Every January, I sit down and write three business goals, three personal goals, and three financial goals for the coming year. I’ve found that simply writing them down creates accountability, but it also gives me something much more valuable six months later, a chance to stop and ask how I am doing.
I’m a recovering do-it-all-aholic. My default setting is to chase the next opportunity, start another project, or convince myself that just one more thing will move me closer to success. Over the last year, I’ve been trying to fight that instinct. Instead of simply building more, I’m trying to build better.
That’s why this mid-year check-in has become one of my favorite articles to write. Sometimes it reminds me I need to work harder. Other times, it reminds me that I’m making more progress than I realized. Let’s see where I stand halfway through 2026.
Business Goals
Goal #1: Decrease My Time Requirement at the Laundromat
At the beginning of the year, I was spending about six hours every five days at the laundromat, plus another five hours a week on administrative tasks. My goal was simple: cut my in-person time in half and get down to one trip every ten days.
I haven’t quite made it there, but I’m making meaningful progress.
We’re now going about every seven days instead of every five. Our mobile payment usage has increased from roughly 15% of revenue to around 25%, which is encouraging. The interesting challenge, however, is that our business has continued to grow. While a larger percentage of customers are paying with cards, the total amount of cash coming into the store has also increased, so the change machines are still full every week.
I’ve considered adding another change machine, which would increase our capacity by another $7,000, but I’d still have to empty the quarters weekly from the machines. Sometimes growth creates new problems instead of eliminating old ones.
One of the biggest wins has been learning to trust other people. Our employee has collected the store several times while we were traveling, allowing us to stay away for nearly two weeks without worrying about the business. That’s something I couldn’t have imagined a year ago.
My administrative workload has also dropped dramatically. Most of the recurring tasks have been automated, and what used to take about five hours each week now takes about one hour. While I haven’t reached my original goal yet, I consider this a success. More importantly, I’m building a business that doesn’t completely depend on me being there every few days.
Goal #2: Build a Plug-and-Play SOP
This one was fun to revisit because I could immediately put a mental checkmark beside it. Mission accomplished. Over the past several months, I’ve built a comprehensive operating manual for the laundromat inside Notion. Every major process is documented, from collections and stocking supplies to ordering inventory and even bookkeeping.
Creating the SOP forced me to ask an important question over and over again: “If I disappeared for a month, could someone else figure this out?” The answer today is much closer to “yes” than it was six months ago. This project took a tremendous amount of time upfront, but I view it as an investment rather than an expense. Every system I document today makes future growth easier, whether that’s hiring another employee or eventually purchasing a second laundromat.
Goal #3: Increase Self-Serve Revenue
The goal was to increase our self-serve revenue to $35,000 per month. I’m happy to report that we’ve essentially reached it. Some months we’ve exceeded $35,000, while others have come in just below that mark. Overall, we’re averaging approximately $34,000 per month, which is far ahead of where we started the year. Even more encouraging is that this growth has come entirely from our existing self-service business. We’ve talked about adding revenue streams, but after seeing this kind of organic growth, we’ve decided to let the business continue to mature before adding anything new. Sometimes the best decision isn’t chasing the next idea, which could create more problems than money.
Personal Goals
Goal #1: Run a Half Marathon
This goal is technically complete, but like any good goal, it evolved. After finishing training for the half marathon distance and running one, I immediately found myself asking, “What’s next?” The answer was a new challenge: breaking two hours. I’m currently training for another half marathon this October, and while I don’t know if I’ll hit that goal, I know I’ll be in better shape because I tried.
The biggest surprise hasn’t been just crossing off the box; it’s becoming someone who genuinely enjoys running. If you had told me a year ago that I would voluntarily wake up early to run, look for new places to run while on vacation, or plan weekends around a long run, I would have laughed. Running has given me so much more than exercise. It’s given me quiet time to think. More opportunities to listen to books and podcasts. Better physical and mental health. A chance to explore new cities and parks while traveling. My kids have watched me stay committed, whether we’re at the beach, camping, or halfway across the country in an RV. I hope, more than anything, they remember that consistency matters.
This has become much more than checking a race off a bucket list. It’s become part of who I am, and I hope it’s a habit I keep for many seasons of life, even if life changes and we someday decide to have another baby.
Goal #2: One Unhurried Day Every Week
This one has been much harder. The book that inspired this goal, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, has been so impactful that I recently started reading it again. Apparently, I needed the reminder. If I’m being honest, I don’t think I’ve accomplished this goal very well. Life has been wonderfully full. Between homeschooling, medicine, the laundromat, writing, traveling, and raising three kids, “busy” still feels like the default setting. The encouraging part is that I’m at least aware of it now.
Six months ago, I would have simply accepted being constantly busy as normal. Today, I notice when my schedule starts controlling me instead of the other way around. That awareness alone has changed many of my daily decisions. This goal remains one of my biggest priorities for the second half of the year.
Goal #3: Quarterly Overnight Trips With My Husband
I’m calling this one exactly what it is. A failure. We spent exactly one night away from our kids during the first half of the year, and it wasn’t even intentional. A laundromat issue required us to stay overnight in a hotel, so technically we accomplished the goal… just not in the spirit I had envisioned.
One thing this goal reminded me of is that good intentions don’t automatically become priorities. It’s easy to assume there will always be time for your marriage after the next busy season, the next acquisition, or the next vacation with the kids. But relationships don’t grow because we intend to spend time together. They grow because we actually do. This goal deserves much more attention during the second half of the year.
Financial Goals
Goal #1: Buy Another Laundromat
This goal remains unfinished. We’re still looking. To be completely honest, I’ve slacked off a little over the last several weeks. I think I’ve fallen into analysis paralysis. We came very close to purchasing another laundromat last month. We spent hours reviewing financials, talking with lenders, running projections, and doing due diligence. On paper, it looked like it could work. But something just didn’t feel right. I’ve learned over the last year that there is a big difference between buying a laundromat and buying the right laundromat. For a few weeks, I almost ignored the goal altogether, hoping it would quietly disappear. It didn’t. I still find myself looking at listings almost every day. I still get excited when a new opportunity comes across my desk. I still want another store. I’m just not willing to force the wrong deal simply so I can say I accomplished the goal.
Will I eventually buy another laundromat?
Absolutely. Knowing myself, I’ll probably overanalyze it for months and then one day make an impulsive decision and figure it out, just like we did with our first one.
Goal #2: Increase Acquisition Lendability
This goal is complete. The objective was to have multiple financing options available before purchasing another business, and I feel much more confident in that area today. During our last acquisition attempt, we spent a tremendous amount of time interviewing business acquisition lenders and understanding what financing would actually look like.
Today we have an SBA lending option if we choose to use it. We also have relationships with two investors who have expressed interest in partnering on future acquisitions if we decide to move faster. Ironically, building financing options has made me less anxious about buying another business. I know the capital is available. Now I simply need the right opportunity. There’s still a stubborn part of me that wants to buy the next laundromat entirely on my own, but it’s nice knowing there are other paths if the right deal comes along and I can’t get it on my own.
Goal #3: Increase Cash Reserves
The goal here was to build six months of operating expenses inside the business. At the moment, we’re sitting at about four months. That’s slightly behind where I hoped to be, but I’m still happy with the progress.
Earlier this summer, we invested in mini-splits for the laundromat. It was a significant expense, but one that should improve the customer experience and reduce long-term operating costs. That project probably delayed this goal by about a month. Assuming nothing unexpected happens, I fully expect to hit the six-month reserve goal before the end of the year.
The Goals I Didn’t Know I Had
This may be my favorite part of the article.
When I wrote my goals in January, I had no idea these things would become so important.
Becoming a “Real” Runner
I thought my goal was simply to finish a half marathon. Instead, I became someone who actually enjoys running. That still feels strange to write. Running has become part of my routine instead of another item on my to-do list. I’ve built vacations around it. I’ve explored new cities by running through them. My kids have watched me lace up my shoes at the beach, at the lake, in campgrounds, and while traveling across the country. More than anything, I hope they’ve seen what consistency looks like. I’m healthier than I’ve been in a long time, and I can head out the door for a five-mile run without thinking twice. Somewhere along the way, running stopped being a goal and became part of who I am and want to be.
Changing My Relationship With Medicine
This one surprised me the most. I never expected that working less in medicine would make me enjoy medicine more. The PRN lifestyle has completely changed my relationship with my career. I enjoy going to work. I don’t feel trapped by it. I don’t feel the constant pressure to climb another ladder or prove myself. For probably the first time in my professional life, I’m content simply being good at what I do. That sentence is harder to write than I expected. I’ve always been someone who wanted to be the best at everything. Now I find myself wanting something different. I want to enjoy my work and protect my time at home. That has been an unexpected but incredibly welcome shift.
Seeing More of the World
This has easily been our biggest family win. We’ve spent time at new beaches, explored a new lake, traveled across the country in an RV, and made memories that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. And we’re not finished yet. We still have another Florida road trip, camping trips, and hikes planned before the year is over. Travel has reminded me why we’re working so hard in the first place. The purpose of building businesses and investing isn’t only to accumulate more money. It’s to create experiences with the people we love while we still have the opportunity. Those memories will outlast any investment account. They already have.
Conclusion
Looking back, I’m grateful, not because I’ve accomplished every goal I set out to achieve, but because I’m becoming the person I hoped these goals would help me become. This year has been less about checking boxes and more about building a life. I’m healthier than I was six months ago. Our business is stronger than it was six months ago. I’m more fulfilled in medicine than I was six months ago. My family has spent more quality time together.
And while some goals remain unfinished, I don’t view them as failures. Goals aren’t meant to be a pass-or-fail exercise. They’re meant to give us direction. Sometimes we reach exactly where we intended to go. Other times, they lead us somewhere even better. Perhaps the biggest lesson of the first half of 2026 is that the most meaningful progress wasn’t on the list I wrote in January. I didn’t know I’d become someone who genuinely enjoys running. I didn’t know my relationship with medicine would completely change.
As I look toward the second half of the year, there are still plenty of things I want to accomplish. I’d still like to buy another laundromat, continue building our business, hit a sub-two-hour half marathon, and become better at protecting unhurried time with my family. Stay tuned to see where the rest of this year ends up.