Archive for Goals
Vision Board vs. Vision Book
Posted by: | CommentsWe’ve all heard of vision boards thanks to the movie The Secret. I always liked the idea of a vision board to help me get more visually focused on my goals but what I did not like was the blatant display of what I wanted in life. It made me feel a bit vulnerable. I didn’t want my family and guests in my home to give their opinions of my visions. I wanted my visions to be MY visions and was not interested in other people’s criticism or opinion of them.
What I used to do was make mini vision boards on construction paper. This worked well for me because I could tuck them away in a folder of my desk and look at them in private without the peanut gallery having a say in my “woowoo” stuff. 
However, I have recently discovered something even BETTER and more FUN than my mini vision boards and they are called Vision Books! The vision book idea came from my friend Marilyn LoRusso who runs the Vision Book Art Workshops out of her home in Marin County, California. She leads us through creating vision books re-using old, hard cover novels, that we alter.
Here are two of my vision books:
Tucked inside those pages are my visions and dreams wrapped up in a pretty package. Marilyn’s workshops have been so successful she is now offering an online version of her workshops, it’s actually an 8 week vision book rainbow journey, as she calls it.
Oh and you don’t have to be “woowoo” to benefit from Marilyn’s workshops. Our local newspaper, the MarinIJ recently wrote a piece about the workshops. When I started taking the workshops I had no idea where I was going with my vision or what my vision even was. I just new I was ready for a change. A lot of wonderful things have changed in my life in the last year.
If you are feeling overwhelmed and unhappy with your life, it is time to give yourself a break and take care of yourself. Creating a vision book is one way of doing this.
Click here for information about the Online Vision Book Rainbow Journey.
February Resolutions
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January has come to an end! Have your resolutions stuck or did they also come to an end?
I believe February is a great time to set new resolutions! The gyms are less crowded. The hustle and bustle of the holidays are over. Routines are starting to set in again.
Since I spent most of January sick with the flu, I pretty much didn’t start any of my resolutions or new year plans.
Let’s review, I wrote this blog post Time For A Change at the end of December with my BIG plans for 2013.
Here were my plans:
- No more commuting to San Francisco day in and day out √ Oh hey! I can check this one off the list! 2/1/13 is my last official day working in San Francisco.
- Finish my book (committed to writing for 30 minutes a day for the next 30 days) I haven’t exactly been writing 30 minutes a day for the last 30 days but I have been writing and I did complete 1 more interview! And I created a brand new blog dedicated to this book!
- Post more on this blog √ 3 new blog posts and 1 new blog – not bad!
- Join CrossFit √ I did join Crossfit! I made it to 1 Intro session and 1 whole beginner session and then got the flu… this is the one resolution I will definitely pick back up in February. From my little introduction to CrossFit, I already LOVE it!
- Make the rest of my life the best of my life! √ Yes! So far, despite the flu 2013 has been a great year!
I am happy I reviewed my plan. I actually did accomplish a lot! This gives me hope. Here’s to a fun February to you all!
What are your February resolutions?
*Check mark image from http://icons.mysitemyway.com
Time for a change
Posted by: | CommentsI have never been one to set resolutions in January because… well… we all know how that goes. BUT it just so happens that the end of this year 2012 (fortunately, not the end of the world) is the time when I decided it is TIME FOR A CHANGE!
Being that I am now 42 (and look nothing like the avatar you see on this blog which was a cartoon based on a photo taken of me 4+ years ago) I decided it was time for a BIG change.
Here is the plan:
- No more commuting to San Francisco day in and day out (will save the details of this for a later post)
- Finish my book (committed to writing for 30 minutes a day for the next 30 days)
- Post more on this blog
- Join Crossfit
- Make the rest of my life the best of my life!
Yep, I am going to join Crossfit. Let me give you a little background on what a BIG deal this is for me. First of all, I do not like exercising! I am “skinny fat” (term I learned from Jeena Cho). When it comes to exercise, I am lazy. Truthfully, I would much rather stay home and blog or watch an episode of Glee. However, my vanity and my desire to have more energy in my 40s is now overriding my laziness. Also, I’m at a point where I know I need to do something drastic, something big, because I know whenever I do something outside of my comfort zone or something that scares me, something better always happens.
Why Crossfit? Well the answer is simple: I want to look like Tamara Holland and my neighbor Kat and they both do Crossfit. I told you, vanity was one of my driving forces. Oh and there is a Crossfit gym just down the street from my house which goes along with number 1, no more commuting to San Francisco. So, by February I will be starting my Crossfit training. I am committed to trying it for 1 month and will see how it goes after that.
Are you wondering why I am telling you this? The reason is, if I put it in writing and send it out to the world to read I am much more likely to actually do it!
Do you have any big plans for change?
My new motto: “Do one thing every day that scares you.” ~Eleanor Roosevelt
I hope I don’t regret this post…
Complainer Drainer
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Have you ever noticed how much we like to complain? I have realized that being around complainers drains me and I don’t want to be a complainer drainer myself anymore. I’m not talking about people going through real crisis and stress, I’m talking about the rest of us: the general complainers who just blah, blah, blah about this and that. Actually, I am just talking about myself.
I’m starting my new 30 day challenge TODAY. No complaining for 30 days. I realize I picked a very challenging 30 days to do this… the days leading up to the election but what better time than now?!
Starting today every time I catch myself complaining I will do my best to stop and refocus my thoughts (and my mouth) on what I am grateful for.
Not complaining doesn’t mean living in denial. It means I’m going to focus on the truths that are more positive than the negative ones.
For instance, when I wake up in the morning I have choices on what to focus my thoughts on. I can wake up and think I hate getting up so early for my job or I can wake up and be grateful for my comfy bed and home. I can appreciate all the things I take for granted every morning like the electricity that powers my coffee maker (I really, really, really appreciate my coffee in the mornings), the hot water that comes out of my shower, the toilet that flushes, the fireplace in my living room, the bus that always arrives on time, my smart phone that works on the bus.
Have you ever thought about how much you complain?
Want to join me in 30 days of no complaining? I have a feeling this tiny shift could have a BIG impact on how we feel.
I will be using the hashtag #nocomplaints on Twitter.
Join me on Facebook for more discussions on this topic. #Like
More articles on no complaints:
How to Stop Complaining and Start Living
Work Happy Now: No More Complaining at Work
Quiet Time
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I am in serious need of some quiet time. Despite my big plans to slow down in 2012, I feel like I have sped up. I need to follow Laura Fenemore’s advice and listen to what my body is saying. I’m sitting here at home, on this holiday weekend, with a sore throat. I am exhausted. I decided I am going to hibernate this weekend and recover. I’m also going to take some time to reflect on what is really important to me. I’m starting with clearing out the clutter in my life: emails, piles of paper and my closet.
I just deleted 735 emails from my in box. Some junk, some newsletters, some blog requests, others;
letters from kid’s schools and sports teams, personal friends and family, strangers who want something, friends wanting to hang out, responses to emails I sent, endless. So many not read.
Decided I needed a fresh start. Have been trying to get on top of my email account for months and it has been a slippery slope. Every time I opened my email I felt bad for not responding to each person, especially my friends and family. Problem is, each time I respond I get another email back almost instantly. Tried to keep up but couldn’t. Realized today, I was never going to catch up.
Feels good to start fresh. I wish people would be more conscious about the number of emails they send. I know I’ve been guilty of shooting off too many because I’m too lazy to pick up the phone. Sometimes a quick phone call could save 10 email exchanges.
What do you do when your email in box reaches the point of overwhelm?
I plan to spend more time enjoying the sunsets. Thankful to my friend Marilyn who has been getting Poncho and I out on more sunset walks.
This photo was taken along the path that starts at Blackie's Pasture in Tiburon.
Doggone Good Advice
Posted by: | CommentsMaybe I can’t teach an old dog new tricks but it seems an old dog can teach me some things, about life. I think I am going to take advice from my aging dog and slow down a bit this year. Poncho was a crazy puppy. He had a LOT of energy. Kind-hearted people always told us just wait until he is 2 and he will calm down. Well, he turned 2 and he did not calm down one bit. In fact he made it all the way to 10 without calming down much.
Now he is 11 making his way toward 12 and he is finally calm (most of the time).
Poncho used to go, go, go! Now he spends most of his time sleeping. He still likes to play, but not for too long. He still likes to go on walks, but tires sooner. He still enjoys seeing his doggie BFFs but hardly plays with them like he used to. His younger dog friends try taunting him but he usually chooses to lay down over playing tug-o-war, chase or wrestling.
He is losing his eyesight. His muscles are degenerating and I am watching the process of aging do its thing in the rapid way it does in dogs.
I get sad sometimes seeing him slow down knowing he may not be with us for much longer. But he is not sad. He is just living life, taking it as it comes and enjoying it as much as possible.
I wish I could be more like Poncho. I spent the last year in the go, go, go mode and to be honest it was not a very satisfying year.
Instead of go, go, go I am going to try to slow, slow, slow. Life is flying by fast enough. I see proof of this when I look in the mirror and see the wrinkles on my face. What is the hurry?
I am going to slow down, spend more quality time with my dog in the sunset of his life and maybe learn a little bit from him on how to worry less and appreciate more.
I am not sure how I am going to do this but slowing down is my intention for 2012.
Simplify My Life: Out with the poop in with the new
Posted by: | Comments2012 is the year I am going to simplify my life!
2011 was anything but simple. 2011 was probably the hardest year I have had since coming out of the closet.
Let’s just say 2011 was a bit of a poopy year.
***WARNING*** TMI coming up.
With extended “family” drama taken to a whole new level, a sewage flood that took out a large section of my house (there was literally human poop floating around my house), to the undiagnosed-but-most-likely-Ecoli-poisoning I had that made me poop blood, 2011 was a poopy year.
Me sitting outside of Kaiser hospital with the poop test hat. Laughing to avoid crying.
My home after the poop flood.
All this poop turned out to be very cleansing. The shit of the family literally came to the surface and we are slowly cleaning it up. The great poop flood of my home was a symbol of my life. My home is now beautifully remodeled. The food poisoning gave me a serious cleanse and took with it those extra 10 pounds I had been carrying around.
Now that the poop has been washed away I am ready for a clean, simple 2012.
To start with I am going to intentionally plan simplicity in to my life and focus on the things I love: my family, friends, my dog, hiking, cooking, reading, blogging, tweeting, etc.
I’m going to…
- downsize my social life. Taking an idea from Lissa Rankin, I’m making a list of special people in my life that I want to spend more time with. I am going to say no to events and invitations that I feel obligated to attend and only say yes to spending quality time with the special people in my life.
- eat out less and cook more healthy meals at home.
- spend more time reading books, less time on the internet.
- more time hiking with my dog.
- more time blogging.
- more time serving others. (going to start volunteering)
What are your plans for 2012?
Vision Boards for Entrepreneurs
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Want to do something fun this weekend? Something that could help bring your business to where you want it to be?
How about make a vision board?
Do you have a vision board? If not, why not?
You probably have some form of a business plan and have at some point written down your goals but seriously how often to you review your business plan or look at your written goals?
A vision board makes your goals visible. If you hang your vision board in a prominent place in your office you will see your goals everyday even if you aren’t consciously looking at them.
A vision board can be whatever you want it to be. It can focus on how many clients you hope to have by the end of next year, the kind of car you want to drive, a peaceful relationship with family members, the amount of money you plan to make in the next year, five years or ten years, etc.
Be creative!
It’s all about you and what direction you want your life and business to take. Make it fun and something you would enjoy looking at. I made one back in 2006. It’s on pink construction paper and actually has iridescent sparkles on it because the sparkles remind me to believe in magical things happening. It’s time to update mine because I’ve met just about all the goals on it.
Besides putting pictures of things on my board I also put positive words on my board. Words like family, friends, peace, health, fun, prosperity… you can put whatever words you want to be the main focus of your life.
Have fun!
For instructions on how to create a vision board check out Christine Kane’s Blog.
Oprah’s Soul Series
Posted by: | CommentsHave you seen Oprah’s Soul Series?
I found some of the interviews very inspiring.
Visit Oprah’s Soul Series site see the interviews.
I am a Workaholic
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Hi, my name is Sally and I am a workaholic.
I’m not sure when it happened but it did! All I do now is work, work, work.
As much as I love the work I do I would also like to bring some balance back into my life.
I’m tired of saying no to friends and family every time they extend an invitation.
I’m tired of not having time to participate in my favorite online forums.
I’m tired of being a grouch.
And, I’m especially tired of not having time to blog!
It is time I start practicing what I preach. It’s time to set new boundaries and communicate those with my family, friends and clients.
If you have been feeling anything like I have lately (or resemble the strange looking photo above in any way) I have a suggestion for you.
Stop multitasking!
I’ve found the days I am most productive are the days I actually take a few minutes to plan and not just follow the emails on a wild goose chase.
Let me explain the wild goose chase analogy. I have a couple of clients who feel every task they need assistance with is urgent and must be done ASAP. So, if I don’t take the time to look at the big picture of my business and to look at each clients individual needs and projects I end up focusing on the squeaky wheels and not the wheels that are moving along quietly and smoothly. Hence, I end up on a wild goose chase trying to keep up with the “urgent” requests of those few clients and forgetting about the quiet, stable ones that plan ahead. My day ends and I feel no sense of accomplishment, just a whole lot of frustration.
Instead of diving head first into email I am now reviewing all my clients and projects to see what needs to be completed first and committing to doing that project first.
I then do that A1 priority project and don’t check email or answer the phone until it is complete.
After I complete the project I check email and voicemail and follow up with anything that I have to follow up on and then review my projects again and decide which project I am going to fully focus on next.
I’m amazed at how much more productive and how many more billable hours I get in a day when I stop multitasking and start seriously focusing.
I’m excited to say I’m on the road to recovery and will keep you posted on how my work/life balance is progressing.
Let’s not even discuss that I am blogging about being a workaholic on a Saturday… yes it’s going to be a long road to finding the perfect balance.
