After a week of being super productive, I have decided to begin taking stock of the things I have accomplished to my goal level, and evaluate what I want to accomplish going into the next week as a result.
For instance, I finished my first draft of a piece of my novel over this last week, and that felt so amazing! However, I realized I still have a lot of edits and revisions to make, and a lot more of the story left to tell before I can consider the first draft to be completely “done”. I want today to be about celebrating that achievement, while also assessing what I need to do to complete the end goal, which is completing the entire book.
I think this practice is important for a couple of reasons. I think it helps everyone to build that snowball of accomplishment when you recognize what you have accomplished. So much of my time in the past few years of trying to write a novel has been spent on groaning about what I have failed to accomplish, or what I have left to do. instead of focusing on the rest of the marathon of your project, look back at your progress and pop a toast to yourself. Recognize your work.
Secondly, it helps keep you focused on what the real goal is. My goal is not to write the perfect novel, but to write one in general. My goal for this blog is not to inspire someone to create anew every day; it is to re-inspire those who already want to create. Evaluation and reviewing what you want to do in the coming week can help you schedule around goals, build a routine, and really center your focus on what needs to be done to complete your goals.
If you are running towards a house through a dark forest, and all of a sudden you close your eyes, there is no way you are making it to that house. Open your eyes; survey the land you have crossed, and evaluate the best way to cross the land you have yet to cover. Have a wonderful rest of your weekend! Create something great!