Recently, I checked into this blog’s drafts, and it was sad to say that there about 80 unfinished blog posts starting from the year 2020, all waiting to be written.
I was shocked by number, but even moreso, I kept asking myself, “What happened?” and what other things in my life are incomplete?
In a world of major responsibilities—career, parenthood, side hustles, etc—and people telling you that you are not doing enough, it can be so easy to become overwhelmed.
There may be bigger issues at play like being a woman bearing a lot of the mental load of a relationship while caring for two very young children during a whole pandemic, going through a divorce and unresolved chronic procrastination, perfectionism and impostor syndrome that reared its ugly head.
Wow. That list was long.
No wonder I have almost 80 unfinished blog posts. No matter how many productivity apps I used, none of them made up for the fact that 24 hours wasn’t cutting it at that time.
But now that I am in a better space, the question is, what are my next steps? What are the steps for people who start on a high, but abandon ship like the Titanic for whatever reason.
Commit
Before you get to creating a plan. Make a binding agreement with yourself that you will execute whatever plan you establish.
The first thing I said to myself was “I have to do better." From there, you can start creating a plan that meets the SMART criteria.
Create a plan
“A goal without a plan is a wish.”
No truer words have been spoken. Seeing things in writing serve as a reminder, allow you to visualize and also help you remain accountable to yourself.
Otherwise as a parent nearing 40 with two young children, get one kid to interrupt me from the kitchen to the bathroom, and I forget everything. So I encourage you, write everything down.
Whether you’re doing this digitally or old school with a pen and paper write down each goal and all the steps needed to achieve it.
Commit
Remember that agreement you made to yourself, do your best to stick to it. Hold yourself accountable.
Don’t fall into the trap of procrastination and excuses. Absent of crises, stick to your goals because nothing feels better than finishing what you started.