New month, new word. January was about beginnings. For February, I’m determined to capitalize on the momentum I have. This month can be hard; you’re not far enough along to see huge strides forward. You’re also far enough away from the start of the year that the newness has worn off, along with a large chunk of your enthusiasm. Plus, January seemed like it was five years long.
I am the queen of “Ooh! Shiny!” so I know this is a danger moment for me. Yes, the planner has hopeful deadlines penciled in, but unless I get off my butt and do the thing, I’ll be doing a bunch of erasing. This month, I will buckle down and push through to get the draft finished a week before the end of the month. I also need to get my mailing list in order because that’s an important author thing (you can sign up here to receive news, research tidbits, history book reviews, and pictures of my adorable cats). There are miles to ride on my bike and today starts a fresh challenge on the Peloton app. Plus, I need to get back to my knitting projects, and catch up with some television. And books to read. And …
Okay, I’m exhausted already. But that’s what happens in our lives. Stuff piles up when we’re not looking. Sometimes when we are. Life happens. We keep going. The question then becomes what we prioritize to keep going. For me, it will be those words on the page and doing the other things I need to do to keep my business running. It’s the priority, but it’s also a gift because I can shape that work around the family challenges I’m facing. There’s been times when I had to stop doing what I love because there was no time between my day job and the family things we were dealing with. This time, my day job is my writing and I’m determined to make this as productive a month as I can.
What about you? What are you determined to have happen this month?