How was your month?

Mine was … all right!

It was filled with ups and downs, as months (and days and weeks and years) tend to be. But 1/12th of the year is over (it sounds weird when you say it that way) so I want to take stock of how I did by using this post to hold myself accountable. And also, to recognize myself for things I actually did.

What was good:

– I met my 10 hour writing goal every week! Projects worked on: The Remains (though thanks to my writing group’s pointing out a huge flaw in the plot, reworking it is going to take longer than expected) and Crew (I got some excellent feedback from a CP and even though I didn’t want to start working on this again until later, I JUST COULDN’T WAIT to fix things, I love when that happens.)

– I saw friends and met new ones. Fostered community.

– I revived my bookish Instagram (follow me!) and my Litsy account (I’m also wanderlustywriter over there).

– I did 3 freelance writing jobs.

– I kept to the 7-boozy-drinks-per-week rule — until yesterday. Because I needed one.

– I have been praying with intention.

– I made a new playlist of new music (and by “new” I mean “new to me” as most of it came out in the ’90s).

-I journaled a bit. I would like to do this more.

-I posted reviews for two books on Goodreads. (I still need to get them onto Amazon.)

– I have learned how to use my Insta-pot (20-minute risotto, anyone?)

– We adopted 2 cats last weekend! (Please pray it goes well!)

What I can work on:

– I posted here … twice. I would like to get up to at least 4 times a month. (And I’m late on this post.)

– I yoga’ed once a week, not 3 times. Do that more!

– I cardio’ed once a week, instead of twice. Do that more!

– I read 3 books not 4. This is due to letting the day job encroach too much on my personal time. Also due to…

– I phone-scrolled too much. Do that less!

(Side note: does anyone have a good “slowly wake up” routine that doesn’t involves scrolling through your phone? And I’ve tried “just lie there for 5 minutes”–and fell back asleep and was late to work. What else can I do for 5 minutes in the morning that involves not getting out of bed?)

– I ate too many snacks at work. Do that less!

And in the process of hitting my writing goals, I failed almost completely in something else: adulting. By this I mean paying bills, opening mail, returning packages — generally doing all the little things you need to do to keep your life running. I justified this by saying “What do I prefer? To have a clean house or to be a writer?” But living in a mess is also not the answer. What is the answer? BALANCE.

I had a mini panic attack when I came to this realization — I budgeted my time so carefully! Where was I going to find more of it to do these things? — and I decided it really can be taken from the mindless scrolling. I rely on my phone for so much good stuff, but it brings with it so much bad stuff. Discipline is the key. I think.

How is your goal-setting and reaching going? Any new things you’ve learned this year? I’d love to know!

Photo by Francois Olwage on Unsplash