Goal setting and achieving those goals we create don't always go together. In 2013, I've set goals and managed to achieve them. Two of those were getting books published as ebooks on Amazon.com and through CreateSpace.
Yes, I can mark those off my list. With the most recent addition of TRUTH OR DARE & OTHER TALES to my Take Ten Tales series on Amazon.com I now have two books published this year. Yippee! And before the year is over, I also plan to have the print edition of TRUTH OR DARE & OTHER TALES available on CreateSpace. Another yippee!
Learning self-promotion and ignoring learned lessons of not bragging on myself is another goal I am achieving. Yippee!
What I am finding out is that reaching major goals is good. It feels good, tastes good, and fits well into my life. I was born to be an author. I always knew I was meant to tell tales and write. Now I get to do so. Yippee!
At the same time as I am focusing on and accomplishing tasks which work toward my writing (and life) goals, I am allowing myself to focus on the other things, too. You know...the joy of washing dishes, the peace of seeing the floor without stacks of papers covering the surface, the pure enlightenment of sitting outside for five minutes in the morning with a cup of coffee and communing with God and nature. Yippee!
Goal setting is not to be feared. Achieving your own goals is possible. My best advice for you is to decide what you most want. Sometimes, it may be big (like publishing a book) or small (like clean dishes). Then set a specific amount of time each day to work toward both the big and the small goals. It may be as little as five minutes or as long at two hours.
Don't stress out and put the whole day toward a goal which may not be quickly accomplished. Small steps will make you feel you are a winner. Yippee!
Mix your goals. Do the dishes...that is a fast and easy goal. Or change the oil in your car...again, fast and easy to achieve. Work in small steps toward your major goals. But always work forward.
Who knows? Next year, this time, you may be telling me about some of your own achievements and giving advice on goal setting. I look forward to it. Together we can shout "YIPPEE!"
