It’s the end of a decade, which naturally means the start of a new one. It’s often viewed as a blank slate, like a blank piece of paper waiting for a novel to be put onto it. For us writers, we know how difficult it is to put a new story down on a blank piece of paper. However, new year resolutions can be easier than that for one reason: our paper isn’t completely blank. Your personalities and habits are already in place, you just need to know how to use them to fulfill your goals. It shouldn’t be “new year, new you”, it should be a “new year, level-ed up you” (I may have been playing too many video games over this holiday break).
I have a few goals for the new year myself. My “to-do” list white board has my typical monthly goals, along with a new box: “GOALS FOR 2020”. Will it get erased by March? Well, let’s hope not.
My list is typical for an aspiring novelist:
- Find an agent
- Write more books
- Read more books
- Discover new places and do new things to get inspiration
It’s SO easy to try to make goals to make your future life better, but I don’t think you can do that effectively without looking into your past to learn who you really are (yeah, that’s cheesy, fight me).
Were you always self-driven, or do you need a little push? Do you like working with people, or working alone? Think about how you’ve accomplished tasks in the past, then write them down.
I can only speak for myself, so here is what I learned about myself over the past three decades:
- I’m very goal driven, but I need a little push.
- However, that push can only come from myself. If I don’t motivate myself, then I won’t take action. My husband, parents, business partner, and friends can try to convince me to do something, but from my past 30 years on this planet I’ve learned something: If I don’t want to do it, I won’t (well, I will, but I won’t enjoy it). But if I want to do it, I sure as hell will.
- I need to
pre-plan my life and my goals.
- It’s easy to say, “This year, I’m going to get an agent!”. However, I know that I need to pre-plan steps to get there. (Here’s a tip: the first step is usually writing down all the steps first).
- Listen to my mind and body.
- When inspiration strikes, I need to get to work. However, when my mind needs a creative rest, it’s important to take it.
- When I fall into a slump, I need to do something
to inspire me to get me out of it.
- A small slump is fine, until it becomes a habit and a way of life.
Knowing these things about myself, I can take each one of my goals, line-item them out, and set myself up for success. Obviously, everyone is different, but everyone already has their baseline behaviors in place. Use what you know about yourself, improve what you can, then use these to fulfill your goals. If you follow through with your strengths, you may still have your 2020 goals on your white board past March.
