Tag Archives: Goals

So those of you who have read our posts over the years know I’m a mommy, writer and lawyer. My husband gets a bit put out that I don’t have “wife” in that list, but he knows I love him so he only snarls a little. It’s endearing. Really. Oh, and did I also mention we live on a 5 acre horse farm? Anyway, what all that multi-tasking means is I have a lot to do. I mean, A LOT. A “normal” to-to list across those different roles has over 70 items on it. Lawyers are an odd breed. Hal of us resist change and half of us embrace it. I’ve waffled back and forth between the high and low tech.

I’ve used a paper “to do” list. Often multiple lists would be scattered over my desk. These scraps of paper make for messy desks and the most urgent Post-it Note is always the one you look at last. The fully manual “system” didn’t last long. Then I moved to keeping that same “to do” list in a Word document. It works. Sort of. The problem with a “to do” list “system” is you track the tasks that lead to your goals but not actually your goals. The best thing about the passage of a decade is that technology has dramatically changed. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of organizational tools and goal trackers. If you lose track of your goals you can’t measure your progress. All motion is not progress.

Someone else is writing about goal setting this month so I’ll just assume you can set them with the help of our upcoming and awesome guest post. Once you know where you are heading you need to set milestones and make sure you hit them.

Here’s what I’m currently using:

https://www.Todolist.com This is a basic to do list. I use it to keep track of household tasks like laundry. The nice thing about this tool is you can share your lists with anyone. So both Matt (that’s the hubby in case you were wondering) and I can add and take items off it. This tool has greatly helped us coordinate tasks without having to track each other down. We can designate which child is responsible for what task. So Bobby usually gets loading and unloading the dishwasher and Mikey gets vacuuming the downstairs. Even better once someone is done a task that person can mark it off and see what else is left to do. I’ve found this to be a useful tool for task completion but not goal management.

Pipe Drive, https://app.pipedrive.com/pipeline. I’ve only recently started with this tool. Pipe Drive helps you keep track of “jobs” or “work” in your pipe line. A pipe line is the channel through which your prospective customers flow. Pipe Drive allows you to input an opportunity – say an open call for an anthology -, track how that opportunity moves through your process and, ultimately whether you won or lost the opportunity. Pipe Drive also allows you to attach a monetary value to the opportunity. Let’s take that anthology again. Submissions are limited to 7000 words and pay is “professional rate” which The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America defines as 5 cents or more a word. Let’s assume this anthology pays 5 cents a word. The maximum value for the opportunity is $350.

By forcing you to put a price to the opportunity Pipe Drive helps you can set priorities. If there is another anthology opportunity with the same deadline paying 6 cents a word for a maximum of 6000 words or $360 and you’re short on time, which opportunity do you pursue? The one with the higher value.

You can use Pipe Drive to track your networking contacts and your conversion rates to customer or business partner. Pipe Drive also emails me a daily “to do” list based on deadlines I’ve set and my opportunities. Pipe Drive charges a really nominal monthly fee. Seriously , two cups of designer coffee gets you this tool.

My next new favorite tool is InfusionSoft – http://infusionsoft.com. This online tool does amazing things. Ever wonder how to online market to get to your sales goals? Ever wonder if your online or email marketing efforts do you any good? Ever tried managing more than one marketing campaign at once? Then you NEED InfusionSoft. It’s new Snap application lets you import business cards directly into the management tool and your phone’s contact list. It has a calendar to keep all your events and templates for certain types of email and electronic (webinars, free consultation, and a host of other) campaigns. Again, I’ve only started using this tool so my current use barely scratches the surface.

I am using InfusionSoft for my part of the EWomen Succeeding Through Doubt Fear and Crisis book launch in August. InfusionSoft will create a landing page for people to sign up for my bonus “gifts” for pre-purchasing the books. When someone signs up InfusionSoft will capture their email for my mailing list. I’ll also use the system to run the webinar and track who actually attends or doesn’t. InfusionSoft will then auto send a thank you to people who attended and follow-up with the people who missed the presentation. It will send attendees the link to the ebook. Best yet, InfusionSoft will generate the metrics to tell me if the campaign actually accomplished what I wanted it to. Everything is automated through the software! Less of my time on administrative tasks and more time spent at tasks that earn me money and bring me closer to my goals.

“What are those goals?” you ask.

Like my life I have goals for the different aspects of my life that support a greater goal. One of the reason people introduce me as “not your typical lawyer” is I remember that my calling as a lawyer is to serve my clients. So where am I headed? My boys graduated from college and standing on their own . Minimum of two books published a year. Five paid speaking opportunities a year. A law firm of 10 attorneys and 3-4 staff members. These income streams will give me the opportunity to provide pro bono assistance to low-income or otherwise disadvantaged groups in setting up their business and making sure they have the legal structure in place to succeed in their callings.

Learning to Say No

June 4, 2014

clancy

Clancy Metzger Craft & Skills Goals Reflection Self-Awareness The Writing Life Writing Tools 2 Comments

We’ve heard it before and we’ll hear it again because it’s a truth. We can’t do it all and sometimes we just need to say No.

I was reminded of this when a writer friend sent a link to this blog and the last line of what Seth Godin says is “No is the foundation that we can build our yes on.” I think that’s brilliant.

And a reminder I obviously need tattooed on my forehead. No matter how many times I remember this, it’s usually after I’ve over committed myself – again – and I’m stressed out about having too much to do. Like right now.

We all have families, friends, organizations, careers, and so on that we need to do things for on the occasion. The trick is balancing it, prioritizing it, and keeping what’s important always in mind. And sadly, sometimes that means we just can’t do it all and stay sane. I know I feel crazy more often than I should.

For me, it’s a circular snowball effect. Let me explain the cycle: I feel good, so I say Yes to too many things. When I don’t have enough time to get all of said commitments done, I start to stress. Stress impacts my depression. My depression makes it harder to be productive for even the important stuff so now everything is harder. I realize I’m a dope and try to wrap up or shed the commitments I can as soon as possible so I can focus on the ones that are super important. I push through and say No to a lot of things. Commitments ease up so I can be productive where I need. I feel better. I feel good….. and it begins again. Hence the tattooed reminder.

The friend who sent out the link was one of the people I asked to guest blog for this month. When I did a follow-up to see if she was going to or not, she said, “You know, at this point, I’m going to have to say no. Does that screw you over? I don’t want to screw you over.” And I thought, Smart Woman! I told her I completely understood. And I do.

It isn’t even just the special projects we should be saying No to… like the class I’m teaching that I haven’t written yet, or the motorcycle riding class I’m taking over four days, or the offer to help an elderly friend run errands. It’s the daily grind stuff that keeps my calendar looking like a multi-headed hydra on steroids has planned a host of events for each damn head for each damn day of the week. Ridiculous. And I have no one to blame but myself!

Who else is suffering from the dreaded Yes-itis Over-committus disease? Raise your hands. Now commit with me to this instead – I will say No. Repeat it with me, now. I WILL SAY NO.

When asked to XXX, I will say No.

We can find a cure together, people. I believe this. 🙂

I read a book recently, “18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done” by Peter Bregman. One of the things he says to do is come up with a list of the five most important goals for your year, like spend time with family, focus on career, and so forth. And then whenever a request is made, assess whether that request falls squarely inside one of your target goals or whether it is a distraction away from it. Say yes or no accordingly.

I’m trying to do that…. And as I say ‘try’ I hear Yoda in the back of my brain, saying, “Try not. Do, or do not.”

I know what I need to do.

Summer Sanity

June 1, 2014

clancy

Clancy Metzger The Writing Life No Comments

This month, we’re looking at ways to meet goals, manage time and distractions, stay on task and stay sane during the crazy summer months. With school out and vacations luring us away from work, it’s easy to set our goals aside and find our way off the path. Or maybe we set goals in January and need to assess whether we’re still on course.

No matter the specifics, we should be reassessing where we’re at more often than once a year, so here’s to June and accomplishing that task.

Grab cool drink, a cool head, and dive on into some self-assessment. The water’s fine!

Finding Critical Mass

January 13, 2014

Frank Morin

Frank Morin Motivation The Writing Life 1 Comment

I love this time of year. For good or bad, 2013 is behind us and, although the holidays can be hectic and stressful, we all usually get at least a little down time. The beginning of a new year is a time of renewal, of focus, and energy. A time of self-reflection and setting goals.

For those who may not know how to set meaningful goals, I discussed the topic in great detail here.

The problem isn’t always the setting of goals though. We usually start the year well prepared with lists and plans ready to go. But sometimes we’re like the novice golfer who shows up to play with top-of-the line equipment but who hasn’t bothered to take a lesson. Limited by lack of knowledge or expertise, we may need to take a detour to educate or build those skills so we can reach the next level of craft (see posts from September of 2013 for more on that)

Other times, we just find ourselves no longer inspired by those goals. It’s not that they weren’t laudable or appropriate. The energy just sort of deflates.

It’s kind of like Wile E Coyote who, despite working on his goal tirelessly, never seems to find success.

In personal goals, we might have committed to trimming down until we fit into our middle-school clothing, or working out 9 days a week. But after a month or two, it becomes harder and harder to say no to the cookies or chocolate, or there are too many interruptions to the regular workout schedule so we just give up.

In writing, we may say, “I’m going to write every single day, no matter what.” But then the kids
get sick or we go on vacation, and the perfect record of 18 consecutive days is cracked, and then suddenly there’s no way to get it back and missing days becomes so much easier.

As I’ve considered this, and reviewed everything I did manage to accomplish in 2013, and what I’m determined to complete in 2014, I realized that the goals that work are the ones that inspire.

These are goals that I term as having reached Critical Mass.

Critical mass is the amount or level needed for a new action to occur.

In writing, projects that reach critical mass are the ones that take on a life of their own and begin pushing us forward until we can’t keep the genie in the bottle, no matter how much we want to get lazy or just give up.

So how do we find such a goal?

Each of us are motivated by different things, but there are some commonalities. And the great thing is that as we reach critical mass in a project and feel that rush of awesomeness typing those magic little words, “The End” it becomes easier to find the next project that has a chance to reach critical mass.

Here are a few examples of my critical mass projects:

– Completing that first novel. Although it took more than two years and the goal dragged through the middle and almost collapsed under its own weight, I persevered until the momentum began to roll. Once I knew the ending and could see myself getting there, churning out those last chapters proved easier and easier.

– Completing that first short story. A lot of people are smart enough to do this before the first novel, but not me. I set the goal of submitting a story to Writers of the Future (which I recommend everyone do). I’m not a short fiction writer, so this proved daunting, but I still pushed through, and again once I reached a certain point in the process, I couldn’t NOT finish.

– Attending that first con. As Sherry just mentioned in her recent post, a lot of us writers wait way too long to go to cons. It took me years to finally do it. I was too busy writing, but eventually realized the need. And my first World Fantasy Con is where I met the man who later became my agent.

– Completing that first full novel outline. I started as a pantser, but over time got tired of so much re-writing, so I’ve moved more toward outlining to help speed up the process. Of course, my first outline turned out to be completely wrong so I had to re-write that novel again anyway, but I still feel I got to the final draft faster.

Each of us have different things that motivate us, we’re on different steps in the path toward our ultimate goals of publishing or full-time writing. No matter where you stand, or what your specific goals are this year, focus your energies on the project that will reach critical mass.

Then it’s more a matter of keeping up than pushing on.