Where are you going?

At the first of the year our fearless leader sent us all goal sheets. What's a goal sheet? Well it is an instrument of torture, confusion, and realization that engenders, shock, betrayal, resignation, and finally acceptance. Yes, it resembles getting a dread disease. However, it also points the way to a cure.

Several years ago when our fearless leader previously held the same whip-handed position, she had us learn and set goals. I was shocked then too. First be being asked to set a goal, finding out what a goal was, getting the explanation on how the fool things are supposed to work, rejecting the very nature of self-inflicting such a yoke on mine neck, and generally being a faunching pill about the whole thing. But then I buckled. I can only keep up the howling bits of immature resistance for so long--about thirty minutes. So, I wrote out my writing goals, put the near ones in as well as the far, sent a copy to mine leader (If I remember right), and then went on with life.

But a very strange thing happened. At the end of the year, when I ran across the goals, I was so surprised to find out that I had actually met most of them. I pondered how that could be when I had ignored actively working towards them and discovered (by studying up) that goals can be internalized and therefore subconsciously we use them to make decisions about how we spend our time. The very act of writing them down does some of the work. Did I set writing goals the next year? Of course not. I was in experimental mode by then and wanted to know if I DIDN'T make a goal would my subconscious work on making writing a priority? Guess what, my stinking subconscious went on vacation. NO writing goals were met. She's such a slacker! It appears that without direction she goes nowhere.

Really. This explains a lot. I'll give you a minute to think it through. Go get some serious beverage. I'll wait.

So this year, when our leader sent out goal sheets, I thought, Yeauh, OK, I'm on board with this. Then I opened ALL of the sheets. Geesus, blind, cripple on a bicycle in heavy traffic in a snowstorm! Ok, you swear the way you want to, I'll swear the way I do. Those sheets threw me completely. Why? Because to make my goals fit into my life I had to re-goal or make goals for everything else I want to make progress on. Then I realized my whole life needed an overhaul. No wonder things I was working at piecemeal weren't really being effective.

What could I do about it? Duh. Think of course. What did I really want out of life? What did I really want to accomplish? How many pies did I have that I was nibbling on? So, what did I do? I borrowed a book, a nemesis book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Why is this a nemesis book? Because I had tried to read it several years ago, carrying it with me wherever I went so that I could finish it--and many a time someone would call me and ask me if it was my book I'd left behind. Yup, small communities notice these things (my name wasn't in it). I gave up on it when I accidently left it in the post office and they called me. I was too embarrassed to get yet another call.

I'm halfway through the darned thing and I've filled out all the goal sheets. I've a calendar of events through July with goals for every thing I'm working on and breakdowns on how to achieve those daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, goals on such things as writing, of course, then stickers out of the yard, and all of the other goals I decided were ones I wanted to pursue on EVERY front. You see, that's the thing. Making only writing goals only gets you partially there. I believe it should be integrated in with the rest of my life or it something isn't going to make it and I'm going to be unhappy with myself. I don't like that.

By seeing ALL of the goals in one place and attempting to schedule them in, I realized that there is no way a normal person could do them all. Some things had to be relaxed and rescheduled. Some things had to be let go and not feel guilty about it. The goal setting relieved me of many burdens of inadequacy. Sure, I don't have everything smoothly working like a well oiled gun, but on the other hand, I don't feel like shooting myself either. I'm sure there is a better way to do this, but right now I have a master goal sheet, a calendar that I'm scribbling notes in, a scratch paper for deciding which week of each month will get what done, and when I review these which I do a couple of times a week, I pencil things onto my actual working calendar to get done. Actual doable tasks. Smoothing all this out to where it is easier and faster to do is also one of my goals.

Here's the breakdown: Master Goal Sheet, Monthly tasks broken down into half-month's to achieve goals, Weekly tasks on scribbly junk calendar to help integrate into life with farm, husband, friends, other work etc, Purse calendar that is my life. All are used once a week to plan the next week.

Think of yourself for a moment. Wouldn't you like to be free of mental burdens weighing down your spirits? Then consider setting goals, lots of them, refining them, tossing some away, and then you'll know where you are going and how you're going to get there.

Ever grateful to peerless leader with strong whip arm--Thanks!

SCORE! (Roxann Delaney)

Considering how far behind I am on my writing goals right now, I really shouldn't be giving advice on how to make and reach goals. I should be well into chapter 5, when I barely squeezed by finishing chapter 4 tonight. Late. And it took forcing myself to pull up the file, which resulted in cringing as I typed words that will probably need to be changed. Or cut. Or... who knows? But I finished that chapter.

Behind or not, I know what my goal is, and I also know that if I stick with it--which I will because I have to--I'll reach it, hopefully sooner than planned.

The key to making goals and reaching them is to break a larger or more long term goal into several (or even many) smaller goals. Daily goals are good. For instance, to reach my September 1 deadline, I know I have to write at least one chapter (there are 8) each week. That requires writing three pages per day, each of those eight weeks. If I can write more, great! In that case, I can take a day or two off for something I want (or need) to do. Or, even better, I'll beat that deadline by days or maybe even a week or two. But one way or another, I must write that one chapter per week. How do I know that's the pacing I'll need? Trial and error.

Don't make a goal too difficult to reach, but don't make it too easy, either. Also keep in mind that none of has complete control over our lives. Things happen, but when they do, adjustments can be made. If weekends with family or simply enjoying yourself is a priority for you or the one thing that keeps you sane, don't plan them as writing days...or whatever your goal involves.

Don't beat yourself up if you don't reach your goal with flying colors. Give yourself some time for a small pity party, then sit down and try to determine why you didn't reach that goal. Did you over-book yourself? Adjust for the next time. It may take a while to determine what pace suits you, what's not too much and what's too little.

Use rewards. I wanted to play hidden object games this evening, so I gave myself the go-ahead to do that...for an hour. Then it was nose-to-the-grindstone time. When I finished the chapter (YEA, ME!), I put my work away and played my game. A bigger reward is allowing myself to read my favorite author's latest book when that big goal is met. Choose a reward that works for you.

Goals aren't just for writing, they can be for anything in your life that you want or need to do. So here are a couple of Rah-rahs to help you along:

Just Do It (apologies to Nike)
BIC-HOK (Butt In Chair - Hands On Keyboard. Thank you, Cataromance)
Today I work, tomorrow I get to play!

Motivation: WHY

We’ve touched on many writing goals and techniques to meet those goals so far this month. I’ve enjoyed all the blogs. I did get tired just reading Starla’s. That woman has motivation.

With that word in mind, I wanted to take a moment for us to remember why we are setting these writing goal be they seven pages or seven novels we want to complete this year. The why is as important as how.

For me, the why is internal. I come from a long line of storytellers. My grandmothers, my great uncles, they told the most wonderful stories about their lives. I learned early that even the simple things that happen to us could be transformed into a story.

When I learned to read, I fell in love with books. They told me stories about far-away places and took me far beyond our Kansas farm and back again without leaving my room.
It may seem odd, but I never once thought about writing my own stories.

During high school, my best friend was not allowed to watch TV after 8pm. During our lunch hour, I would repeat to her the story and dialogue of the shows she couldn’t watch. I found out I loved to tell stories.

Then a strange thing happened. In college, I was looking for an easy course so I enrolled in Creative Writing. Oh, what fun I had. Near the end of the semester, my teacher stopped me and asked, “Have you ever thought about trying to get published?”
The thought had never crossed my mind, but after that day, it never went away.

That teacher’s words lit a slow fuse in my soul. I got married, had a baby and a career, read voraciously, but never stopped thinking that someday I would write my own book. I think now that I was born to tell stories. I believe it is a gift from God.

It isn’t easy, but I can’t stop doing it.

Why do you want to be a writer?
Where does that desire come from?
When did you know you could put words together and make a story happen?
Who showed you the way?
Who encouraged you?
Who discouraged you?
What do you want your writing to bring you?
Share with us.

Pat

Goals, Goals, Goals...oh my!

Dreaming big...I'd like to write 7 books this year for my publisher Black Velvet Seductions, 2 books for Blushing Publications, and 2 books for Red Rose Publishing.

A moment of sanity...Hopefully I can write 5 books for BVS, 2 for BP, and 1 for RRP. (Notice I've even cut back on spelling out the publishers' names.)

If all else fails...I WILL write 4 books for BVS and 2 for BP. RRP may have to wait until 2011.

Another serious goal: Cut back to only 2 blogs and manage to get my blog post here done on time.

How I'm going to accomplish my goals...sticking to a schedule of writing for each publisher. I use Outlook for my calendar and color code my writing deadlines (chapters of books, book reviews I do, final book deadlines). I try real hard NOT to move those deadlines around, but I don't always manage it.