It was time to observe my New Year ritual, so I settled down on the porch with my 10-year journal, my notebook, my new journal and a cup of tea for some serious review, reassessment and planning.
I identified a few goals I want to achieve this year but more importantly, I decided to adopt and focus on the term, "just one more" with every writing and writing-related task or project I undertake - administrative duties, research, writing/blogging, editing, reviewing, reading, etc.
The days of stopping short of completing tasks on my to-do list are over. With God's help I am taking a new approach to everything I do to enhance and advance my writing career.
The concept of "just one more" entails doing one more thing, going one more step, reading for one more hour or one more chapter, writing one more page, doing one more round of editing, sending one more query and submission to one more market, etc.
I've read about and experienced first-hand, the benefits of doing one more thing, taking one more proactive step, not settling for less than excellent efforts. And that is what 'just one more" means really - refusing to settle for mediocrity or good enough.
If we want to achieve our writing goals, accomplish our writing dreams and be the writers we want to be, then we must be willing to give ourselves one more push, go one step further, take one more chance and do one more thing to make them happen.
It is not always easy to do one more of anything at the end of a busy day of home, family and work responsibilities and other demands that may come up unexpectedly. Even fulltime writers can easily become overwhelmed and sidetracked by the other responsibilities in their lives.
From time to time, I will share my progress with you. Hopefully you will be encouraged to adopt this concept for your own writing practice.
Guess what? I wrote one more post for our Saturday Soirée and scheduled it for posting next Saturday.
Have you sorted out what goals you want to go after this year? Do you have an overriding goal or strategy to improve your success at achieving them? I've shared mine; you're welcome to share yours.
Whatever our writing goals are, however simple, however grand, however varied, let's determine to keep writing, a little everyday or as often as our lifestyles and responsibilities will allow because we're writing up a storm this year. Aren't we?
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2 comments:
Hi Cheryl, What a great concept. So often I hear people finish a project and they say "Good enough." But really, good enough isn't good enough for writing. Writers can hold themselves back by stopping before that extra step. Success can be that close. Your post has motivated me to take a hard look at what I want to accomplish this year, and I'm going to start a journal addressing just that. One strategy I started last summer and plan to build on this year is to create an internet presence, which I'm trying with my blog, and will continue with, as well as submissions to online journals, to increase my credentials online. Thanks for giving me the inspiration to consider what my "one more" step will be.
I think that "going the extra mile' is similar to the "just one more" concept. "Going the extra mile" is usually seen as something we do for someone else. I look at "just one more" as something we can adopt and practice for ourselves.
It is a strategy we can use to combat the internal and external limits that keep us from not only giving our fullest attention and best efforts to our passions but from stretching ourselves.
I'll be routing for you as you use this strategy to help you identify and achieve your goals.
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