Set Goals
Overarching goals are daunting. This is why it pays to set incremental goals. How one goes about goal setting varies. It might surprise you to learn that I am fairly lackadaisical when it comes to goal setting. I do not sit down each year and analyze where I am and where I want to get to. Nor am I a list writer. Of course I’m not completely loosey-goosey either. I have a general plan for every day in a week and I usually stick to that plan.
Tips to Set and Accomplish Goals
Take advantage of the reminders feature on your tech devise. I may not write lists on paper, but I do use Reminders to note everything I need to do for both my personal life and my art life. Each item is given a specific date. I even jot down repetitive items I am very unlikely to forget, such as write a blog post. Once that is done, I switch the date to the following week.
Break Down Goals
Break down goals into manageable pieces. My overarching goal is to finish Bat Sh*t Crazy in time to enter it into an exhibition with a January 31, 2023 deadline. That sounds far off. However, experience has taught me that it takes me as long to quilt, face, photograph, prepare photographs, etc. as it does to actually piece the top. So, if I truly want to be ready by next January I need to make progress every single week.
Set Priorities
Set priorities. Look over the day’s reminders. What must get done today. The top priority items tend to fall into time sensitive projects. These items are A’s. Next come the B’s which would be nice to accomplish, but if you have to put them off for a day or more life will go on. Finally, there are the C’s. Not essential, however if you managed to unearth your studio, for example, it would make it easier to navigate and you just might discover some key items that have been MIA. Now go back to the A’s and rank them 1, 2, 3 until every one has an assigned ranking. It’s time to work on your A1 item. If all you get done is the A1 item, that is 365 items that you value taken care of each year versus time consumed with the C’s.
Goals vs. Aspirations
Know the difference between a goal and an aspiration. You can set a goal. You can’t set an aspiration. For example, you may have dreamed of getting into Quilt National, or some other prestigious exhibition. Determine what you have control over. You don’t have control over getting in. However, you do have control over whether you enter. So, a reasonable goal to set is I will enter the next Quilt National. Now that the goal is set figure out the steps to achieve it and add those steps to Reminders.
Goals Accomplished
At the beginning of 2022 I decided to link my posts with two other bloggers. One is the Rainbow Scrap Challenge and the other is Thank Goodness It’s Finished Friday. The first allows me some R & R. Very little problem solving, if any is required for me to piece traditional blocks. I chose this precisely for the R & R. Life can be hectic and overwhelming. It helps to schedule in a goal of relaxation each week.
Once TGIFF mentioned the requirement need not be a finished quilt, I was sold. I only finish 3 – 4 quilts a year. However, I do finish a block, a townhouse in Bat Sh*t Crazy or other related projected every week.
Linking up to two more posts is an incremental goal. The overarching goal is to reach new audiences. Nearly half way through the year, I am able to tell through my posting metrics I’ve made progress.
I am linking up with:
- Nina Marie’s Off the Wall Fridays
- 2022 Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC)
- Thank Goodness It’s Finished Friday (TGIFF)
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Thanks for linking up with me for TGIFF.