Inspiration

New Year’s Resolutions – 2013

These are really more goals than resolutions; they are things I’d like to make priorities to focus my energy and money on. If I don’t get them done, it’s cool; this is a big pile of ambitious. But these are all areas I want to make progress in for the coming year.

750 words a day – more days of the week than not
Finish novel
Start new novel

[various work-related goals; not shared here]

Get insulation done
Get siding fixed
Get house painted
Get guest room organized
Get bed frame for our bed

Save 10,000 dollars
Get a new computer

Get split down to 2:00:00
Get an erg
learn sculling

Read more books I own
Buy new books on e-reader
Read first Proust book

Knit pillows
Knit hats – follow design
Learn color work

Photo scanning & organizing
Design 20 new shirts

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2012 Resolutions Check In – January

It’s not quite the end of January, but I thought I’d check in a bit early on my year’s goals because next weekend promises to be chaotic both “internally” (meaning: with my own writing plans) and “externally” (meaning: with the Super Bowl going on in the city and whatnot). So how am I doing?

1) Writing: January – I resolve to…schedule a regular writing time.
Crappy! I tried to schedule lunch time to write, but there’s too much going on at work to allow for it. I can’t manage to get out of a warm bed to sit in front of a cold computer in the mornings, and post-work has been filled with other rowing, knitting, reading and other household chores. I need to get it together.

My February plans should help get this one solidified: I’m going to write 25,000 words in February; approximately 1,000 words a day, on my novel to get it truly complete. That’s a pretty sedate pace compared to NaNoWriMo’s 1,667 words-per-day requirement, but it will get my novel really finished.

2) Rowing:
Eh. The first few weeks I did well and even went in to erg on the weekend outside of class, but I took last week off because I was sick, so I’m behind the curve here too. Gotta catch up this week.

3) Produce more than I consume:
Pretty damned good. I’ve been knitting up a storm, finishing a number of projects I had started and getting others moved along nicely. I edited lots of my photos, too. I do need to can some of the junk reading and redirect my attention to more important stuff, and I have watched a lot of TV, but I’ve cut way back on spending on clothes and entertaining items. We’ve been pretty good about eating at home instead of going out, limiting the restaurant visits to other people’s birthdays and such, for the most part. We could do better, but we haven’t been terrible, either.

4) General home organizing stuff
Pretty damned good. I have another “off the books” goal of building more structure and scheduling into some of our household organization/cleaning, and I’m really happy at how I’ve been able to keep up with some of those routine tasks.

Continue Reading2012 Resolutions Check In – January

New Year’s Resolutions – 2012

Father TimeA bit past the first of the year, but I had to spend some time working out what I want to do, and that took some time. This year I have three resolutions:

1) Follow the 12 month writing resolutions plan that I wrote about previously.

2) Keep up with rowing in the new year. I don’t anticipate that being a problem, given that I’m taking a class and there’s stuff I have to learn, so I can’t really opt out. And also I LOVE rowing. The endorphin high after practice is amazing.

3) And produce more than I consume – a goal I looked at in April of last year. I considered trying at least 1 day and preferably 2 days to produced more than I consumed. I promptly forgot that I made the goal, but I didn’t do to badly at it in November, at least. I do enjoy television, but I need to kick some shows off the roster. And for the past year, I knit while I watch TV, so I’m at least keeping the producing and consuming neck and neck there.

I always have the impulse to attempt New Year’s Resolutions, even though I often give them up part way into the year. And I’ve been plenty pragmatic about it in the past; attempting to take on funny goals, or to consider them as aspirations and things to strive for.

I’m going to do the same this year – I’m not going to beat myself up or give up in disgust if I don’t accomplish each task every day; this is about building new habits, and that takes trial and error, so I need to fail and retry to succeed. So if I miss a day, I’ll start over and try to get to a place where I’m doing the new thing most of the time.

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Produce as much as you consume project

In the spirit of this article I linked to the other day on Jimiyo, And a challenge from the unmarketing blog on twitter: “For one day this week, stop consuming info and create something.”

I’m going to try to set aside at least one day a week, (Saturdays) and possibly two (Wednesdays) in which I produce rather than consuming. I’m trying it today – not reading books, not watching TV, not reading on the internet. Just designing, photography, writing, knitting, singing, gardening, exercising. I sure shouldn’t be bored.

Wednesdays shouldn’t be too hard – we already spend the evenings in knitting class, and Wednesday mornings are one of my workout days, so it’s just being disciplined during the day that’s the key.

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Ringing out 2010

Father Time Yesterday we had a mini earthquake here in Indiana and this time I actually felt it, because I was still lying in bed like a lazy person on vacation, because I was a lazy person on vacation. It felt like a harbinger, a bellwether.

I have been significantly lackadaisical lately about nearly everything except work. I’ve been focused there. And I have been focused on reading lately – a LOT. Particularly on writing that has a transporting effect on me. There’s something in particular I’m looking for, and I’ve been deconstructing and pulling apart what I’m reading to get at the heart of what has that transporting affect, and how I can bend, alter, focus and create that in my own writing. I feel like I’m poised to jump off a tall cliff and I’m waiting for the right moment; for the breeze to gather strength and help carry me off.

Today we need to get the house clean because we have a few friends coming over to play board games and watch the ball drop. Tomorrow; nothing to do. I have plans for the new year, I just don’t feel like sharing; they tend to falter when I do. And I’ve never been good at resolutions. So this year, a priority instead: transformation.

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What motivates me

I’m not motivated by a bunch of platitudes about “finding the edge” and “exploiting your potential.” I’m not motivated by people who engage in competitive behavior with people they should be collaborating with. I’m not motivated by people who rest on their laurels and do the bare minimum to get by, or people who spend all their time protecting and polishing their egos. I’m not motivated by self-made, pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstrap jackasses who think they can do everything themselves, and screw what other people can contribute.

I’m motivated by people who are intoxicated by creativity, and who suck other people into their creative endeavors. I’m motivated by people who turn work into play and play into money. I’m motivated by people who collaborate, who engage, who strive to entertain. I don’t want minions. I want co-conspirators, partners in crime. Cohorts. I want to be in cahoots.

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New Year’s Resolutions – 2009

Father Time Eight days into the new year, and I’m finally getting around to making some resolutions. So I’m already off to a great start! Woo Hoo! This should be great.

1) I need to get physically fit. I need to be stronger, more flexible and have better balance and stamina. The photography hobby I’ve taken up is making that really obvious, and I need to get serious about being healthier for my own sake, as well as for getting the photos I want to get.

2) Take photos every day. It’s the only way I’m going to get better.

3) Write every day. Either here on this blog, or on other projects; I have story ideas all the time that I end up seeing executed by someone else, and often not as well as I would have done.

4) Read every day. – Aside from the fact that reading has always be my “Go To” method of stress relief, there are also some books I want to plow through for because I have a story idea.

5) Turn off the TV. I waste way too much time on it. More important things to fit into the day. I think the Rachel Maddow show is the one thing I watch that is actually worthwhile; everything else can go away.

6) finish refinishing a couple piece of furniture that I have half started. Just for the sake of getting them done.

In the grand history of me making resolutions — I’ve never completed any of them. But I have made great strides in the direction I want to go, so they’re useful for me to clarify what’s important. I can see where I get derailed — I’m good through January and February, but it gets to be March and I start worrying about gardening, and April, May and June are all big social months where I pay attention to activities rather than goals. I’ll have to watch out for those things this year and fit the goals first, then the activities.

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