My Card Collecting Goals for 2018

Since 2017 is coming to an end very soon, I've decided to do something many card bloggers do this time of year. That happens to be my card collecting goals for the upcoming year.

I've had a few goals in mind for years past, but this is my first time making a clear list of things I want to accomplish next year in the baseball card collecting hobby. I have 7 goals that I'd like to complete by the end of next year, here they are.

#1 Complete 1972 Topps

I put this goal at #1 because it is the number one priority for next year. My dad started collecting my favorite set of all-time the year it came out and since then he and I have acquired many cards from the set, but have still yet to complete it. I need just 31 cards from the set and then I will have it completed. And while I still have expensive cards like the Steve Garvey to check off my list, I'm confident that 2018 will be the year I complete the set.

#2 Complete the 1969 and 1970 Pilots Team Sets

The Pilots were around for just 1 year but appeared in both the 1969 and 1970 Topps sets. This is another part of my collection that I began collecting with my dad, but with 4 cards missing from the 1969 team set, and just 1 missing from the 1970 set, it seems quite likely that this goal will be completed in 2018.

#3 Continue to Focus on Player Collections

Player collections make up most of what I focus my collection on nowadays. And with many inexpensive options available regarding adding to these collections, it makes sense to keep on adding to them. I collect almost 200 players, but thanks to dime cards I am almost always able to add to these collections. My goal for player collections in 2018 is to keep on adding to them and have them remain the main focus of my collection. 

#4 Control Impulse Purchases

The main lesson I learned in 2017 is not to buy cards for the sake of buying cards. And although I don't typically regret card purchases (because every purchase has to give you at least 1 card you like) I still have made some collecting in 2017. From now on, I'm not going to buy a product or an individual card that I'm not completely interested in if it's going to set me back a fair amount of money. This will not only be good for me but also allow me to use the money I didn't spend on the goals listed above.

#5 Continue to Trade and Eliminate Cards From My Want List

I have to say, one of the best parts of having a card blog is that it allows me to discover new bloggers to trade with. I've completed several trades since starting my blog and all of them have helped me take cards off my want list. My goal for 2018 is to keep this up and continue to trade with both people I haven't traded with before as well as those who I have. This will help me as well as whoever I trade with in terms of getting cards off our respective want lists. 

#6 Complete My Player Collection Project

Recently, I've spent a lot of time putting all of my player collections into penny sleeves and into 5200-count boxes to decrease the amount of space these collections take up. And while this has been a worthwhile process, one that I touched on in an earlier post, it still takes time. I feel certain that I can have all of my player collections in boxes by the end of next year, because of all the progress I've made. I'm well over halfway there, so I believe that this could be one of the first goals I complete.

#7 Buy a Topps Now Card

This final goal is a bit random, but I've always wanted a Topps Now card, I just don't like the price they go for and only have a day or so to buy a card. With that being said, I am making it a goal to buy 1 carefully chosen Topps Now card next year for a Red Sox player. Since Chris Sale and Rafael Devers are bound to have cards of them made next year, as well as other Red Sox players, this shouldn't be too hard. The hardest part will simply be making sure I'm choosing a worthwhile card.