The plan for the plan

I like a good plan. Actually, I just like a plan.

A plan can’t be judged as good or bad until later, so I can’t worry about it. At any given moment, I like to know the goal and how we’re going to get there. That’s why I like planning with clients. And, that’s why every weekend starts with a family meeting that only ends after we have a bulleted list and what we’re going to accomplish with our 2 “home days.” Many, many years ago I was told by a boyfriend that dating me was like being in the Army. I was so flattered (and mean no disrespect to our actual armed forces.)

My goals and resolutions are screaming for a plan. Whether they know it or not, the fam needs some goals and a plan too. So, I need to come up with something for them (with their input, of course.)

As a start on my list, here’s what I’d like to work on. I’m going to pick one a month and make a little 30-day challenge out of it. If you read the blog earlier in the week, you know that the writing one is first up for January.

1. Write consistently. This means writing just to write, writing for the blog, and for business stuff like Inc and Alexa. I will re-establish my daily writing habit by getting 500 words on the page each day without worrying about what. This goal is just about being disciplined about writing something, anything.
2. Better catalog ideas. This goal is partly about reading more books but not completely. I read a lot of non-fiction now but most business books are really just a single idea drawn out for tens of thousands of unnecssary words. I’ll read the book summaries I get and pull the ideas out. What I need is a better system for cataloging and capturing the ideas I want to follow-up on in some way.
3. Learn how to compile and edit videos. I have a lot of family videos and want to take more. I want to post them purely to prove to the kids later on that their childhood wasn’t, in fact, like being in the Army, and that we had fun too.
4. Reduce clutter. This will be my list of “to dos” for the rest of my life. The house, my computer, and my brain just require constant attention and ruthless editing. Bring it.
5. Increase confidence in public speaking. I want to feel more confident in front of an audience. This would be at conferences and presentations- not meetings. Even if the same number of people are in the room, I’m fine to lead a group through exercises and an agenda. I start to tighten up though if I’m there to convey any information and be authoritative on a topic.
6. Market differently. I sell work now through two primary means- referrals and follow-ons. I’d like to stretch and try different ways to market and sell work.
7. Try new recipes. Our current process rocks, I must say. Everything is planned and groceries are delivered each week. There are rarely last-minute trips to the store. However, we get into ruts and eat some of the same things each week because I know the kids like them. I’d like to get them trying new things, so I could do better at coming up with ideas for inducing new recipes.

Some of these ideas came from the Ink+Volt list. Others are just things I want to do. Over the next couple of days, I’ll figure out what makes sense for February. They aren’t ordered in any way. And, I still need to add the kid’s stuff.

If we’re related by blood or marriage (or just good friends) and have other things you’d like to see me work on, I’ll talk to you offline. 😊