List your Goals But Keep It Short!

I threw away our old calendars and put a new one near the phone and another on the wall here in my office this morning. The picture on the wall calendar is of a farm on a snowy day. Kind of looks like what I see outside my window. Not the farm but the snow. We had about 4 inches yesterday. The snowplow has not found our street yet nor have the newspapers arrived. Kind of nice that it's a holiday and people can stay in if they don't want to fight the snowy roads and crisp temps. Maybe I should say 'frigid' temps. 

At the beginning of a new year, we tend to reflect on the old one before we look forward. I've tried to look back without regrets rising. Whatever I did or didn't do the previous year is over, finished, kaput. There's no changing whatever happened in your writing life or your personal life either. Sure, there are things I wish I'd done differently, but I can't slide back to June or October or whenever it was. So, I prefer not to dwell on them. It's more fun to look at the positives so concentrate on those.

As for the ones you wish you'd done differently--they are the perfect base for your To-Do List for 2013 or for setting your goals for this new year. Spend today thinking about what you'd like to accomplish this year. Make a list, print it and keep it nearby so you see if every day. Making a list of goals and then hiding it in a file or a drawer does little good. We need that daily reminder. It's as good as an old-fashioned kick in the rear end. 

As for your goal list--make it short. List too many things and it looks overwhelming. You start wondering how in the world you'll ever accomplish all those items.