Last week, I sat down and sketched out a basic goal list for the next six months, year, and two years. And then I handed it to my engineer-minded husband and said "Here, put this into a spreadsheet for me!"
I don't work well with vague goals. Neither do I work well with tight, narrow, put-lots-of-pressure-on goals. So this sort of thing tends to go much better for me. Carl and I were talking Friday morning about my spending/saving habits: from childhood, I've always been a saver, but only when I have specific goals. Whether it be a porcelain doll, or a Lego pirate ship, or buying the Kirsten American Girl doll for my sister as a Christmas present, or tickets to the World Figure Skating Championships for my dad and me, or a trip to teach VBS in the West Indies, or my first car, I can scrimp and pinch like mad for months to years in order to save for those goals.
Pride and joy of my collection for many years.
Without a goal, though, I spend like mad, without even thinking about it. And if the goal is too overwhelming (like, say, "we need to save all the money we possibly can for the next five years so Carl can do seminary," without set parameters of how much that will take or how long that will last), I also tend to spend recklessly, because it's too much for me to really hold in my mind.
My life goals - and especially writing goals - tend to follow that same pattern. I got overwhelmed this summer by trying to keep to too tight and narrow a writing schedule. Five short stories and a novella to publish myself between May and September! (and here it is the middle of October, and I'm still working on them)
But just to write and work toward publication without having any kind of set goals or time frame is too vague, and it's too easy for me to start frittering away my time, just like I fritter money without a set goal for saving (wow, I am revealing all sorts of my bad habits to you guys today).
So instead, I've set specific but modest goals for a specific but large space of time. And already I'm feeling more motivated. Now when I sit down to the computer, instead of wondering dispiritedly what's the point in working on anything, and do I feel like editing or starting something new?, I can check out my goal list for the next six months and find hey, if I want to meet this goal, I need to do this, and those other things I've been wondering about, well, I don't need to fret about them until closer to the one-year mark. First things first!
Plus I get to feel more business-like about my approach to writing this way, and that, I think, is a good thing. It doesn't kill the creativity, just focuses it!
How do you keep yourself on track?
I too have too/love too set goals for my writing. In 2009 I set myself a 5 years plan (that is coming along quite nicely I might add) and I also have smaller goals that fit into that larger one, and even smaller than those (daily words count) to keep me on those. Like you, I find it's the tiny specific ones that don't happen with the most frequency--but they do still happen most days and thus trickle up to all the larger ones.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
My husband is very enthusiastic about helping me set up smaller specific goals in order to more easily reach the big ones ... but I'm not sure I'm ready to handle that yet. Too much pressure and I just might collapse entirely!
DeleteRight now, with Firecracker so young still, my set goal in writing or just quite honestly any outlet is to post to my blog once a day on weekdays, at least. That is my goal to have just a little bit of time, with an outlet for me right now. Some days I schedule posts ahead so I can do other things, like work on photo books for Christmas gifts and so on. I do best all around though, with a routine that gives us all structure, but is also flexible enough to fit having an almost nine-month-old and do other things.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good plan! Writing around kids requires so much creativity in scheduling.
DeleteAGH MY COMMENT WAS EATEN. I hate that!!!!
ReplyDeleteI am trying to set new goals for myself in several areas at the same time (bad idea, probably): namely, health, blogging, creativity, and home organization. I like Adrienne's blogging goals.
This will shock you- our means of interacting with money are VERRRRRY similar! (Which is why Joe is in charge of our bills and finances at least until I have a chance to sit down with him next summer and try to learn more about them in case {God forbid} anything ever happens to him. Good idea or bad? Not sure yet.)
I'm goofy because I like structure and rhythm but too mcuh structure makes me rebellious and cranky, while too little leaves me aimless and unhappy, as you said.
I'm shocked - SHOCKED - that we are so much alike. ;-P
DeleteGoals are very helpful. And when we set them realistically, that's when we tend to surprise ourselves with the great results.
ReplyDeleteI try to do monthly goals and re-evaluate them as needed. Doing so has really kept me on task.
Monthly goals are a good idea, too - easier to find flexibility there than with weekly or daily goals, but it's still a short enough time that you don't get distracted or lose interest.
DeleteTHAT PIRATE SHIP! I totally wanted that pirate ship too! And I WAS told to save for it, and I didn't really spend any of my money but I didn't really GET any more than at birthdays, anyway, and it somehow didn't seem worth it in the long run. Still, I KNEW THAT PIRATE SHIP the moment I scrolled past the picture.
ReplyDeleteI definitely can't work seriously without goals or deadlines, but lately I'm just not sure what goals or deadlines to set. I have a small goal of finishing the Zoe-POV Firefly fanfic I keep poking at so I can send it to you! It's kind of a vague goal, but it's more than any other writing goals I have (except One Book, but that's an outside-imposed goal).
It really was the perfect ship. Not as impressive as, say, Skull's Eye Schooner (which one of my friends pronounced "shooner" and DROVE ME MAD), but just right to face the smaller Imperial outposts I had.
DeleteI recently got all my Legos from my parents' house and gloated over them again. One of these days I'm going to start putting the sets together, and gloat even more. SUCH a happy part of my childhood.