One of the things I am trying to implement this year is to focus on building systems rather than focusing on goals. I have always been a goal oriented person, but if it is not quite clear how to achieve a goal or if the goal requires a long period of committed effort, it often is very difficult to use your willpower to achieve the desired outcomes. Instead, this year I try to build systems to help me achieve my outcomes. I have systems for when I write my blogposts, how I work with my PhD students, how I write my research papers, how I maintain my physical and mental health and how I develop new skills. Although I am very much a recreational amateur at this, I already now notice that having a system for each of these things significantly reduces the amount of willpower required and that it is much easier to engage on topics that will require a long time to lead to anything.  So, my encouragement today is to review the systems you have built in your life and work and reflect whether these are going to result in the goals that you have set for yourself.