Image source: http://debbiesdigest.blogspot.com
I’ve been knocking 2013 goals around in my head for the past two months. As I shared in the comments to Jenny Hansen’s fab post on the fear of setting goals, “my 2013 goals have been a December project that was never completed. I’m not sure what my issue is–I smacked them down fine last year and, like you, know what I want to do in my head. It is the dang fear fairy and she’s aiming for a beat down.”
Well that was on January 10 and I danced around in the energy and merriment of a new year starting for 10 more days until–BAM–I hit a difficult life moment and fell down. Receiving great advice to stay busy, I found myself looking around to an empty hole of direction. No concrete goals equaled nothing to turn to in the darkness. The stuff in my head was fantasies and dreams…nothing concrete in writing, no deadlines set, no action plans.
Fantasies and dreams = squat.
Who wants days, weeks, months or a year full of squat? Yeah, not me either. So I’m back to ROW80 because of the goal-centered focus, circle of support and recognition of the realities of life. We know that writers write. Writers also flourish and struggle through the beauty of life. Successful writers not only have goals, but a set of plans to achieve those goals. Then when fear fairy wanders over–and she will because there are a zillion things in life that can toss you off the path and make you question your voice–we can cast our eyes onto the stair steps and climb.
My ROW goals this year are being set as direct steps to help me achieve my master goals for the year.
Writing Life Goals through March 28
- Complete 4,000 words a week on Group Think WIP
- Take challenging chapter to writing group in February and March
- Attend Women’s Writing Retreat in February and Western Reserve Writing Conference in March
- Research upcoming short story anthology calls for submission
- Complete one blog post each week
Personal Life Goals through March 28
- Watch one TED video each week
- Complete cardio three times a week
- Attend yoga class/workshop two times a month
- Read six books to stay on pace for goal of 24 books this year
What are your plans for reaching your goals this year? Be sure to check out and support the ROW80 updates of others via the blog hop.
Barbara McDowell 
I love that graphic at the top of this post! And Barbara, fantasies and dreams DO mean squat…but you have to at some point make a plan. Like you, that always scares the pants off me. Goals stress me out, but for some reason the community of ROW80 really helps me overcome it.
Keep trucking…you can do it! And I’m always available for a dance break whenever you need one. You just grab me and Lena on Twitter and we’ll all dance around our writing space for 5 minutes, OK?
Love it, Jenny! I say we dance outside of our writing habitats. I’ve always wanted to dead stop wherever I was and break into the boogie. 😉
Yes, the plans are part of the success track. For me, I want to change just carving out time to write and aim it on the specific projects I need to get done.
Good job defining your goals! That’s the first step to completing them – and I have no doubt you will. Good luck!
Thanks, Jeannette! I felt a relaxing of breath once I got them down with the action plans.
Wow! Great goals, Barbara! You’ve made them specific and with deadlines–that’s the road to success! I so agree that having a solid plan makes part of life straightforward. Of course, there are other parts of life out of our control so, it’s good to have a foothold somewhere. Wishing you the best!
That’s exactly how I feel about these, Marcia. If life goes skewy, I have a path to get back on and steps to take versus wondering what to aim for next. Appreciate the words of encouragement.
I’m sorry to hear that you had a difficult life moment. 😦
Kudos for channeling your energies in setting goals – best wishes with making them work for you!
Thanks, Amber! It was an unexpected energy shaker. The positive takeaway is how clear it cemented the planning I needed to do reach my goals. It made me wake up from wishing for progress.
Good luck with those goals! They sound challenging but totally doable.
Thanks for the support, Jessi! They are challenging and I feel better with deadlines and plans in place.
Welcome back! Great breakdown of goals. Sounds like a clear action plan to me. It always feels great to get one step closer to our ultimate goals. Have a great week.
Great to be back. Thanks for the support, Steph!
I’m SOOO glad I’m not the only one who was hesitant to set goals! I had “joined” the last round of #row80. I made the goal post and then never did another #row80 blog update for the rest of the round. 😦 I made some definite goals for this round and I’m trying to do a ROW blog post once a week. Glad that both of us are back on track!
Glad you are back to ROW80 too, Nicole! Yes, I wandered off the path and away from what I know works for me. I need a measure of structure on larger projects…next steps if you will. Mind focus and execution will be my key.