Posts Tagged ‘goals’

A load of lessons this year – big, small, in-between – physical, emotional, business, art, political. It’s always interesting to me to reflect on what I’ve learned in times of turmoil.

1. I will stand up against hate.
2. Knee surgery is a pain, literally, but necessary. Physical therapy is necessary. I am blessed with a great doctor, fabulous physical therapist, and a hospital that helps with financial assistance.
3. Losing weight over 60 (…over 40…) is tough, but thanks to The Gabriel Method I might just be able to do it this year. No chocolate in over two weeks, n0 hunger pangs, no snacking – all because of visualization.
4. Vermont pushes too many pills – finally found an integrative health doctor, rather than getting a prescription for anything that ails me without even looking at symptoms.
5. Survived major surgery with hubby on his aneurysm repair last winter. Great doctor, learned a huge amount – he’s good to go.
6. Walking still is my best form of exercise. So glad I can do more walking, much more comfortably, with the new knee.
7. I like myself a lot more. Been years in the making, learning to deal with what I can’t change in the past.
8. Still madly in love with hubby of 40 years. We always find something new to talk about.
9. My mother was a full-blown narcissist, and I lived in fear of her most of my life. I have forgiven her and have moved on. She appears every now and then in dreams, and I find I can tell her off when she shows up – something I couldn’t do in real life. I’m moving on.
10. I need to plan for art business this year. We had a great year last year, and my goal for this year is to sell a lot more art and make some good money.
11. Newsletter each month for the marbling, more teaching opportunities, retirement sale of older works.
12. Continue taking online classes for the pure enjoyment/learning something new. Work on color sense.
13. I wrote a teaching manual – all 35,000 words – essentially in five months. It’s a template for teacher manuals, as it works with standards and ways of integrating new curriculum ideas for teachers. Thinking about a mathematics manual for algebra.
14. I WILL publish my political novel this year. I am planning a Kickstarter campaign – or something similar. I have to do it in the light of current politics, and I need to get back to book 2.
15. Made a lot of art last year. I want to make even more art this year, including a couple of large pieces. I’m keeping track of the process of taking my Pele piece apart and modernizing it with my new skills in free motion quilting.
16. Three years ago I realized I only had 200 more b;og posts to do to hit 1000. Then I seemed to take long breaks from blogging. I’m still trying to hit 1000 – 920 and counting…I should be able to get 80 posts done this year……(PS – 921…)
17. Politically it’s been a very difficult year for me. As a history/political science major I see trends before they are trends. I’ve been worried the last two years. It is time this year to write, speak out, demonstrate, listen, reach out.
18. Be kind and listen, regardless of your own opinion. All of us need kindness and understanding.
19. I will be out in nature more, travel more, worry less about finances.
20. I will stand up against hate.

  So did you dream yesterday? Want to hear from you, so let me know in the comments. I chose today’s picture for a reason. In the midst of cluttered minds and prickly daily events, every now and then we get a bloom of an idea and begin to run with it. Organization can seem overwhelming at times – we can even become obsessed with getting organized – kind of like falling into a cactus bush and then having to pull out all of the thorns – you just can’t stop till it’s completely done. (Ask me how I know this….).

Here’s my dreaming from yesterday – goals for the New Year of 2014, with no monetary limits in my dreaming.

trips to Kauaii, San Diego, Northwest, Yosemite; marbling ebook published; seasons patterns completed; chakra commission completed; at least three more commissions obtained; licensing work through The Artrepreneur; better blogging this year (at least 100 posts); complete saving most of the money needed for our move east in 18 months; better correspondent with friends; complete at least three Coursera classes; finish all the Craftsy classes I have downloaded; weight loss yet again (maybe 25 pounds for the year); learn about my new part-time job; at least two silk classes with the textile artist in Jerome; get good at my dyeing fabrics; work on rayon scarves with dyeing/marbling; monthly lunches with my second mom; Friday dinners with my sister/friend; attend Road 2 California (missed it last year); finish novel DC12 and start next volume, and hopefully get the first one published; celebrate 38 years of marriage with my honey.

Now I will keep adding to this list for the next month or so, so I can let a lot of these ideas just simmer in my brain. Simmering is good; put something away and let it ferment – it leads to all kinds of interesting other paths.

Now for the next step: THE CONCEPT OF BACKPLANNING

You did your dreaming….within all those dreams are goals for this coming year. Now comes the time to put planning to work. I’ve used this system for decades – literally. I’m sure someone came up with the idea before, but to my knowledge no one else calls it “backplanning.” Because…..you plan backwards. It seems counterintuitive to how we usually plan, but this method pretty much guarantees you will finish on time, without that last-minute unpleasantness crammed in to a few days. In fact….you could be early.

What I also like about this system is that by the time you are done, you have a plan in front of you that looks extremely practical, manageable, and something that doesn’t scare you before you even start.

One thing to keep in mind – your goals can be any length, from a week to a year.  I’ve used this method to plan getting ready for a trip in two weeks to presenting a middle school musical in 9 weeks, to my yearly goals. For the school musicals, I started with a 9-week calendar that was determined by opening night. Then I started backing up important dates, until I had actually scheduled auditions.

What I want you to do next is skim through this calendar, top to bottom, and bottom to top. There’s room built in for snow days and other things that might come up, plus keeping in mind the attention span of middle schoolers. And, I feel it’s do-able for me, the director.

Friday, May 2 – afternoon and evening shows, strike set, cast party

Thursday, May 1 – afternoon opening, evening show

Wednesday, April 30 – dress rehearsal

Tuesday, April 29 – tech rehearsal everything

Monday, April 28 – tech rehearsal, lights and set changes

Friday, April 25 – run through all acts, costumes and props

Thursday, April 24 – run through all acts, props

Wednesday, April 23, run through all acts

Tuesday, April 22 – Act 3

Monday, April 21 – Act 2

Friday, April 18 – Act 1

Thursday, April 17 – all musical numbers from all acts, concentrated

Wednesday, April 16 – Act 3

Tuesday, April 15 – Act 2

Monday, April 14 – Act 1

Friday, April 11 – Act 3

Thursday, April 10 – Acts 2 and 3

Wednesday, April 9 – Acts 1 and 2

Tuesday, April 8 – Act 3 finish blocking

Monday, April 7 – Act 3 blocking

Friday, April 6 – Act 3 blocking

Thursday, April 5 – Act 2

Wednesday, April 6 – Act 2 blocking

Tuesday, April 5 – Act 2 blocking

Monday, April 4 – Act 2 blocking

Friday, April 1 – Act 2 blocking

Thursday, March 31 – Act 2 blocking

Wednesday, March 30 – Act 1

Tuesday, March 29 – Act 1 blocking

Monday, March 28 – Act 1 blocking

Friday, March 25 – Act 1 blocking

Thursday, March 24 – Act 1 blocking

Wednesday, March 23 – Act 1 blocking

Tuesday, March 22 – Act 3 blocking musical numbers everyone

Monday, March 21 – Act 3 blocking musical numbers everyone

Friday, March 18 – Act 2 blocking musical numbers everyone

Thursday, March 18 – Act 2 blocking musical numbers everyone

Wednesday, March 17 – Act 1 blocking musical numbers everyone

Tuesday, March 16 – Act 1 blocking musical numbers everyone

Monday, March 15 – Act 3 music main roles

Friday, March 12  – Act 3 music main roles

Thursday, March 11 – Act 2 music main roles

Wednesday, March 10 – Act 2 music main roles

Tuesday, March 9 – Act 1 music main roles

Monday, March 8 – Act 1 music main roles

Friday, March 5 – read-through

Thursday, March 4 – read-through

Wednesday, March 3 – cast announced

Tuesday, March 2 – auditions singing

Monday, March 1 – auditions acting

Mid-February – order scripts, pay royalties

Yes, there’s more behind the scenes going on before we even begin, but those pieces don’t involve a cast of 80 children. I need a schedule I can work with, students can take home for parents, and teachers will know when classes are disrupted.

* * * * * * * * * *

Here I just want to introduce this idea of backplanning. I’m going to take one of my goals – the marbling e-book – and do the backplanning right here (it will motivate me, as well as make it seem like we can do this……) Note that I start with the day I want to actually publish, and then I work from there.

June 1: submit final copy for publishing

Last week in May: complete review, checking spelling, layouts, sizes of pictures, videos

3rd week in May: make any final changes to layout of the book

2nd week in May: resources section completed

1st week in May: any appendices added

Last week in April: stories from other marblers chapter completed

3rd week in April: write chapter 11, pics and video on the weekend, marbling

2nd week in April:write chapter 10, pics and video on the weekend, marbling

1st week in April: write chapter 9, pics and video on the weekend, marbling

Last week in March: write chapter 8, pics and video on the weekend, marbling

3rd week in March: write chapter 7, pics and video on the weekend, marbling

2nd week in March: edit second three chapters

1st week in March: write chapter 6, pics and video on the weekend, marbling; send requests to other marblers for stories/techniques to include in the book

Last week in February: write chapter 5, pics and video on the weekend, marbling

3rd week in February: write chapter 4, pics and video on the weekend, marbling

2nd week in February: (silk classes in Jerome); review/edit first three chapters

1st week in February: write chapter 3, pics and video on the weekend, marbling

Last week in January: write chapter 2, pics and video on the weekend, marbling

3rd week in January: write chapter 1 and introduction, pics and videos on the weekend, marbling

2nd week in January: hubby starts photographs; videos on the weekend, marbling

1st week in January: (right now) – plan photographs and video needed for each of the 11 chapters; determine publishing platform (I’ve already eliminated one because I don’t want to spend the time coding each page)

* * * * * * * * *

So – now I’ve done that,and I am basically at today. I’m not comfortable with the schedule, since I am starting a new part-time job. I don’t know which weeks I will be working full time, so I know now that more time needs to be built in to this backplanning. I am going to delay publishing until the end of June, and that gives me four weeks as a cushion for the writing, especially within the first month as I am learning the publishing program.

Now – REMEMBER – this isn’t set in stone! You’re in charge – if you need to adapt, feel free. I will  keep you posted as to how each month works in this schedule.

Your task – take one item from your list of dreams, and try this. If you want to travel, start with when you want to go and work backwards – scheduling the trip, packing, saving the money – you get the idea.

Please leave comments for us on your thoughts, if you have done something like this, other variations you use. Let’s build from each other!

Here comes Part 2 in my Getting Organized Series. You can follow along on the blog and get a head start before the posts appear on the Handmadeology blog. Share comments about your dreaming at the bottom of this post.

 Part 2: Dreaming the New Year

Now it’s time to think about this coming new year, regardless of when you consider your year to begin. When I was teaching, September was always the beginning of the year, not January. With retirement, my new year is the end of May. So you can do this at any time of the year, for however long a time period you want. Start with a month or two, or go for the whole year. If the process works for you, then consider doing a five-year plan. I promise you that this whole process really works!

First, though, you need to DREAM. If you need help in dreaming your goals, check out Dale Anne Potter’s website. She offers a lot of positive ideas for getting goals accomplished, and she has great resources. So does Alyson Stanfield, author of “I’d Rather Be in the Studio!”

I’m asking you to do away with limits on your thinking. No worrying about how much money you need, whether you think it’s actually possible to accomplish, or any other roadblocks you might place in your path. This is dream time. A year from now, what would you like to have accomplished? Just DREAM. Don’t limit yourself! And…don’t make it just about your business.

Here’s what I’ve come up with in my brainstorming, in no particular order.

• a second online gallery carrying my artwork;
• publication of the book by Linda Seward with my art quilts in it;
• a line of stencils for mixed media;
• two ebooks on marketing;
• an ebook on quilting marbled fabrics;
• finish the ebook for a friend;
• licensing some of my digital designs;
• at least four new patterns developed and available;
• at least three teaching gigs around the country;
• visiting Paducah to tour Quilt City;
• a trip to Kauai in the fall;
• visiting the Maritimes this summer;
• entry into at least two fiber/art shows;
• increase by 25% each the income from Ebay, the website, Etsy, and Cafe Press;
• another connection to the Martha Stewart folks for another article;
• additional writing and work done on my website;
• a visit with my foster son;
• visiting the old homestead in New Jersey;
• seeing my college buddy again;
• staying healthy;
• blog posts at least four times a week;
• articles in two art/quilt-related magazines;
• monthly lunches with my second mom;
• weekly Friday night dinners with my sister-friend;
• at least once a month something art/music-related to see;
• outdoor cactus garden established;
• and….a trip to Vienna to visit a friend.

Your list can be as long or as short as you wish. Please do not try and limit yourself, even subconsciously. I have found the key in planning is to shoot for the moon. You’ll get a lot farther into the atmosphere than if you try to keep yourself grounded on earth.

Also, DO NOT FEEL OVERWHELMED with this list! In the next installment, I’ll be sharing the idea of backplanning – something that I have used throughout teaching, especially when I was doing theater. Backplanning makes everything seem absolutely do-able – I promise.

Feel free to share your dreaming with us. Some of us might get inspired by something you mention and decide to include it on our list. You’ll head in to the New Year feeling very positive about what you’d like to accomplish!

Next: The Concept of Backplanning

So a while back – like the end of November – I did goals for my third season of practicing abundance and attraction. December was pretty melancholy for me, made more so by the fact that I couldn’t seem to get it together to work on my new goals. So I decided on a “do-over.”

January 1 came and I was into the zone. We’ve been marbling like crazy for StashFest in Seattle the end of March. And selling on eBay and sewing like crazy. So I recognized I would need to take some time and look at what was planned already for the first quarter and then build on and in those plans. January first we both sat down and looked at what was ahead of us to get ready for StashFest, and once the calendar was blocked out, I knew what I wanted to add.

First, updating my profile on The Textile and Fiber Arts List, which has a totally new design. This will take a while, but I need to get it done.

Second, update my Etsy site with more fabrics. I am getting down (a good thing) because of the holidays, and I want to get at least two more gift baskets up on the site.

Third, make a list of art shows available through June that I could enter. This looks at what work is already done and acceptable, and my availability for doing new work. I narrowed to five shows, of which two need significant new pieces. I am up for that challenge, as the fabric is already created for one of the entries.

Fourth, newsletters. For some reason this has been really difficult to work on….don’t really know why, except I read so much about how great your newsletters need to be and I think it intimidates me. I also have to figure out how to work Mail Chimp…..There will be two newsletters: a general one once a month, and a collectors one once a quarter.

Fifth, the portfolio needs a major overhaul in preparation for Seattle. This shouldn’t take long, once I get to it. Along with this are additional business cards and postcards. I just need to get the images set for these.

Sixth, continue normal marketing. the blog is continuing, and readership has increased, due to my posting on the FMQ list as I quilt along. I don’t tweet as much as I should, but I do post on Facebook. I haven’t been as regular with postings on the Facebook fan page, and that needs to change. I also need to comment on more blogs – get out of Google reader and pass on comments.

So those are the goals, keeping in mind by March 15 we need 400 fat quarters…..with today’s marbling we will be at 75 (and that’s just since December 30), so I’d say we are on track…….

What have you decided to do for marketing for this first quarter of a brand new year?

I realized that I ended Season Two of Cocreating Our Reality on November 19. I have been so busy sewing and working on projects – and being positive – that the day went by. December 1 is coming this week, and I’m planning to start Season 3 that day. One thing I have learned is to try to be more specific with my goals, and yet not limit myself within the goals. I also need more goals, both creatively and business-wise.

So how did I do?

* Enjoy life through a couple of trips and dinners/other social engagements with friends: San Diego, Austin, Houston, New Orleans. Absolutely! We went to Sedona in July, San Diego in August, Santa Fe in September, Sedona in October, and Prescott in November. We are planning to head to San Diego in two weeks. Obviously a new goal is going to be continuing to get a trip in a month – in fact, TWO are scheduled for March.

* Finish “Artists Revisited” class, complete with the new quilt. Finished the class, the quilt is probably half done, and it is now awaiting sometime in late spring to finish it – there are two major pieces I am attacking for a show deadline in mid-February.

* Help with Tikkun Olam show at the Jewish Community Center. The show was very nicely staged. Didn’t sell anything, but had a lot of really good feedback.

* Plan for additional income each month through the business; the goal is to beat the previous month (August should beat July, and so on). We are marbling more often – at least twice a month – and generally selling all the fabric. Etsy has picked up, and a few other things are working, including a commission for 31 fat quarters. We have far exceeded what we did for income in all of last year, so we should end the year in very good shape.

* Take three tutoring clients in mathematics. Instead I accepted a position teaching college algebra one afternoon a week – 4 hours, plus prep time. About the same amount of additional time, and about the same amount of money. Way easier on the travel and schedule.

* Update<a href=”http://artfromtheheart.org” target=”_blank”> Art from the Heart</a> website and make plans for entries for the first anniversary of the Tucson shootings. Three new works of art have already been added, and more people are  beginning to talk about the site.

* Sewing projects: Tikkun Olam, Wayne Art Center, Betty’s commission, small rhythm piece, fish quilt redone, deer quilt finished, three additional quilt projects to be determined. No Wayne Art Center. Most of Betty’s commission is completed, the rhythm piece done, the fish quilt completed, the deer quilt finished, and three projects have been determined, all of which have been started.

* Complete the first three action plans in <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>I’d Rather Be In the Studio</span> by Alyson Stanfield. In fact, I did four. I need to attack the portfolio goal over these next 100 days, as well as get in gear on newsletters.

* Maintain goals through the Multiple Streams of Income class and set new 90-day goals. Did this – will set the new goals through Season 3.

* Market the gift basket through Marble-T Design and sell at least four. We’ve sold 3 so far, so good on us! We’ve got stuff for two more ready to go.

* Break 200 pounds. Did not come close. In fact, I have yet to step on the scale, which I will do tomorrow, as I really begin to attack this. What I noticed is that I spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about this, and nothing has happened that is positive. So I obviously need to rethink how I look at this. I am going on more than half my life being overweight, and something has to change. Either I accept myself as I am now, or I change into what I want to be. More meditation, a diet “sponsor,” a food diary, regular walking, and some journaling are on the list.

I do like being able to see concretely what has been happening. That’s one of the reasons I like the blogging. This is a definite way for me to keep myself accountable.

One goal so far for the new season: the Free Motion Quilting Challenge, which will begin in January. I’ve got lots of other ideas, so I need to get things finalized for the start on Thursday, December 1.

Suggestions?