Tag Archives: Goals

Goal Update: Rearranging Priorities

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I can’t believe it’s May. April was such a crazy month for me. It both seemed to fly by and to last forever.

But it’s over, praise God.

So this goal update is more about starting anew this month then considering what I did last month.

As you can see, April looks quite bare. You can actually see when I started to feel bad (starting the 8th).

But now I’m starting to get back on track. This weekend my energy level was almost normal as I prepared for having people over tonight.

For May, I’m going to allow myself to earn double points for writing/editing. I need to get back on track with this.

I’m definitely not beating myself up for having a “bad” month. Other priorities–like my health–necessarily took precedence. That said, I’m glad to get back to “normal.”

March Goal Update

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Seriously, is it April? How did THAT happen?

March has been a good month for some goals, thanks to the help of my new med and the new desire it’s put in me to exercise, even if just a little a time.

That said, I’ve let others go, getting lazy. The warm weather we had mid-month was awesome…and then the cold and rain hit again. I think we’re all affected by the weather to some extent, but it seems like I’m overly affected by it. In turn, it’s hard not to allow my mood dictate my actions.

To this end, I’ve been memorizing and meditating on 1 Peter 4:7 these past few days:

“The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers.” (ESV)

In March, I earned 93 points which is better than the 83 I earned in February (though, of course, I had the benefit of extra 3 days).

Of the 6 goals that I’m tracking, the one that I was the most successful at in March was writing/editing for 30 minutes each day, doing that 19 times in March. Reading 100 pages a day was a close second.

Though the reading and writing were my best “subjects” in March, the one that I’m most proud of is exercising 20 minutes. I did so 9 times in March. Not only is that more than I did so in January or February, I more often than not exercised more than 20 minutes on those days. This is definitely something I hope to continue working on in April.

Sadly, the thing I was the worse at was actually my Bible reading. I’ve set a high goal for myself–reading 10 chapters a day–which I only reached 6 times in March. I did read at least one chapter most days, but I would like to work on this some more as well, as it really is simply a matter of priorities. This will be the goal that will earn me double points in April.

By the end of March, I was 17 points away from earning my second reward. Hopefully I’ll earn that tomorrow or Wednesday. My reward this time is Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst, a book that I’ve been looking forward to reading since I first heard about it a couple of months ago. Since I still have a shelf of books I want to read, I couldn’t justify picking up another any other way!

Oh, For the Grace

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Thanks for understanding about my break. The week went quickly, but it allowed me to get my feet underneath me as far as this blog goes.

As I know I’ve made abundantly clear on this blog, I love to set goals for myself and do them (well, I don’t always love doing them, but I love getting them done).

It’s very easy for me to think about my life as a follower of Christ in these terms. God wants me to read my Bible, check. God wants me to do kind things to others, check. God wants me to go to church, check.

The problem is that too often my life really is a series or checks.

That’s not how I should live or how I want to live.

More and more God has been showing me how much I do depend on Him for everything even when I don’t admit it or don’t let it show.

How humbling that is.

He’ll allow me to play like I have control over my world for a little while, but not forever.

And the more I recognize who really has control and power, the better I can serve Him and not myself.

Photo by Matt Carman

Another Goal Update

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Another month down, another update on my goals. I know that February is a short month, but this year it felt so short! I think tax season makes the weeks go really quickly. I can’t believe that we’re already halfway through!

I’m keeping track of my goals this year daily. I have the opportunity to earn points for each of 6 different habits I want to have. Last month I decided to give myself the chance to earn double points for the area that I most struggled with in January: not eating out unnecessarily. Once I earn 125 points, I reward myself.

Well, I reached my first 125 points last week, earning myself a tube of lipstick. I’ve been wanting to try out something new (I rarely wear it, so I want one of the lip stains, so I can still wear my Lipsmaker over it!), but couldn’t justify the expense. The next reward I’m working towards is an order from Amazon…I have a couple of books that I’m itching to get my hands on!

In total, I earned 83 points in February, much better than my 57 in January (and I had 3 less days to do it in!). I even have 3 “perfect” days! My best categories were reading the Bible (yay!) and reading in general. Especially towards the end of the month, I have been listening to even more audio as I’ve been trying to listen quickly (ha!) to the Little House series so I can start the Harry Potter series which I’ve never read.

My worst category was also a tie, between not eating out unnecessarily and exercising 20 minutes. Hmmm…these kind of go hand in hand, don’t they? That said, they were both much better than in January, so I am improving, if only slightly. I’m going to allow myself to earn double points for both of these categories in March.

After spending two months actively trying to work on instilling this habits, I feel like progress is definitely being made. I enjoy the evenings were I get to read and write, and not just waste them on watching mindless TV. While I still feel like I have a long ways to go, I enjoy working towards these small goals, as I know they’ll help me with bigger goals that I have.

Here’s to a great March!

January Goal Update

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Now that it’s February (umm, yes, I know it’s already the 3rd!), it’s time to look back on my progress on my goals.

To put it simply, I’m not sure you can really call it “progress.”

That’s the great thing about my goal system this year…it’s quite measurable and visual.  Here’s how I did:

I won’t go into the key of how to read this, but basically each X accounts for one of the things on my goal list:

  • Reading 10 chapters of the Bible
  • Reading/reciting my Scripture memory passage 5 times (this month I’ve been working on Romans 7)
  • Reading 100 pages (with 2 minutes of audio book equally one page)
  • Exercising 20 minutes
  • Not eating out unnecessarily
  • Writing/editing for 30 minutes

So in January, I earned 57 Xs out of a possible 156 (plus another 30 “bonus” points for Sundays, my free days).  I’m not even halfway to my first reward, which I’ll earn at 125 points.  As you can see, I start out the week better than I finish (I might as well make Fridays my free days!).

So how did I do on the individual goals?  I did decent at editing on my novel, which is awesome. My exercise was pretty awful, but even worse, I ate out way more than necessary in January, earning that goal a last place finish.

I’ve decided to reward myself 2 Xs in February for every day I don’t eat out.  This will help me focus on that one thing, so hopefully that won’t be my worse thing in February!

I need to get back to swimming as well.  That will help me not only earn rewards =) but also to improve my health and stress level this time of year.  The more I exercise, the more I want to eat right, too.

So that’s where I am after a month.  I look forward to continuing to work on these things this month!

Goals by the Day

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Happy New Year’s!

What else should I do for my first post of 2011, but talk about resolutions?  While choosing to write about resolutions on January 3rd isn’t creative, it is what everyone is talking about, so I’m jumping in.

This year, I’ve decided to make goals that can be measured daily.  I’ve made a small calendar (that I can keep in the cover of my Nook, hehe) to track which days I’ve done these 6 things:

1.  Read 10 chapters of the Bible.

2.  Work on Scripture memory. Specifically, I want to read or recite five times the chapter I’m working on memorizing, or if it’s just a verse or two, read or recite them 20 times.

3.  Read 100 pages (with 2 minutes of audio book equally one page).  This will keep me on track to read 120 books this year.  Definitely the most pleasurable thing on my resolutions list (and probably would get done anyway).

4. Exercise 20 minutes. By far the hardest thing on this list for me!

5. No unnecessary eating out. “Necessary” eating out is when it’s with friends or when I don’t have time to stop by home on my way to something.  Basically, I want to stop eating out (especially since it’s usually  junk that creates a lot of trash) when I’m just being too lazy to make something.

6.  Write or edit for 30 minutes. I really enjoy it, but if I don’t make time for it, it’s easy to ignore.  But this is important for my future goals (more information about that coming soon).

Sundays are free, so I get a break.  Each thing I complete earns me one “X” on that calendar date.  Every 125 Xs earns me one reward. That would be 3.5 weeks of perfect behavior or, more realistically, a month of good behavior.  I think my first reward will be a bottle of nail polish, and I have a list of other ideas, including dinner out, books, MP3 albums, jewelry, a purse, and trips to the beach or the cabin.  I’ll decide these as I go, as I’ll likely think of other things as I go along.

Will I be successful?  Perhaps.  History says “not quite,” but I’m not aiming for perfect.  I am wanting to maintain, establish, and re-establish good habits in my life.  In the short term, none of these seem too monumental, but they’ll help me get to my long-term goals and dreams.

New Beginnings

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snowtreeI love January.  Everything’s so fresh and new.  Christmas decorations, though beautiful, are rather cluttery.  I always make an effort to clean through my things in January, too, after being abundantly blessed at Christmas and my birthday.   Though I haven’t completely tackled my desk and its stack of papers (which I saved for last), I feel much more comfortable in my apartment now that almost everything is in it’s place.

January also comes with a fresh start.  Sure, it’s rather arbitrary what time of year we decide is the start of a new year, but I like having it in the dead of winter, the season I naturally have the least motivation.   I think if we celebrated New Year’s some other time, I’d likely fall into a funk after Christmas.  I look forward to having longer days (actually seeing more than the 20 minutes of sunlight I drive in to work) and more natural energy that comes with it.

I suppose I should talk about my lofty goals for this year, if this was a proper New Year’s post.  But of course it’s not, being 4 days late, and I don’t have major goals for this year.  While I have a hunger to learn and grow, I don’t necessarily have resolutions tied to those ambitions.   Really, the only thing I have laid out as plans for this year is my book goals, of which I have a few.  The only other two resolutions/goals I could come up with is to exercise three times a week (which was my goal anyway) and to wear a skirt/dress once a week (since I’ve gotten rather lazy, and really do love to wear a skirt).

More than anything, I want this to be a year where I grow closer to God and more obedient to His word.  For me, one of the hardest things about living for Christ is the living for others.  As my book goals can attest, I’m a bit of a loner. Like every other fallen human being, I tend to live for myself, seeking my own desires and pleasures.  May God show me the needs of the people around me…and may I open my eyes to them and make it a priority to meet those needs.

Photo by Ryan McD

Update and News

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Time for another quarterly update on my goals!

Goal #1: Read 60 books. 

Though I’ve been slacking in the last week or so, I have read 46 books in the first half of the year.  If I don’t make 60, it’s because I’ve suffered some sort of personal/physical crisis that left me incapable of reading.  (Check out the Books Read in 2009 page for updates.)

2.  Complete my novel. 

Do ta do ta do…

Yeah, not getting a lot of progress on this done.  Right now, I need to focus my writing time on writing the SS lessons that I need to have done by August.  I really just need to make it a daily habit of doing a little writing at least (besides this here blog).

3.  Exercise 3 times a week. 

Getting better about taking walks in the evening, with or without my roommate.  I usually go to do water aerobics once a week, too.  I need to restart my lap swimming, though.

4.  Write a letter once a week. 

Yep, still going on this one.

5.  Memorize 4 chapters of the Bible. 

Still haven’t started, though the desire is there.  Doesn’t count though, does it?  Hopefully I start this soon!

And now, for the “news” section of this post…I’m no longer an hourly employee.  As of yesterday, I’m a full-time salary employee!  Not only do I get better compensation, I get paid timeoff and holidays, just in time for July 4th!

Happy Summer!

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Before I go any further, I want to say:

Happy Birthday, Amanda!  I’m so glad that you’re joining our family.  I hope this next year will be filled with happiness and delights!

Summer may just be my favorite season.  As far as weather goes, it’s hard to beat warm weather for its flip-flop-wearing and jacket-neglecting properties.  Sure it can be sweaty too, but I don’t mind it that much, because cool showers in the summer are enjoyable, too.

The good thing about being a student? (Okay, there’s several good things.)  I can decide when summer begins.

Every year, summer beings the moment I walk out of the test or turn in the last paper or project.  Since I have no classes, papers, or projects (or at least none of the educational kind), I decide when summer begins.  Of course, I can’t make the weather cooperate (though it has…it’s been 90s for a few days now!), but I can ACT like it’s summer, right?

So, with that, I’ve decided that summer starts this week.  I’m reseting my habits and recommiting to my goals.  I’ve let good things slip and let bad habits in, so I’m working on reversing that.  I’m working on these things because they’re for my good.  When I let them slip, I become self-indulgent which is a horrible way for a Christian to live.  How can I put Christ and others before myself if I’m constantly serving myself?

And because I know you’ll ask, here’s what I’m working on:

1.  Not eating out unless my schedule absolutely dictates it.  I’ve slipped up in this area a lot recently, and it begets a pattern of laziness and self-indulgence.

2.  Getting back into my nightly reading.  I still have been reading, but it’s just been fun stuff.

3.  Putting in serious time in the Word and prayer.  Hate to say that this has been neglected lately.

4.  Watching TV less.  A friend recently fixed our Internet, and I’ve been overloading on watching TV online.  Of course, this directly leads to #2.

5.  Exercise.  I still haven’t made it back to the pool (if you look closely, my legs resemble a forest right now), but I want to at least get in a walk around our neighborhood in the evenings.

Reaching for the Goal(s)

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I about forgot to do my quarterly update on this year’s goals, but then I read Debra‘s post to the same affect.  So how have I done?

Goal #1: Read 60 books.

A quarter of this goal would be 15, and as of midnight of March 31st I had finished 22.  As of 12:15 AM on April 1st, I had finished 23, as I stayed up late to finish reading Life of Pi.  I did really great at this goal in January and February, but I slowed down in March primarily because of basketball.  (Check out the Books Read in 2009 page for updates.)

2.  Complete my novel.

I did great in January, writing 3 chapters, but then taxes hit big time and I found I couldn’t devote the mental energy to it in the evenings like I had previously.  Now that things are lightening up, I hope to rectify this.  I might not get done this year (just depends on how ambitious I get), but I really want to.  (Check out the Historian’s Writing page for updates on this.)

3.  Exercise 3 times a week.

I’ve been so-so on this goal.   It seems like it’s more like 2 times a week, and then the last couple of weeks 1 time a week.  I’m really going to push myself to go to the pool 2 or 3 times a week, and probably start taking walks in the evenings many other days.

4.  Write a letter once a week.

There’s probably a week or two where I didn’t, but this goal definitely has been kept.

5.  Memorize 4 chapters of the Bible.

I’ve struggled with how/when to implement this.  Really, I just need to get down to it and start.  I’ve decided that I want to memorize Romans (but obviously not all this year).

So, I’ve definitely had progress, but there’s more work to be done.