Take a few moments (But only a few moments! It’s time to move forward!) and think about last year. What didn’t work so well? Did you have a planner that didn’t keep you on task? Get a new one for this year! Did you want to get more things accomplished around the house, or lose weight, or be more active? Brainstorm ways to see that happen. Did you find if you had highlighted certain tasks that they got done in the timeframe needed? Get more highlighters, in different colors! Did you feel like it was just you swimming in a big pond and you wished you had someone in your corner, someone who would encourage you, ask about your writing (or whatever you’re working on), be interested in reading what you wrote? Take this year to find a critique partner, or a really good friend who you can bounce ideas off of, who will encourage you along the way. Need a running buddy so you’ll get out there and run? Find one! Need to lose weight but lose momentum? Find a group who will motivate and encourage you when you want that midnight snack.
However, for this exercise, keep most of your focus on what worked for you. Do more of that! Did setting an activity goal for each day or week make you more motivated to work out, walk more steps in a day, or get more things done? Did writing out a grocery list enable you to eat healthier and not come home with random junk food in your bags? Did having a critique partner keep you accountable and at the end of the day, week, or month the words were piled up in a great way? Then continue those traits into the new year!
Find what works and keep doing that. If something doesn’t work, change it. It’s your plan for success. There are as many different ways to accomplish something as there are people. What works for one person, or a dozen, may not work for you. Find what works for you. You want to be successful this year. You want to lose weight, get more things done, write more words, have completed novels to publish. Work out a game plan to get it done! This is a great new year for you to be who you wish to be. Work out a plan that works for you and watch this year be the year!
When Sally’s not writing or working full-time, she is a freelance editor for several authors who write fiction and nonfiction; students working on dissertation papers; a copy editor for Desert Breeze (now closed); a content editor for Prism (became part of Pelican); performs beta reading for various authors; publishes book reviews on her blog and with Valley Business FRONT’s monthly magazine; is a member of ACFW and ACFW Virginia; and loves genealogy, running, and crocheting.
Sally uses her love of words to write about God’s amazing love.
