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 The Good Life. |
I am a professional musician, teacher  , (former) worship leader , small business owner , songwriter , aspiring author and freelance nonfiction writer with a chemical engineering degree .But that's just my resume. My eclectic profile of vocations is only one of the ways in which I am uniquely me. Here I chronicle my personal and professional goals and my efforts to achieve them. Occasionally I fail. Mostly, I take daily baby steps toward all my long-term goals. Much like the stories I pen, the songs I compose, and the business I run, I am always a work in progress. ![Merit Badge in Music
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To a dear friend whose talent for writing music is sensational. May you have a fabulous New Year, (((Brandi)))!!! *^*Kiss*^*
Big hugs,
Sherri *^*Heart*^*](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/genre-Music-1050.gif) ![Merit Badge in Organization
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I don't know how you do it, but I assume there's magic involved *^*Bigsmile*^* I have really enjoyed this month of planning and preparation for NaNoWriMo and I love how organized it all is. Thank you for hosting a great challenge and for your dedication to helping so many of us prepare with confidence and trepidation for National Novel Writing Month (known to sane folks as 'November' *^*Laugh*^*) at your [Link To Item #1474311]](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/general-Organization-1150.gif) ![Merit Badge in Leadership
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For your hard work, commitment, talent and innovation in running the October NaNoWriMo Preparation each year, which helps many of us get our scattered thoughts together for November's novel-writing. And also because this badge has ducks on it.](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/general-Leadership.gif) |
| I'm not a fan of resolutions. I understand why people make them: Goals are hard. They're hard to define and even harder to keep. And they're usually things we should be doing anyway, like making healthy choices, strengthening relationships, and completing tasks that either align with our passions or are required for basic survival. So we find a boost in the new year. Yet failure to keep resolutions beyond January is so likely that it's cliche. Why is it so hard to do the things that are good and necessary for us? The answer is obvious: it's because the difficult, unpleasant short-term action (break a sweat, apologize, get out of bed and go to work) is staring you in the face, while the long-term benefits are out-of-sight, out-of-mind. There's a passage I read in a flavor-of-the-month book during my Corporate America days - maybe The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey? - that talks about integrity in the moment of choice. When faced with the choice to get on the treadmill or not, that's the moment when you decide whether you're truly invested in your goal. Many people who make resolutions successfully make decisions that comply with their own values in the moment of choice for a period of time. For reasons psychology experts probably understand much better than I, there's something about that date - January 1st - a new year - that provides the boost they need to make the right decision in that moment. I suspect there may be a community element, too - when everyone else is doing it, it's easier. But then one of your friends fizzles. Then another. And it gets harder. If all it takes to make the right decisions in the moment of choice is a concept of newness and a little peer pressure, does that mean that, during the rest of the year, we're just barely on the reverse side of that equation? That we could achieve our goals if only we had a little boost? Everyone is different. I realize that. I'm not trying to be judgy. Most people do a good enough job of judging themselves without my help. This discussion is prompted by introspection. What could I do to boost my own decision-making integrity when faced with those individual, seemingly insignificant choices that accumulate and make or break my endgame? So, I'm not a fan of resolutions. But I like goals, and I really like meeting them. I'm very good at setting goals - clearly defined, attainable goals - but not always as good at meeting them. My moment-of-choice integrity is often lacking. I can justify any decision in that moment: "I know I said I was going to stop eating cake, but I decided I don't actually need to live to 100 after all, because honestly, eating cake is probably better than being 100 anyway." What I need is some peer pressure, people! If you ever want someone to trade accountability with, I'm your girl. |
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Those little wireless earbuds always die at the best parts 
with that little downbeat two note beep 
