomplishments (like the satisfaction of checking off a box), my focus will be on cultivating a steady and balanced state.

For example, in the past, when setting a goal to lose weight, I always made “hitting a specific number on the scale” my objective. I’ve set and achieved this goal many times in my life. However, all it gave me was the fleeting joy of reaching that number and checking it off my list. After achieving it, I would inevitably return to my old habits and regain the unhealthy weight a few years later.

This time, when setting a goal to lose weight, my objective will be to achieve and maintain a lasting sense of health and vitality, rather than focusing on a specific number. Framing the objective this way feels like a shift in my mindset. I realize that I need to focus on building daily habits and systems to ensure a lasting, sustainable effect.

Desired internal state

I feel that in order to set my goals properly this year, I first need to clarify internal state I'm willing to create and things I think would contribute to it.

Sense of safety

1. Keep myself away from war

2. Protect my safety net

Sense of health

1. Do exercise and sports

2. Eat healthier

3. Sleep better

4. Less stress

Sense of vigor

1. Sleep better

2. A lot of sun and warn (but not hot) climate

3. Big water nearby

4. Beautiful nature nearby

5. Travel and open new things

Sense of self-fulfilment

1. Create new things: products and content

2. Build a business

Sense of family idyll

1. Spend quality time with family (wife, parents)

2. Start working on a child

3. Live in a great place with family

Sense of financial freedom

1. Consume less

2. Have passive income

Sense of home

1. Settle in a new country

2. Buy a home

Sense of comfort

1. Live in a great place

2. Have a home

3. Have a car

Sense of success

1. Have a profitable business

2. Have passive income

3. Own a home

4. Own a car

5. Have a family and kids

6. Look healthy and sporty

7. Increase wealth

8. Separate interesting from important

Goals for 2025

Based on sense and things outline above, here are my goals for 2025:

Objective 1: Retain my job and salary

Contributing to: sense of safety, sense of health, sense of vigor

The strategic project is getting to its closure at Yola.com. Considering all of the goals outlined below, I must do everything to retain the job to continue receiving income cover all life needs and support my goals.

Success criteria:

1. At minimum,

   1. Job and existing income is retained

   2. Annual bonus plan is confirmed

2. To nail it,

   1. Salary is increased

   2. Annual bonus is received

Todo:

1. Continue being the key employee and delivering results as per my responsibilities

2. Continue to plan working hours in the calendar to limit the time I spend on this.

Objective 2: Protect my status in Ukraine

Contributing to: sense of safety, sense of health

Last year I have legally left Ukraine through my exemption from mobilisation. I want to stay in this white legal field this year by extending my reservation or find other ways to avoid any legal issues that could affect my assets in Ukraine or my ability to travel to other countries.

Success criteria:

1. No legal action taken on me in Ukraine

2. No issues with assets in Ukraine

3. No issues with traveling to other countries

How to:

1. Re-apply for criticality status and exemption from mobilization through my company

2. Otherwise, do it through someone else's company

3. Otherwise, pay fines and move assets

Objective 3: Double-down on Portugal as a candidate for new home

Contributing to: sense of home, sense of vigor, sense of health, sense of family idyll

My wife and I have been living in Portugal for the last 2 months. And we enjoyed living and would love to settle here. But there is one big issue – large taxes with an effective rate of 38% for my current income. It's a huge blocker for us so I need to explore options to optimise our tax burden before going all-in with Portugal.

I've done my research and found that Portugal offers programs like NHR 2.0 (IFICI) and Startup Madeira that could be a potential fit for it. I need to explore this options and come up with a plan.

Success criteria:

1. At the minimum, conclusion on opportunity to settle in Portugal

2. To nail it,

   1. Legal status in Portugal

   2. Paying taxes that are less than 20% of my total income

Todo:

1. Find a legal attorney in Portugal

2. Spend at least 5 hours per month on getting progress with this goal

Objective 4: Double-down on Lisapet.ai

Contributing to: sense of self-fulfilment, sense of success

Last year, business-wise I've spread myself to thin across many loosely-related projects trying to build a profitable business. This year, I'm making my single big bet on Lisapet.ai. All my business-related activity must be tied to it.

Success criteria:

1. At minimum, MVP is launched to the market, first customers acquired and revenue generated

2. To nail it, first equity-free money raised for further developments

Todo:

1. Before MVP is launched,

   1. Spend at least 20 hours on development per week.

   2. Put on pause, everything else.

2. After MVP is launched,

   1. Spend at least 10 hours on development per week

   2. Spend at least 10 hours on marketing per week

3. Build in public

   1. Write essays about all of the learnings from Lisapet.ai

   2. Publish it on Substack, Youtube

   3. Distribute it on LinkedIn, Reddit, Twitter

4. Separate important from interesting. Reject interesting. Focus on important.

Objective 5: Double-down on options to buy real estate

Contributing to: sense of financial freedom, sense of success

Since 2021, real estate prices have risen significantly in Portugal. In Portimão and Cascais, prices per square meter have increased by approximately 50%, while on Madeira, they have doubled. Considering our plans for settlement, it would be ideal to secure a mortgage in one of these cities.

With the war in Ukraine nearing its end, my wife has legal eligibility to obtain a mortgage with potential benefits due to her displaced status, likely including more favourable terms. Real estate prices in Ukraine are expected to appreciate even faster after the war ends. If we can secure good terms, this year presents an excellent opportunity to invest in property.

I see real estate as the fastest way to get a significant wealth increase and generate larger low-risk passive stable income. It also contributes to my goal of consuming less. To me consumption is when you spend your money with no returns. By doing this, I'm moving my housing expenses from consumption to investment area.

Success criteria:

1. At the minimum,

   1. Having a clear step-by-step plan of buying a real estate in Portugal that could pay for itself through short term rentals

   2. Having a clear step-by-step plan of buying a real estate in Ukraine that could pay for itself through short-term or long-term rentals

2. To nail it,

   1. Having a mortgage for real estate in Portugal

   2. Renting out the real estate in Portugal or living there ourselves

   3. Having a mortgage for real estate in Ukraine

   4. Renting out the real estate in Ukraine

Todo:

1. Find a landlord in Portugal

2. Find a mortgage attorney in Portugal

3. Find a landlord in Ukraine

4. Find a mortgage attorney in Ukraine

5. Spend at least 5 hours per month on getting progress with this goal

Objective 6: Conceive a baby

Contributing to: sense of safety, sense of health, sense of vigor

I want to a baby. My wife wants them as well. I'm scared as fuck of actually doing it and can list a 100 reasons why not now. But I've been doing this all the time. There never was the right time, and I feel that it never will. Because the right time is always now. Especially now, when I finally have the right person to do it with.

Success criteria:

1. Conceived a baby

Todo:

1. Start trying

Objective 7: Take care of myself

Contributing to: sense of health, sense of vigor, sense of success

I've done it 5 or 6 times now, and every time I always get to starting point a few years after. This time I want to do it differently. I want change habits to make a good shape a consequence, not the goal.

Success criteria:

1. I feel more healthy

2. I feel more sporty

3. I feel more energy

4. I feel less stressed

5. I sleep better

Todo:

1. Workout at least 2 times a week

2. Eat healthy every day for Fuel eating

3. Allow myself Fun eating 2 times a month

4. Continue working with a therapist

5. Use all available vacation for travel and holidays