goals

Bucket lists are a great way to set goals and daydream about grand plans, but it's easy to feel overwhelmed by everything you hope to see and accomplish in your lifetime. To make your bucket list more manageable, divide it into parts and give it a yearly spin: "13 Things to Do in 2013." Choose one item to tackle each month and be realistic with your picks, setting aside the loftier ideas for a separate "someday" list.

Committing to just one item a month is reasonable enough, and when one fresh experience leaves you reenergized, you'll feel inspired to continue with the rest of your list. Not sure where to start? Here are 10 fun and doable bucket list ideas:

• Go to a museum in your city that you've never visited.
• Volunteer for a cause that means something to you.
• Visit a restaurant or attempt an intimidating recipe you'd usually avoid.
• Go all out and host the dinner party or birthday bash you've always imagined.
• Run a challenging race that requires regular training.
• Save $100 a week for four weeks and put the money toward a dream vacation.
• Do the thing you're always talking about but have been too scared to try.
• Take a beauty or fashion risk.
• Sign up for a class — fitness, language, etc. — that interests you.
• Spend a month focusing on your space and decorate in a way that inspires you.

What's on your bucket list? Share your ideas in the comments below!

It's a little depressing to hear that the majority of Americans have little faith in Gen Y. The only people that seem hopeful about our prospects are, well, the 20-somethings themselves. Just 44 percent of respondents believe that people in their 20s will have a better life than their parents, according to a Gallup survey. Compared with past results, that's the lowest since 1983 and the first time it has reached below 50 percent.

Perhaps it's a combination of rising school loans and recessionary pessimism. Or maybe it's due to the fact that Gen Y-ers are taking even longer to settle down with steady career paths compared to the previous generations. Many SavvySugar readers have chimed in and said jumping from job to job is really a mandatory result of the economy, and not because they are eager to explore job opportunities out there.

Do you think you'll be more successful than your parents?

It's the start of the weekend, and hopefully all of you have at least some time to relax and unwind. Recharge yourself for the week ahead — sorry for mentioning it! — with these savvy ways to make the most out of your free time this weekend.

• Turn your brain off. Listen to this career expert's advice to save the professional think tanking for a specific time and enjoy your time with your friends and family without feeling guilty.
• Relax on the cheap. Savvy readers know that relaxing doesn't have to mean an expensive day at the spa. Sometimes all you need is a good magazine or book or an afternoon at the thrift store to clear your mind.

For three more tips on staying productive this weekend, just read more

Enter to win our Get Fit For 2011 giveaway by completing any challenges you may have missed! Proving that it's never to late to start, FitSugar reader Jennyanne completed the first challenge of our contest and shared her health and fitness goals for the year.

My fitness goals for the year include cutting out most processed foods and sticking to natural sweets (fruit instead of cake).  I also would like to start running again and would like to try a 5K. I now do cardio at the gym, mostly elliptical, but would like to take advantage of the great outdoors more.

You, too, can enter to win our weekly prize of a $100 New Balance gift card and our fabulous grand prize — a four-day fitness boot camp in LA. Complete any of the previous challenges in our Get Fit For 2011 community group. The more you participate, the greater your chances of winning!

Flickr User PannPhotos

Meet Sugar user Mandipants and check out the fitness goals she posted in our Get Fit For 2011 community group. By doing so, she entered our weekly giveaway!

This is my first post ever so I guess here goes nothing.  I've never liked running.  Well maybe when I was younger but not since I can remember.  My favorite means of working out are dancing, Pilates, walking, and rollerblading.  I decided that this year I want to run in a 5k.  This probably doesn't sound like a very significant  goal but for me it's HUGE!  I've been working on my endurance and once I've built that up I'll focus on running faster.  I've been eating healthier and reading some great blogs.  It's been really inspiring and motivating.  I can't wait until the day I can say "I'm a runner and I love it!"

Share your fitness and health goals for the New Year in the Get Fit For 2011 community group and enter to win our weekly prize: a $100 Nike gift card. We're also giving away a fabulous grand prize fitness package!

We're thrilled to present this smart Learnvest story here on Savvy!

When we wish you a happy new year filled with lots of good luck, we’re being literal: Grab that pair of lucky socks you wore when you scored your first high school soccer goal and listen up. Studies have shown that good luck charms actually work. When the tasks at hand require some sort of skill, hard work, or fortitude, good luck charms have been proven to actually increase the rates of success. Some test subjects in a study were told that golf balls were lucky, and some weren’t. The recipients of “lucky” balls performed 35% better than the control group.

If At First You Don’t Succeed… Try, Feel Lucky, And Try Again.

Although we might be tempted to slack off and let the magic of luck do its work, special charms tend to make people feel more confident and work harder for the things they want, since they’re more convinced of their potential to succeed. This is effect, which has been noticed in world-famous athletes like Serena Williams, has been shown in both physical tasks like golf putting and mental tasks like memorization and spelling. Suffice it to say, our minds are powerful tools. Regardless of whether the charm is really magical, that reassurance tends to help people open up and face risks, which translates to bigger successes.

Keep reading for additional tips.

Your main goal in this economic climate might simply be to keep your job, but the still-slowed economy doesn't mean we have to stop thinking of where we're going with our careers.

It's important for your professional growth and your personal satisfaction to constantly be thinking about your goals and how you're going to achieve them. So tell me, what are your career goals for the New Year and beyond?