Reinvent Yourself: TRACK YOUR GOALS

Subtitle: Tracking Goals With The Writer's Store "Don't Break The Chain" Calendar

The Writer's Store sent this very handy 365-day calendar to the subscribers of their mailing list. Most of these subscribers are, of course, writers - but you don't have to write (or even know how to spell) to utilize the "Don't Break The Chain" calendar. The 365 numbered boxes are small enough to fit on one page. But how do you use it? What is the philosophy behind it? Jerry Seinfeld knows! In a nutshell, it's a year-at-a-glance reminder that can be used to track any goal that needs to occur on a consistent basis. Here's the abridged original email. GTO

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"This year, I'm gonna write more."

It's a popular resolution amongst our crowd. A great goal, but vague.

Maybe some of us promised to write every day. (That's better.)

But just like hitting a plateau at the gym, we sometimes lose the steam that once powered a new and exciting story idea. We take one day off, which turns into two days off; eventually, we find ourselves opening up a document only to realize it hasn't been touched in two weeks – or more.

Let's say you do write most of the time, but you take one or two days off each week for any number of reasons. That's still a lot of writing. But consider this: at the end of the year, that's roughly 10 weeks, or 2.5 months' worth of days that you didn't write anything.

That's where Jerry Seinfeld's productivity tip "Don't Break the Chain" comes in.

Years ago, when software developer Brad Isaac was performing stand-up at open mic nights, he received his best advice ever from the already-famous comedian.

Seinfeld explained his method for success: each January, he hangs a large year-at-a-glance calendar on his wall and, for every day he wrote new material, he had the exquisite pleasure that can only come from drawing a big red X over that day.

Drawing those Xs got to be pretty fun and rewarding, so he kept doing it. Eventually, he began to create a chain of red Xs. The idea was to never break that chain.

Not only does this approach program the body and mind to sit down and write daily – it also motivates you to continue that beautiful string of big, red Xs. If you don't write one day, you don't get to draw the X.

It doesn't particularly matter what you [do]. It can be anything, as long as you're actively and routinely pushing yourself.

[What are your goals? What can you accomplish - on a consistent basis - that would make you feel better about yourself or your life?]

Who is going to push you? For many, it's going to come down to self-determination. Your partner or parents or kids can encourage you too. Let them know about the calendar. After you prove you can keep the chain connected for a couple of weeks, they too will motivate you not to miss a single day.
 [I love the support that can come from our friends & family.]

Don’t waste another moment – start building your chain today!

[Source: The Writer's Store newsletter, January 2011. As edited by Greg Olszewski.]

Reinvent Yourself: MAKE A 10-MINUTE COMMITMENT

Subtitle: Don't Let Yourself Off the Hook

How often do you say you're going to do something - and then fall short of actually doing it?

Do you let yourself off the hook more often than you should?

Have the people in your life stopped taking you seriously, or have you stopped taking yourself seriously?

Well, friend, I know your pain.

And as a living, breathing example of someone who lets himself off the hook way too often, I believe that we pay a severe price for this behavior.

When we say we're going to do something, then don't - aren't we, in essence, lying to ourselves?

(Now, you can choose to believe that it's not a lie, but then my question becomes, when does it become a lie? At what point does saying something (and not doing it) become a lie? -- a month? A year?)

The point is, putting off important things compromises the trust and belief we have in ourselves. The longer we put off important things, the more doubt creeps in. Our brains start asking the wrong kinds of questions, start seeing the wrong kinds of outcomes - and we stop moving forward. Inertia sets in, then paralysis - the result of no longer believing in ourselves.

We can start believing again.

By doing what we say we will do.

Take that first, tiny step.

In my case, the first tiny step is often just sitting down. Sitting my butt down and focusing on something for five minutes.

What important things do you need to do? Can you do them for even five minutes?

Do you have a paper due? Can you work on it for five minutes?

Do you need to lose weight? Can you exercise for five to ten minutes?

Or is it as simple as your dishes piling up? Can you wash five glasses or plates right now?

Is your house a mess? Make the bed!

(Making the bed only takes two minutes, yet completely changes the look of the room!)

Just get started!

Even a small change to our environment can help us feel like we're taking action.

And before you know it, things are starting to look up.

But don't overdo it. (I'm talking to the beginners here!)

For things to change, you need to take small, consistent actions. But don't overdo it!

If you write for two hours today, you may not feel like writing tomorrow. I'd rather you go slowly everyday than risk overdoing it, scaring yourself, or wearing yourself out, and never getting back to the matter at hand. (I'm speaking from experience here.)

We want to offset the sinking emotions you've been feeling recently, but we don't want to overwhelm you. So take small, gentle action everyday.

Don't let yourself off the hook!

With those small, focused, consistent actions, momentum begins to build. Sometimes it takes a while. (Some argue that it takes a month for new habits to kick in.) But even before that you'll start to see that you're getting back on track. Moving forward. One step at a time.

My friend, Elwin, and I get together to write once a week. At first, we'd spend a majority of our writing-time catching up with each other, or getting into very interesting conversations about this or that. (It was mostly my fault.) But as the weeks went on, as we got comfortable with our writing-time, we found ourselves getting to the important stuff (the writing) much more quickly. Yes, it took weeks, but we stayed consistent, and now spend the majority of our time doing what we need to do - the important stuff.

We can't afford to lie to ourselves for long. There's a time-limit on life.

Things change constantly. One day an opportunity may present itself, then the next day it could be gone forever.

To get ready for these opportunities, we need to stop lying to ourselves, take tiny, focused action, re-establish a level of trust and faith in ourselves, and move on to the next thing as soon as possible. 

All we need is a 10-minute commitment.

(We'll add more time later.)

Today. 10-minutes. Don't let yourself off the hook. This is important.

We're training ourselves to be consistent. We're training ourselves to stop lying.

We can do this.

We got this.

GTO