Intarsia Concept

Winter Begins

Today marks the winter solstice and the beginning of winter in the Northern Hemisphere. Since I'm not a big fan of cold weather, this is not my favorite season, but there are some things I do enjoy at this time of year.

Winter Solstice Lantern Festival/ CC BY 2.0

• Hibernation: As the cold weather ushers us indoors we have the opportunity to slow down, rest and restore our energy.

• Reflection: With the year coming to an end, it's the perfect time to look back and see all that we've accomplished.

• Preparation: In contrast, as the new year approaches, we have the chance to look forward and plan for our future accomplishments.

• Celebration: Enjoying all the parties, the revelry, and being together with the people who mean the most.

What is your favorite part of winter? How will you use this time for your creative business?

Measuring to Move Forward

There's been a lot of talk about numbers lately, especially as Twitter has come out with lists. You can't help but take note of how many lists you're on and then start looking around at how many lists other people are on. Gwen Bell talks about all that hoopla a bit in this post. I like her take on things, so it's worth a look, but I'd like to have a different look at using numbers to make progress.

This morning I was reading Maria Shriver's thoughts on the comprehensive study published on A Woman's Nation. She says:

"Our report breaks new ground by taking a hard look at how women's changing roles are also affecting our major societal institutions: our government, businesses, religious and faith institutions, educational system, the media, and even men and marriage. And we examine how all these parts of the culture have responded to one of the greatest social transformations of our time. We look at where we are and where we should go from here."

And that made me think about the topic of numbers again, and how they can be useful rather than diminutive (as in when you are comparing yourself to others). What if you use numbers to "look at where you are and where you should go from here?"

So, here's the idea, and it builds on the post I wrote last week about goals.

Let's say one of your goals is something numerically measurable.  Let's say you want to appear on 10 new lists a month in order to start building your network.  Here's how goal-setting and numbers would work in your favor.

1. Set your start and end period and take a measurement at the beginning of the time frame to see where you are.

2. Determine the frequency with which you plan to measure the growth of your list appearances - in this case I'd recommend weekly in order to hit your monthly targets.

3. Take periodic measurements according to your plan and compare these against your goal - how do they measure up? Are you going where you had planned to go?

4. If you are on track with your goal, keep doing whatever it is that's working. If you are lagging behind your goal, brainstorm a list of at least five things you can do to change the situation.

5. Don't quit until you've reached your goal or until you reach the end period and need to reevaluate the process.

If you use numbers this way, you won't be at all concerned about anyone else's numbers because you'll be focused solely on your own progress.

Set big goals and complete them with purpose. They'll be easier to stick to if you're motivated by something meaningful.

(P.S. If you find yourself stuck on #4 and need help brainstorming, let me know, I love solving these kinds of puzzles.)

Where Are You Going? (Five Steps to Reach Your Goal)

If you hadn't noticed, it's November. 2010 is just around the corner. Figen and I have been looking at the year ahead and asking ourselves what we want to accomplish come December of next year. We thought it might be helpful to share our process with you in case you are thinking the same thing.

First I'll share the method we use, next I'll give you an example, finally I'll give you an analogy.

Here are the steps I use when setting goals:
1. Define the goal
2. List the requisite tasks
3. Prioritize the tasks
4. Set deadlines
5. Take action

Let's bring these steps to life with an example.

1. Define the goal -

Let's say I'm a photographer, and my goal is to sell 52 original works in 2010. So I state the goal like this: It is December 31, 2010 and I have sold at least 52 original photographs this year.

This is what I plan to accomplish next year.  I use "at least" to indicate that it's OK for me to go over this goal and to leave myself open to that opportunity. (I learned this trick from Suze Orman - don't limit yourself.)

2. List the requisite tasks -

Next, I ask myself this question: "What can I do to sell at least 52 photographs in 2010?" or I can ask it this way: "How can I sell at least 52 photographs in 2010?"

And then I start listing all the ways that I can think of. 
- Open an Etsy shop
- Sell at holiday bazaars and fairs
- Take and prepare for sale 52 original photographs
- Advertise online, magazines, newspaper
- Get featured in the press
- Have an exhibition
...

I keep listing every single task I can think of that will help me reach my goal.

3. Prioritize the tasks

Once I have the tasks listed, I order them by what I think I have to do first, second, etc.

1. Take and prepare 52 original photographs
2. Open an Etsy shop
3. Advertise
4. Have an exhibition
5. Get featured in the press
6. Sell at holiday bazaars and fairs

4. Set deadlines

With all my tasks in chronological order, I then set about deciding on deadlines. It's also helpful to decide how long I think each task will take.

Take and prepare 52 original photographs - 3 months; start Jan, end Mar
Open an Etsy shop - 1 week; start Jan
Advertise - ongoing; start Feb
Exhibition - 1 month; May
Press -ongoing; Apr
Holiday fairs - 2 months; Nov, Dec

A tool I use is Microsoft Project as I can play around with order, duration and start and end dates. But any tool that helps you see each task visually and put dates on it will work (think spreadsheets, documents, lists, etc.). Perhaps you have other useful tools to suggest ...

5. Take Action

Once I set deadlines, I then put the tasks on my calendar so that I can see what I need to be working on each week. Figen and I will be using Google Calendar so that both of us can see what needs to be done and get reminders at the beginning of each week to keep us on track.

This is where it is good for us to work as partners. Not only do we share the work, but we also motivate and encourage each other or pick up the slack for one another when unexpected things arise.

Lastly I said I would give you an analogy. You can think about this process like making a road map of where you want to go and how you're going to get there.

Say you want to go from Los Angeles to San Francisco. The theory is the same. You define your goal (get to SF), list your tasks, prioritize them, set deadlines, and get into action.

What do you need to do to ensure that you arrive at San Francisco? How will you get there?

What do you need to do to ensure you arrive at your goal for 2010? How will you get there?

You know I love making plans. I've told you that before. Hopefully my obsessive habit will come in handy and have some part in helping you reach the goals you have in your mind right now.

We invite you to think about what it is you would like to accomplish next year and begin putting together a strategy for making it happen. 

Think *BIG* and take tiny steps.

Your success means something to us and we are invested in seeing you get where you're going. Because we're working on getting there too so we know how important it is.

If you have any questions or comments, our inbox is always open.

{Special thanks to Chris Brogan for influencing me to write this post.}