End of Year Recap ... and Wake-up Call

Some people hate making New Year's Resolutions because they feel like they'll never be able to reach everything they laid out for themselves. I enjoy making them because I want to see what I can accomplish in a year's time, and I don't set goals that are so far out of the stratosphere that I can never attain them. I set goals that are perfectly doable, with a little stretching - what's life for if you're not stretching? - and then I set monthly goals to help me reach those yearly goals. It's a pretty good system for how my brain works.

And of course, because it's New Year's, it's time for me to sit down and evaluate how I did.

My writing goals? Knocked that puppy out of the park! I completed each project I listed, and then a few more. There are two books here on my list that I did not get done, but those were held up by other people and aren't yet ready. I did my part on them, though, so I consider them a success. This was made possible in large part by the fact that I spent a lot of 2012 in bed, recovering from the December 2011 car accident and the March 2012 broken foot.

If you're interested, the books I produced in 2012 are:

Taking Out the Trash

Million Dollar Diva

Turning Pages 

Virtual Book Tours

Women of Strength

Targets in Ties 

The Writer's Workbook 

Word Count Tracker 

Dialogue Dynamics 

Creating Characters 

Taking Care of Business 

I also worked on a few more that will come out next year.

My personal goals? I did pretty well.  I didn't have "breaking my foot" down in my plans, so a few things did go a bit awry. Nothing like having a cast for a month and then recovering strength in the foot for two months to put a bit of a damper on things. But I did accomplish three of my goals and made good progress on two, leaving just one to wonder why it got left out in the cold.

My business goals? I did well here too. I met two of my goals and am still struggling to accomplish the third. But that third one will be vanquished come 2013. Mark my words! (I'll wait while you find a marker.)

My family goals? Ah ... this is where the wake-up call comes in. I did not accomplish one thing on this list. Granted, some things were just plain out of my control. But the things that were in my control ... didn't get done either.

What did I learn? I learned that when I put my mind to it, I can get a lot of writing done. I learned that car accidents and broken bones are not helpful to goals that require physical movement. I learned that laptops are wonderful things and that WiFi is like a miracle from on high. I also learned that we can't let less-than-ideal circumstances keep us from striving to improve in every aspect and not just some.

My motto for 2012 was: "2012 is my year - not because everything is going to go my way, but because I will face everything that does come with dignity and faith." Was this tested? Oh, holy cow, yes. A whole lot of stuff came our way. Did I face it all with dignity and faith? I have to say that in most respects, I impressed myself.  :)  There were definitely times when I dropped the ball and didn't react how I would have liked. By and large, though, I see real growth in myself.

And there you have it. Goals keep me moving forward, and they also serve to show me where I'm missing my mark. 2013 will be a year of no excuses - I know where I'm weak, I know where I need to improve, I know how I need to improve, and so now it's a matter of getting 'er done.

Happy New Year ... and may we all realize our dreams, accomplish our goals, and take huge steps toward becoming the people we want to be.