Getting Fierce GOALFEST!
Goals play a major role on the journey to getting fierce. Planning them, setting them, realizing them. Studies show that you are more likely to accomplish your goal if you write it down. And to boost your chance of success further, tell someone else about the goal for built-in accountability.
In order to help us get more intentional about reaching our goals, we are starting PROJECT GOALFEST. The first Monday of every month we’ll each set a goal for the month and record it here. Whether it’s trying something new, exercising more, cutting an unhealthy food from your diet, adding a healthy food to your diet, connecting with a neglected friend, meeting a writing word count, organizing a closet, or anything else you want to achieve, set your goal. We’ll help you get there by encouraging you, cheering you on and providing a source of accountability.
And to make it just a little more fun, on GoalFest days we’ll have a random drawing from the names of those of you who have met your goal for the previous month. The winner will be sent a small just-as-random prize to celebrate the accomplishment!
Okay – we’ll go first:
I can be aย bit like a kid in a candy shop when it comes to starting new projects – I want to start them all.ย Problem is, I don’t always want to finish them all. The pile of ‘must have’ yarns and closet organizers and menu sorters is quite impressive as you walk through my house.ย ย My OCTOBER GOAL: Complete the aghan I started for my daughter many, many years ago AND tackle one pile of torn out recipes from magazines and file them accordingly.
My bike hasn’t made it out of the garage in 3 years. For the past two, I planned to take it to a bike shop to get it new tires and the attention it needs to hit the road again. It’s time to convert that plan into action. OCTOBER GOAL: Find a bike repair shop, take the bike in for service, and log 20 miles on it by the end of the month.
Head toward FIERCE with us! Declare your October goal in the comment section below. We’ll be checking in with you from time to time.
Now let’s DO this thing!
Okay here goes, my goal is to walk at least 15 miles a week for a total of 60 miles by the end of the month.
Excellent goal Tresa. You can do 15 miles a week! Here’s to a great month heading towards 60 miles! – M
Very neat idea. I hope you reach your goal! Good luck!
Thanks Noreen. Well keep you posted on our goals and those that have added theirs to the mix. Knowing that I have put the goal out there keeps those projects in the forefront of my mind. I’m really looking forward to completing both ๐ – M
My post today is almost the antithesis of this one. It’s about relaxing into the flow of life without getting caught up in trying to get it all done. ๐
That said, we each need to find the proper balance between doing and being . . . especially if we want to ride a bike without teetering, tottering, and wobbling about!
Good luck with your goals for the month!
Thanks Nancy – your post makes some great points and ‘angst-ing’ over things that aren’t going to change is never a good thing. Finding our balance is exactly what we are hoping to accomplish. I know, I will never finish all my ‘projects begun’ but breaking it down to just two makes it completely do-able. Sometimes, I just need a little nudge to get to where I want to be! ๐ – M
Yes! Choosing one or two things to focus on helps us to get things done without stressing about what is not getting done.
Every journey begins with a single step.
My goal is to keep on with my goals of last month which were to do more physical activity every day and to choose either wine or dessert, not both. except for the following exceptions . . . .
Go with the wine, Luanne. It’s plant-based so it must be good for you. ๐
I agree, Natine…wine before dessert! ๐
Thank you for your vote ;).
I vote for smaller glass of wine with a piece of chocolate! (Back to that whole can’t-pick-just-one thing that I exhibited on Jill’s blog!) -El
Thank you for taking the job of that little devil on my shoulder!
We’re here to serve, Luanne!
Okay I’ll play ๐ My goal for October is to complete the painting I started three months ago.
We can’t wait to see a picture of the completed project, Pauline!! -El
I know you will. Magic does that to people. ๐
Thank you Alys xoxo
My goal is to be logging five hours of moving exercise (like walking) per week – not counting daily dog walks and yoga!
Break out the pedometer and see some spinning numbers! I’m impressed, Natine – if it were me I’d be tempted to count the dog walking (but then who would I really be kidding??) I was going to say “good luck,” but I think the better statement would be “good decision!” – El
Great idea ladies!
My goal is to up my speed on my treadmill…without injuring myself. ๐ Currently I run at 4.4 mph for an hour every day. I’d like to increase my speed, hopefully to 5.0 mph or more.
You’re clipping at a pretty good pace there, Jill! We’ll be rooting for your safe speed-up! -El
Perfect timing. Today I promised a friend who’s struggling to lower her blood pressure that I would do (with her, via telephone since we live in different towns, but we’ll call and check in every day) whatever her doctor ordered her to do to avoid more medication.
So…starting tomorrow we will both 1) walk one mile every day, outside if at all possible, and breathing deeply; 2) drink 40 oz. of water each day, and flavored drinks or coffee will not count in the total; and 3) give up popcorn, sunflower seeds, and obviously salty food.
Okay, so count me in. For her, for this goalfest, and for me. ๐
Wow, Marylin – that is an ambitious goal! And such a worthy one to lift up a friend. We’re looking forward to hearing how you’re both feeling (and how her numbers decreased) after accomplishing your goals! -El
I read this yesterday and am still mulling over which goal to go for. There are so many …
Try to think of what you would be thrilled to have completed or accomplished by the end of October. Just one (two at the most) – there’s always November Goalfest for another one! ๐
What a great idea this is and I so need this kind of accountability. But there are so many things I need to get done…and yes, talk about those magazine recipes, I have too many… but what I really need to do is get the first draft of my book written and keep up with my walking (both of which help the other) so thinking about what is realistic, my goal is a two-fold: write 5,000 words each week (remember, I’m at the ‘bashing out’ stage!) and do my 3 mile walk every week day not just when I can (a bad habit I’ve slipped into). Thanks so much ladies, I’m really looking forward to ‘Getting Fierce’ with you all ๐
Excellent Sherri! Those are great goals for the month – 5000 words per week is impressive and walking may just help inspire your thoughts to put into those words!! We are excited about Goalfest too and love having the accountability and communal support. -M
Thanks so much M ๐
Serendipity! The lovely Pauline from The Contented Crafter linked here. Ironically, I blogged about my October goal last week: to go 31 days, candy-free.
I love your goals, set above. They’re reasonable, measurable and important to you. Well done, well done.
Thanks for stopping by, Alys! Of course I had to run right over to see what you said about making your goal! I loved that Family Education site that Pauline told you about. I’m trying to find a way to include it in a blog somewhere or, at the very least, mention it in a conversation!
Only 23 days left!!
Thanks for stopping by. I’m day 13 now and candy free. It’s positively liberating. The countdown continues.
Given that two of my favorite blogger friends mentioned or visited you this week, I had to come, too! The energy of your blog is great and before having read GoalFest, I had started a new goal, and I actually started on Monday ๐ The goal: To strengthen my core and my arms so I can hold up my 750 lb motorcycle when it tries to go down. I’ve been riding for over 5 years but an accident last year had me off the bike for months.
I look forward to going back and checking out a few of your posts.
Question: so there are two of you? and you live in different places? How wonderful that your life long friendship has resulted in a blog collaboration! Is there a post link you can share that explains how two people create posts and answer comments?
We’re so glad you stopped by, LB!Love that you’ve set your goal and are already on the way to accomplishing it at the same time we are – there’s definitely strength in numbers with more motivational mojo getting out there! With a 750 lb bike (!!) we assume you’re increasing the strength you’ve already acquired. There’s certainly nothing wrong with your photography arms – beautiful shots on your post! I could almost taste that beer! Of course, the scenery was nice, too . . .
There are, indeed, two of us. I (El) live in Oklahoma and M lives in Michigan. We have been best friends since junior high but haven’t lived in the same state since we were in our early twenties. There were big jags of time when we didn’t get to see each other and in later years we’ve been fortunate to see each other annually. I’ve visited M in 5 different states during her military wife days and I can’t tell you how many times she’s come to OK to see me. Whether it’s months or years between the visits, each one is prized. (And there you have chapter 1 of our story!)
I haven’t seen an article on blogsharing (although I’m sure that’s out there), but how we are handling it is a work in progress. Currently we connect about once a month and plot out any main topics or holidays we want to cover, and then divvy up post days and each talks about what they want to. The 100 Reasons to Celebrate Being Over 50, GoalFest and several of the Friday Fives were truly collaborative where we both contributed to the content. We respond to comments from our own posts and on the collaborative posts we just jump in and respond whenever either or us notices a comment – we try to remember to put an “El” or “M” after it so our buddies know which of us they’re talking to. Our goals were to stay connected, keep working toward getting fierce and being who we want to be and celebrating where we are as we age, and put out helpful and/or entertaining content. One f the things we have enjoyed most is the ‘community’ interaction in the comment section and meeting new people like you! It’s so fun to connect to share commonalities as well as expose each other to different ways of thinking, doing, and getting fierce – like people taking gorgeous fall rides on BIG bikes! Hope we see you often!