Goals for 2015

Happy Solstice Day! Today, the sun stands still in declination, having reached the highest position for an observer on the South Pole. For us in the Northern Hemisphere, today is Winter Solstice. The day is as short as it will be all year long (9 hours 33 minutes in San Francisco where I live).

Solstice day is a great day to set new goals for DivGro for 2015!

In my previous post, I reviewed my 2014 goals and reported that I've achieved all of them, essentially. The one goal I haven't achieved yet is one that I updated on 11 July 2014, to write 100 posts for DivGro instead of 72. This is my 98^th post, so I'm confident that I'll achieve that goal, too.

Before listing my 2015 goals, I'd like to state some assumptions and commitments:

• Continue with recurring investments of $2,500 per month ($30,000 for 2015).
• Continue to reinvest dividends, on average at least $400 per month (at least $4,800 in 2015).
• Deposit "passive" income earned via Google Adsense biannually.
• Deposit premium article income from Seeking Alpha at least quarterly.
• Find opportunities for bonus deposits to boost DivGro's investment capital.
• Assume yield on cost (YoC) average 4% and increases by 7% annually.

Here are my 2015 goals:

1. Increase projected annual dividend income to $7,500

Currently, DivGro's projected annual dividend income is $4,882, which is $82 above my 2014 goal of $4,800. Assuming a liberal 7% increase in dividends for existing investments, projected annual dividend income should grow to $5,224.

Next year, given my commitments listed above, new investments totaling $30,000 and reinvested dividends totaling $4,800 should afford an additional $1,392 in projected annual dividend income. I'm not accounting here for the fact that dividend income would grow over the course of the year, since dividends are paid throughout the year and not in a lump sum at the beginning of the year.

The total of $6,616 ($5,224 + $1,392) is $884 short of the listed 2015 goal, which makes it a rather stretching target. I'm hoping occasional bonus deposits and next year's web-based income would make up the difference.

Projected annual dividend income of $7,500 means that DivGro will generate a minimum of $625 per month starting in 2016. Of course, the underlying assumption is that stocks in DivGro would at least maintain their dividend payments going forward.

2. Earn $6,000 in dividend income.

My new goal of earning $6,000 in dividend income is a 67% increase over this year's goal of $3,600. Although not impossible, adding an extra $2,400 in dividend income will be challenging.

Using a formula to calculate the future value of an investment based on periodic, constant payments and a constant interest rate, I can estimate the dividend income potential of DivGro. Let's assume that on January 1, 2015, DivGro starts with a balance of $120,000 and I continue with recurring monthly deposits of $2,500. With a constant interest rate of 4%, the balance of DivGro at the end of 2014 will be $156,254. Subtracting the starting balance ($120,000) and monthly deposits (12 x $2,500 = $30,000) from the ending balance, the accrued interest will be $5,547, which is a little short of my $6,000 goal.

Again, I'm hoping the difference will be made up through occasional bonus deposits and by investing income that I receive from Adsense and Seeking Alpha.

3. Write 104 posts, including 24 premium articles for Seeking Alpha and 12 articles for DivNet.

This is my 98^th post for 2014, so aiming for 104 posts is not a stretching target by any means. However, I'm upping the ante, so to speak, by adding the subgoals of writing at least 24 premium articles for Seeking Alpha and 12 articles for The DIV-Net.

Since joining Seeking Alpha in September this year, I've written three premium articles:

1. The Bloggers' Dividend Growth Portfolio: Popular Dividend Growth Stocks Trading On U.S. Exchanges
2. Stock Analysis: Exxon Mobil Corporation
3. 10 Dividend Growth Stocks For December 2014

I have not written articles for The DivNet, yet. I became an associate member of The DivNet on 25 October 2014.

One motivation for joining Seeking Alpha and The DivNet is to network more actively with other investors focused on dividend growth investing. The wider audience and increased traffic to DivGro is a welcome bonus. Since starting DivGro nearly two years ago, I'm nearing 150,000 page views. That's an average of about 205 page views per day over the lifespan of DivGro. On Seeking Alpha, my page views are nearing 84,000 since September. That's an average of about 700 page views per day!

By having Adsense serve advertisements to my blog pages, I'm generating a little extra income. I intend to deposit this income (as well as earnings from published premium articles) into my DivGro account and invest it in dividend growth stocks! There is no doubt that increased traffic matters, but I'm fully aware that the content of my articles is what matters to my readers. 

4. Hike to Seattle and back • Climb the Burj Khalifa thirty times  • Lose three stone 

Say, what?

Yes, I'm adding a personal goal to my 2015 list – something that has very little to do with dividend growth investing... I've had great success in achieving the goals I've set for myself with DivGro, particularly because I made them public and regularly reported progress.

So, I'm (indirectly) soliciting the help of DivGro's readers to keep me on track with an ambitious tripartite goal for 2015:

• to hike 3,421,441 steps, which is the equivalent of 2,607 kilometers (1,620 miles), or the distance from San Francisco to Seattle and back;
• to climb 4,890 floors, which is equivalent to climbing the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, thirty times; and
• to lose 19.05 kg (42 pounds), which is the equivalent of three stone.

I'm planning on replacing my Fitbit, which I lost crossing the Bloukrans river while hiking the Otter Trail in South Africa in July this year. It is a cool little device that tracks your steps, distance, calories burned and floors climbed.

After losing about 10 kg in dribs and drabs over the past two years, I feel its time to crank up the effort and lose another 20. That would put me at a weight that is more ideal for my length and should reduce my body mass index to a more healthy level.
Thanks for reading! Are you setting stretching goals for 2015? Feel free to share your goals and to comment on mine! All the best for 2015 and thanks for your support!