Sunday Night Success

I had an amazing 2009!

I underwent a lot of exciting changes in my life, both personal and professional. In today’s post, just before the coming of 2010 I have decided to look back at my 2009 and acknowledge some of the highlight “wins” I have experienced.

I think this is an important reflection for all of us to do as, in general, I don’t think people spend enough time acknowledging and celebrating their accomplishments. If everyone could spend more time celebrating the smaller wins they have throughout the year I think everyone would be more successful. Celebrating wins helps you to enjoy life more, and also helps you build up momentum towards being even more successful in the future.

So, join me and celebrate some of your wins in 2009.

Wins for 2009

- Finished my training as a professional coach.
- Built my coaching business from zero to seven clients.
- Helped Andrea Lee organize and produce several coaching resource books.
- Started Sunday Night Success.
- Wrote a 50000 word novel for NaNoWriMo.
- Ran a coaching workshop for small town, small business owners.
- Joined a Mastermind group.
- Learned to meditate.
- Spent first full summer in my new house.
- Watched my son have his second birthday.
- Went on two trips with just my wife to spend some “couple time” together.
- Improved my ability to respond to situations instead of reacting to them.

What were some of your most valuable wins for 2009?

With New year celebrations and family time, I will have a shortened week this week. I also set these actions to be completed by the end of 2009, so Thursday is my deadline as opposed to Sunday:

1. Write coaching reflection for client 1.
2. Write coaching reflection for client 2.
3. Write coaching reflection for client 3.
4. Write coaching reflection for client 4.
5. Contact client 5 to get coaching reflection form.
6. Write coaching reflection for client 5.
7. Complete class schedule.
8. Write self-assessment.
9. Research/take notes for coaching research paper.
10. Write outline for research paper.
11. Write introduction for research paper.
12. Write total behavior explanation for research paper.
13. Write total behavior application for research paper.
14. Write conclusion for research paper.
15. Edit research paper.
16. Write bibliography for research paper.
17. Send all completed written work to coaching school for assessment.
18. Celebrate New Year’s Eve with Ashlea and Fionn.

(From my focus goal pencast earlier in the week I have already completed my powertool and coaching model)

For the end of 2009 I decided to focus on one of my goals: to complete all requirements for my coach training program with the International Coach Academy. Here is a pencast example of how I planned my goal using mind mapping:

What techniques do you use for planning your goals? What do you think of the mind mapping technique?

For another pencast on goal setting check out backward planning your goals.

At the start of each year, and over the course of each year you may set specific goals for yourself. When you set these goals you have the clear intention to complete each of them. Over the course of the year you can accumulate a number of different goals, and by the time the end of the year rolls around you may not be able to achieve all of them.

End of the year focus – pick one goal and do it

I am writing this post on Thursday, December 17, 2009 exactly two weeks until the end of 2009. This past year was the first year I moved forward with a clear strategy on goal setting and goal achievement. As can be expected, and is not a bad thing, I set myself too many goals, and have a number of them still on my list to get done before 2010. There are two strategies I think I can use for the next two weeks:

1. Work on all the goals and try to get as much done as I can, with the risk that I only partially complete each of the goals.
2. Pick one of the remaining goals and put all of my energy into completing this one goal. I will only work on a different goal once my focus goal is finished.

As you can probably tell from the words I used in each possibility I am favoring the second option.

What is your focus goal?

Setting some of my other goals aside is going to be difficult, but I am excited with the prospect of getting one of the really big, and really important goals completed before 2010. My focus goal for the rest of 2009 is:

Complete all of the class and written requirements for my coach training certification

That is my commitment, and that will be the only major project, unless I complete it, I will be working on for the rest of 2009. There is a definite lightness, excitement, and energy I am feeling now that I have made this decision. The weight of the other goals has been lifted, and I am ready to focus on this one goal.

How would the end of 2009 be different for you if you chose one focus goal and did nothing but work towards its completion?

Share your focus goal in the comments section below and let’s get to work on ending 2009 with a successful bang!

If you need help with being accountable for you goals check out this post on accountability.

One of twelve:
1. Make pencast of SNS changes – Incomplete.
2. Write “Homepage” – Incomplete.
3. Write “Is this you” page Incomplete.
4. Write “How it works” page – Incomplete.
5. Write “Last Ditch” page – Incomplete.
6. Write “About” page – Incomplete.
7. Write “Sign up” page – Incomplete.
8. Write “Contact” page – Incomplete.
9. Write “Archives” page – Incomplete.
10. Write Power Tool – Incomplete.
11. Edit Coaching Model – Complete.
12. Edit Power Tool – Incomplete.

Feeling tired and blocked

This past week was by far my worst week ever for getting my action list completed.

Why?

I think completing 50000 words in November emptied my brain of words. I just don’t think I had any writing left in me this week. I made notes on what I needed to write, I planned some of the writing tasks; but, I just couldn’t put pen to paper (fingers to keyboard) and get the words out.

I was 100% blocked this week.

Working the list to zero not working?

I am not ready to say the experiment of working my list to zero is a failure yet, I haven’t been at it long enough. I will continue to work with this list until I get everything off.

I think what I needed to do was listen to myself when I talked to my SNS partners on the phone two weeks ago. I mentioned during that call that I was feeling the need for a break coming up: that I needed to take a week off. During that call I had decided that I would take the week after NaNoWriMo ended off from working on my different projects.

I forgot about that promise to myself, but I think my mind decided to honour it subconsciously as I definitely took the week off. However, I am not going to beat myself up over it. I had a week off, this week it is time to get back at it.

Wish me luck!

Here are my actions for the week:
1. Make pencast of SNS changes
2. Write “Homepage”
3. Write “Is this you” page
4. Write “How it works” page
5. Write “Last Ditch” page
6. Write “About” page
7. Write “Sign up” page
8. Write “Contact” page
9. Write “Archives” page
10. Write Power Tool
11. Edit Coaching Model
12. Edit Power Tool

Check back Sunday for an update on “working my list to zero”.

Nine of twenty-one:
1. Make pencast of SNS changes – Incomplete.
2. Write “Homepage” – Incomplete.
3. Write “Is this you” page – Incomplete.
4. Write “How it works” page – Incomplete.
5. Write “Last Ditch” page – Incomplete.
6. Write “About” page – Incomplete.
7. Write “Sign up” page – Incomplete.
8. Write “Contact” page – Incomplete.
9. Write “Archives” page – Incomplete.
10. Write Power Tool – Incomplete.
11. Edit Coaching Model – Incomplete.
12. Edit Power Tool – Incomplete.
13. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete.
14. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete.
15. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete.
16. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete.
17. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete.
18. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete.
19. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete.
20. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete.
21. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete.

NaNoWriMo is complete

A huge accomplishment for me this week as I have completed 50000 words in 30 days for the NaNoWriMo challenge. In the end the challenge had its ups and downs.

On the down side it ended up consuming my November and I didn’t get a lot of other writing tasks completed. I have some major catch-up to do in December. Should be fun!

On the up side I met some great people virtually (and a few in person) in my Spokane NaNoWriMo group. This group is discussing working together on our novels the year round instead of just in November. This is great as my novel is a bit of a mess, still incomplete, and needs a lot of TLC.

Working to zero

Next week’s action list will consist of everything I haven’t completed this week as I continue to work my list to zero. So far the experiment has been successful as I have finished my NaNoWriMo commitment. Now my focus shifts to the writing I need to complete in order to graduate from my coaching program, and the writing I need to complete for my coaching website.

Stay tuned to see how I do.

Writing this week has been a challenge.

Correction. Writing anything that is not the story I am working on for National Novel Writing Month has been a challenge; a huge challenge.

To succeed at NaNoWriMo you need to write 1667 words every day of the month of November. I guess after writing that many words for the novel each day (some days less, some days much more) my brain has run out of words to write anything else.

My other writing tasks, which are all attached to important goals I set for 2009, have fallen by the wayside so that I can focus on completing this personal writing challenge.

Do I regret pushing back important goals that I planned and set months ago in order to complete 50000 words for NaNoWriMo?

Sometimes you need to make changes

I don’t regret my decision for a second.

Yes I have pushed some of my other goals aside for the last month. Yes, some of these goals may not be completed until early 2010. I don’t consider missing any of these goals as a failure, because I see my accomplishment in winning at NaNoWriMo as a stupendously, incredible, huge success:

- Writing a novel is on my 100 goals list, and now I get to check it off.
- Writing a novel is giving me incredible insights, ideas, and skills that I can use with my clients that are undertaking similar creative challenges.
- Writing a novel is pushing me beyond my current limits and evolving me into a different and more exciting person.

A video to help explain

When the opportunity to experience NaNoWriMo appeared I had to make a decision: stick to my current plan, or make a quick decision and change everything. In the world of football this is called “calling an audible”.

Check out Scott Epp’s blog and watch his video post which explains what an audible is and how we can incorporate the idea of “calling and audible” into our lives.

If Scott’s video has your interest piqued, then check out this SNS post about taking action, then adapting to the results.

Can you think of a change that you could make in your life, right now, that would allow you to experience something exciting and new?

Here are my actions for the week:
1. Make pencast of SNS changes
2. Write “Homepage”
3. Write “Is this you” page
4. Write “How it works” page
5. Write “Last Ditch” page
6. Write “About” page
7. Write “Sign up” page
8. Write “Contact” page
9. Write “Archives” page
10. Write Power Tool
11. Edit Coaching Model
12. Edit Power Tool
13. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo
14. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo
15. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo
16. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo
17. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo
18. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo
19. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo
20. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo
21. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo

Check back Sunday to see how working my list to zero is going.

I managed to move my list closer to zero by

1. Make pencast of SNS changes – Incomplete.
2. Write “Homepage” – Incomplete
3. Write “Is this you” page – Incomplete
4. Write “How it works” page – Incomplete
5. Write “Last Ditch” page – Incomplete
6. Write “About” page – Incomplete
7. Write “Sign up” page – Incomplete
8. Write “Contact” page – Incomplete
9. Write “Archives” page – Incomplete
10. Write Power Tool – Incomplete
11. Reorganize goals for end of year – Complete
12. Edit Coaching Model – Incomplete
13. Edit Power Tool – Incomplete
14. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
15. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
16. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
17. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
18. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
19. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
20. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
21. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
22. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
23. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Complete
24. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Incomplete
25. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Incomplete
26. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Incomplete
27. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Incomplete
28. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Incomplete
29. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Incomplete
30. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Incomplete
31. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Incomplete
32. Write 2000 words for NaNoWriMo – Incomplete

Focus on writing – NaNoWriMo

Although I put a number of different writing tasks on my current action list in an attempt to work the list to zero I wasn’t really planning on getting to most of them this past week. I knew ahead of time that I had fallen behind on my National Novel Writing Month challenge and was going to need to catch up.

So, I managed to sneak a couple other tasks into my week, but the main focus was on increasing my NaNoWriMo word count so that I would at the challenge.

20000 words in a week

I am happy with the outcome: I have never written 20000 words about the same topic in one week before, including seven thousand words in one sitting during a Spokane virtual write-in. I am still about 3000 words behind but that is a far cry from how far behind I was earlier this week.

The upcoming week will probably be focused on NaNoWriMo once again as it is the last week of the challenge and my 50000 word milestone is only a handful of days away. After that my focus will change to the other writing tasks I have put on my list.