Put it in Writing!

My grandparents and my Mom generously paid off my car for me for Christmas. I feel slightly guilty, but also extremely grateful and happy that it has made me 100% debt-free. I also have a plan for the next month, some not-so-sneaky maneuvers up my sleeve, that will get some other things going for me too.  As if teaching seven classes this spring, wellness coaching, and doing two new mind-body groups won’t be enough. But whatever, I have goals to reach!

Which reminds me, did you know that if you write down your goals, you are significantly more likely to reach them?  This is true—even if you have a goal that seems a little outlandish or unreachable in your current state, you should still write it down!  I should have Petra write about this topic—she is the Queen of Goals!

I’ve written down my goals several times (I lose the lists easily, plus it helps me focus on them if I keep writing them down). They actually don’t change much over time (at least not yet), but I’ve been trying to be more focused on what I actually want instead of just achieving for the sake of it.  It helps if I let loose a little and not always focus on being productive. For example, I spent this morning in Matthew’s classroom helping to build gingerbread houses (I shuddered at all the sugar, and Matthew embarrassed me by announcing to all the Moms that “Lisa would never eat this because she is into healthy stuff, and sugar is not healthy.” He wasn’t totally right either—I eat my fair share of sugar, but I didn’t defend myself in that forum…I just looked like a freak. Oh well!).

Later this evening, we also played on the Plowed Snow Mountain in the parking lot for a few hours. I know I’m old, but it was really cold, and Matthew has way better cold weather gear than I have. I bribed him to come inside by telling him he could open a Christmas present. Sucker! I was going to let him open one anyway…

My real point here is that if I can get outside of my head for a while (and just be totally unproductive in a work sense), I often can come back to my goals with a much clearer view. I have the best mental exercise for this too—I’ll share it with you very soon.