Quote of the Day

"Celebrate any progress. Don't wait to get perfect." -Ann McGee Cooper

I don't know who Ann McGee Cooper is. I came across this quote in a newsletter from David Allen, author of the Getting Things Done organizational system.

How often do we hesitate to start something because we're not sure how well it will turn out? Don't we critique our progress because it's not perfect? Perhaps if we settled for good enough, we might be more willing to jump in, and actually accomplish more than we expected.

Another favorite quote of mine is "If you reach for the stars, you may not achieve your goal, but you won't be left with your feet stuck in the mud." (author unknown to me.)

challenges, motivation & focus

They say that posting your goals in public will motivate you to do well. When everyone expects you to achieve something, you can't let them down. Deadlines can be a big motivator too. When something has to be done by a certain time, it's easier to focus on getting that particular thing done.

One of my bigger challenges in accomplishing things is focus. I have so many ideas that I can't narrow my work down, & so I don't get anything done. Challenges help in that they give me an area in which to focus. They also have deadlines & are often done in public.

I have three challenges in the next few weeks. The first is to get my day planner made & printed. I make my own on the computer (more about that in a later post). It has to be done by the end of the week or else the year will change & I'll be calendarless.

The next is Lion Brand's Vanna White yarn contest. I won't say much about the yarn. It wouldn't be my first choice for a project, but that's what's required by the contest, & so I am using it. It does come in a nice selection of colors. The deadline is Feb 1, & so I have alot of crocheting ahead of me. By looking at last year's winners, the judges are looking for little details. I hope mine will suffice.

The last challenge is for my ATC group. (For more about ATC's &what they are see: Art in your Pocket: ATCs.) As a group, most of us have been busy with life's constant demands, and haven't had much time to create. At our last meeting we challenged ourselves to create 5 new ATC's by the next meeting - one a week. This too, by the end of Jan.

Store bought or homemade?

It started with a small financial crisis. Or rather, a not so small financial crisis. I had planned to go to Michael's to get some gift wrap, and odds & ends to finish my gifts for coworkers. However, a quick check of the bank account showed that money that should have been available had gone elsewhere. And no paychecks due until it would be too late. So I was on my own.

There are those who take pride in their frugality, offering their own creations instead of those from the store. And some do make nice quality items. I downloaded & printed templates for gift bags & tags. For the nursing staff I had planned a box of fancy candies or cookies. These are now several batches of home baked chocolate chip cookies waiting to bring in tomorrow. But was it really worth it?

The time & effort spent could have better gone to something else. The gift bags turned out looking quite homemade (and not in the good sense). The cookies taste good, but are quite plain looking. On the other hand, I had no choice - make it, or do without. My coworkers became quite excited about how "cute & adorable" those little bags were. The nursing staff will probably appreciate whatever you bring.

In the final analysis, homemade worked out, but I don't think I would do it again if I had the choice.

(I wanted to post pictures, but my phone & computer didn't quite communicate the way they should have. That will be a project for my son-in-law, hopefully next week.)

This blog was supposed to be about my inner life. Or about struggles with my inner life as it impinged on my outer life. It was to be for family & friends, to share my life as I understood it. It was to be for strangers, to support & inspire those with similar difficulties as we go along life's journey.

But the Internet is still a strange venue. And there are those out there who are not quite strangers, but yet not fully family & friends. Such as current & future bosses. Or landlords. And the like. Those to whom you don't want them to know your deepest, darkest secrets. But the same venues that tell all to those that you want to hear, also reveal to those to whom you'd like to keep farther in the shadows.

And so this blog will need to focus on the positive. Challenges, nevertheless, but mostly things that I've achieved, rather than overcome. Life's normal challenges, yes. But my personal difficulties, no. But then again, those who might read between the lines might find some sort of story with which they can emphasize.