Happy New Year, you beautiful, complicated, weird people.
Has the fresh slate of a new year motivated you to make changes in your life, great or small?
If so, what are they? And are you confidant that you will keep them, or are you already busted?
If not, why not?
I’m welcoming 2019 with open arms and a slew of good intentions. I’m gonna list my goals here, and return in January 2020 to evaluate progress. You’re welcome to add yours in a comment. Words have power, and listing your intentions is a powerful act.
It’s important to remember that we don’t have to be perfect in our resolve. If you set the intention to exercise every day, and then you miss two days in a row, do you quit exercising entirely? Hell no! Improvement is still improvement, even if the progress is jerky.
But I find I do better if there is some structure to my goals. The method I use is SMART goals. The acronym stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound.
SPECIFIC refers to a concrete, clearly-defined goal. My first goal: I want to finish my book, Crescent Moon Crossing this year.
MEASURABLE is the ‘drilling down’ on that goal: I want to write 500 words every day until the book is finished.
Next is ACHIEVABLE. I want to aim high, but within reason. I know that writing a book is doable for me, since I already have one published. But also want to establish the habit of writing every day, while also feeling like I have a life away from my desk.
Is this a RELEVANT goal? You bet it is! I decided to write this stand-alone suspense before going on to write Book 2 in my Ancient Magic series. I’ve futzed around so long that my first book has gotten stale. I desperately need to jump-start a healthy daily writing habit.
And, at last, the T for TIMELINE, probably the most important. Looking at my calendar, I see there are 4 days in the next 4 months where I have prior commitments that will prevent me from achieving my 500 word goal. I move my deadline out four days, to April 20th, and write “Rough Draft Finished” on that date. It feels great!
My List – 15 New Year Resolutions for 2019:
This list feels like A LOT. Any volunteers to share their Resolutions list here? I’ll share your pain and support you for the entire year!
Has the fresh slate of a new year motivated you to make changes in your life, great or small?
If so, what are they? And are you confidant that you will keep them, or are you already busted?
If not, why not?
I’m welcoming 2019 with open arms and a slew of good intentions. I’m gonna list my goals here, and return in January 2020 to evaluate progress. You’re welcome to add yours in a comment. Words have power, and listing your intentions is a powerful act.
It’s important to remember that we don’t have to be perfect in our resolve. If you set the intention to exercise every day, and then you miss two days in a row, do you quit exercising entirely? Hell no! Improvement is still improvement, even if the progress is jerky.
But I find I do better if there is some structure to my goals. The method I use is SMART goals. The acronym stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound.
SPECIFIC refers to a concrete, clearly-defined goal. My first goal: I want to finish my book, Crescent Moon Crossing this year.
MEASURABLE is the ‘drilling down’ on that goal: I want to write 500 words every day until the book is finished.
Next is ACHIEVABLE. I want to aim high, but within reason. I know that writing a book is doable for me, since I already have one published. But also want to establish the habit of writing every day, while also feeling like I have a life away from my desk.
Is this a RELEVANT goal? You bet it is! I decided to write this stand-alone suspense before going on to write Book 2 in my Ancient Magic series. I’ve futzed around so long that my first book has gotten stale. I desperately need to jump-start a healthy daily writing habit.
And, at last, the T for TIMELINE, probably the most important. Looking at my calendar, I see there are 4 days in the next 4 months where I have prior commitments that will prevent me from achieving my 500 word goal. I move my deadline out four days, to April 20th, and write “Rough Draft Finished” on that date. It feels great!
My List – 15 New Year Resolutions for 2019:
- Complete my 2nd novel, Crescent Moon Crossing, by May 1.
- Novel accepted by a publisher-or- published, by end of July.
- Attend Dallas Bucheron and Donald Maas workshop (October)
- 10k steps at least 5 days a week (by walking each dog daily)
- Take a Tai Chi class – twice for 4 weeks each
- Take a Yoga class – weekly
- Do a plank exercise 5 days a week
- Limit carbs to 250grams a day. Adjust as needed to lower A1C to <7.0
- Drink at least 35oz water a day (in addition to tea & coffee
- Release and identified toxic people from my life. I know who they are, no need to name them here.
- Bed by midnight
- Vacuum 2x a week. Dog hair be gone!
- Book all DR visits at first of year, and bunch together.
- Read and Netgalley review 3 books/month
- Clean out closets and donate old clothes. Eliminate ruthlessly, and reward myself with one new outfit.
This list feels like A LOT. Any volunteers to share their Resolutions list here? I’ll share your pain and support you for the entire year!
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