Wednesday, December 18, 2013

ARE YOU SABOTAGING YOURSELF


This year has flown by so fast. It’s almost Christmas. What! WHAT? It hardly seems fair that time keeps expanding by leaps and bounds and I can barely keep up. I must be truthful and say that while I made some big advances this year, I did not accomplish all my goals.
And I’m a little disappointed in myself.

The thing is, people will tell you, “Oh, it’s okay. You can’t do everything.” But the truth is, if you make a goal (a reasonable one at that) and you don’t accomplish it (par for death or serious illness) you should not give yourself an out. Don’t set yourself up for failure. As soon as I start giving myself an excuse to not do something, I’ve lost. As soon as I get lazy and undisciplined, I’ve lost. As soon as I start to feel sorry for myself because of my long hours, I’ve lost.

I might as well shut down my computer, stop writing and reading, and watch TV.

So you know what. There’s not going to be any pity parties over here. There’s not going to be any excuses, any undue pats on the back – not until I do what I set out to do. This isn’t just about writing…but it encompasses that dream, too. This is about EVERYTHING. I know what I am capable of and the only person who can stand in my way is ME. Not the day job that sucks my energy and exhausts me mentally, not the people in my life (family, friends) who clamor for my time/attention. Not the clock that stands as a constant reminder that time is limited and I must use it wisely.
Only I can stand in my way. And only you can stand in yours. Are YOU the real reason you haven’t reached all your goals? Stop making excuses and make opportunities.

Did you struggle particularly this year with anything? How did you overcome this?

 
Have a great day. Read a book and laugh!

7 comments:

  1. This wasn't a goal for this year but it will definitely be a goal for next year. I need to balance my freelance editing and my writing better. My editing schedule has been booked since October and I'm booked through January. I need time to write. That means I'm going to have to take on fewer edits per month so I can write too.

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  2. Great pep talk. Thanks. I needed it. I set too many goals for myself, I think, and haven't accomplished all of them. So, for 2014, I'm going to look at the major goals I have. Then, if I accomplish them, the others will be icing on the cake. :(

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  3. I'm struggling with the same things. I'm supposed to be working on a novel right now but can't seem to get my behind into gear. I wanted to have the novel written by January and I probably can still do it. I needed this tough love! Thanks for this post.

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  4. Good post, Dawn. It takes a lot of self-discipline to advance a writing career. For myself, I did well in getting a book published this year, but all the promoting, etc. got in the way of reading and writing the next book. I cut myself a little slack for a steep learning curve, but now I have to buckle down and use my time on reading and writing again.

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  5. Hello, Dawn!
    Thanks for stopping by my blog.
    This is a great post, and you are right. If you give yourself an out for not meeting a goal, you've sabotaged yourself. You've already set a precedent for making goals you have no intention of keeping.

    Some things are out of control. (I can't *make* an editor buy my next book.) However, nobody can stop me from writing another book -- except me!

    A good perspective, heading into 2014! Happy New Year!

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  6. Awesome. Great attitude. It's true, we totally rationalize away our accountability, and then what are we left with? Here's to being productive, working hard, and making 2014 the best darn year ever!

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  7. Definitely a great post! 2014 is going to be my year of no excuses. Just plain hard work. :)

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