Goal Setting: Mid-Year Check-In

It's July, we're halfway through the year, and this is the perfect time to reassess your goals and make new ones. If you follow this blog, you know I'm a sucker for goal making. If there's a new system, I'm checking it out. If there's research about what makes a goal attainable, then I'm reading up on it.

Do you use any type of special system for tracking your goals whether that be a fancy planner or Post-Its stuck to your computer? There are so many different ways you can do this:

• Calendar
  
• Notebook
  
• Goal Chart
  
• Post-Its
  
• Computer documents
  

I find that not only is it a good thing to track your goals but reward yourself when you meet small goals just as you would if you met large ones. Sure, you can't buy a new pair of shoes for every 1,000 words you write but stick a gold star on that day or let yourself indulge in a piece of chocolate. It's amazing what little rewards like this can do for the psyche. If you're visual, gold stars, X's through a day, or crossing through goals as you meet them is very helpful when you need to see forward progress. (Check out the pic of my calendar above. I track daily w/c, and I like to mark goal days that I'm working toward.)

When you set goals, do you set out to meet the goal in full or do you view your goals as more of a guide for getting you moving in the right direction?
We had a walking initiative at work a few weeks ago and one of the signs said something like "Don't ever stop starting." Often times we stray from, or completely abandon, goals we set. I do this all the time when it comes to exercise and with my writing. The important thing is that you continue to let yourself start. It means you're still making progress and you never know when one of those starts might turn into a habit.

How often do you reevaluate your goals?
I write out my yearly goals and attempt to assess said goals on a monthly basis. Anything less inevitably causes me to lose my course and I play catch-up later in the year. Some of you might find that you need to assess your goals on a weekly basis if you're shooting for something like 20,000 words written in one month. It's too easy to lose track of where you are and if you assess your goals too late in the process there might not be time to make it up.

How do you make your goals attainable?
I will never be someone who writes a novel in two weeks. It just isn't happening. I know I would never be successful with a goal like that. However, I do find that spelling out a long-term goal then breaking it down into smaller pieces works for me. If I make a 2 month goal I'll break that down into monthly, weekly, and daily goals. In some cases, it even helps to document my morning and evening goals. You might find this much too tedious for your tastes but experiment and find what works for you.

Have you formally planned ways to meet your long-term career goals?
"Failing to plan is planning to fail." ::GROAN:: You knew that was coming! But it's true. Long-term success generally requires a plan to get there. At the outset of my writing career I put up blinders to anything agent- and industry-related. The thought process behind that decision involved a belief that it was more important to write and not get distracted by other things. I wouldn't recommend this thinking to anyone else. When I finally checked out agent blogs and industry websites it made me realize how prepared I'll be when I'm ready to start the querying process. If I'd tried to play catch-up the sheer amount of information out there would have been overwhelming to absorb and there would have been so much that was missed. Review industry blogs, websites, and forums now because you'll see what you need to do to reach your goal of publication. Why not avoid costly mistakes in getting to that point? If you're looking for a jump start into the industry side of writing, Mary has upcoming web spotlight posts that you should check out.