Finding Accountability in Past Posts
A recent comment on a post brought up the issue of accountability and had me digging into my past to find mine. The post focused on the importance of putting action to dreams in order to make those dreams a reality. It is a theme I have been drumming hard these last few weeks.
I clicked on the link to the actual article that I had written and found these words.
“If you want something to happen in your life then you can’t sit around and wait for it to come to you.”
Only then did I look over and see that the post was from 2007. I have been doing a LOT of talking for several years now. It is past time for me to take some of my own advice. Time to get to work.
Turning Words into Action
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1. Get organized. I invested in refills for a small day planner book that I received for free several years back. The pages offer everything I need AND I can keep it in my purse. I am keeping up with all the mileage, expenses and even words that I write in one convenient location. For the home, I have a HUGE wall calendar with everyoneβs activities and events plus a white board for daily to-dos.
2. Get a schedule. We have been working from a schedule as a family for several years now, but these last few weeks I have been seriously revamping. I am being realistic about the time it takes to complete school, to do chores and to sleep. Creating a realistic schedule has also made it easier to see exactly what I can expect when it comes to work time.
3. Get going. I have planned and now I am doing. It takes 21 days to create a habit and I want to create a habit of writing for my life. I am on day 3. Although I have not written the amount of words that I have set as a goal, I am writing during my three designated times each day.
Resolutions are great. Dreams can motivate us to pursue a passion. But stepping out and taking action will be the only way anything gets done. Sometimes it is our own words that will remind us that it is time to quit talking and to get walking.
Share some of the ways that you are putting your words, resolutions and dreams into action.
I totally agree with you. How many times do people say they will lose 50 pounds for the New Year and then have to say the same thing again when the next New Year rolls around?
I decided that I need to crack the whip some more as well. My problem is I am great at writing out plans and schedules but sticking to the through to completion is a totally different story. The fun is in the planning for me.
I was feeling down about my successes online these last few years and feeling like I did not accomplish much. But I decided to take down some stats for visitors on my website over the last 3 years and found that there has been an increase almost 10x this last year over the first year with all of the marketing and social media measures I have been taking. So it appears as if something is working!
Then I decided to write down how much money I have made writing and working my freelance business over the last 3 years as well. The first year I made less than $300 for the whole year. The 2nd year it was $852. And this last year is was a whopping $4479.84! That is a nice increase and worth feeling proud about.
Sometimes, you need to just keep on pushing towards your dreams and not let distractions or negative thinking get you down. Maybe we all need to find an accountability partner to keep us on track, or what has helped me lately is participating in the wahm writers forum where each month we post what plans we have and how much money we aim to make. Most of us have been making sure we do it because we know we have to report back in a month.
Find what works and stick with it. You are right, once it becomes a habit, it is so much easier to do.
Wow Melanie – that’s a definite step up! I am with you with the pushing. I have discovered that the more I push myself to do then the more that gets done. It almost seems like once you get the ball rolling, gravity and inertia kick in and keep it moving!