Epiphany, squared.
::waves:: Hello! I hope you all had lovely holidays. Mine were great fun, but exhausting. Which doesn't seem fair to say, since I did very little of the work, but what's so is so. I meant to post this yesterday, but I had internet connectivity problems followed by brain connectivity problems, so y'all pardon me for celebrating Epiphany a day late. :)
Highlights of the holiday season here at Geek House included the most perfect real tabletop tree, supplied by xBIL and IBW, and decorated at random by bibliohippo with ornaments from my childhood, ornaments from friends and former students, and hippos; banana-blueberry bread with sour cream and pecans; numerous hands of Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot; and LOLMagnetz. A good time was had by most, or possibly all. I can't always tell. ;-)
Anyway, looking forward to the year ahead: I'm always ambivalent about goal-setting. I thoroughly dislike resolutions, which always seem to be about forcing oneself to engage in or refrain from engaging in particular behaviors to an unnatural degree, which seems like setting oneself up to fail. On the other hand, I love goals, where it's much easier to think in terms of success being either whole or partial. Thus I always go with goals, rather than resolutions.
The ambivalence kicks in when I'm trying to make a specific list of goals: too short a list leaves important goals in limbo and encourages procrastination, while too long a list is overwhelming, and tempts me to work on the easiest (and usually least important) goals in order to get something crossed off the list. I had a perfectly good, short, manageable set of goals for 2010 pop whole into my head in early November, but of course by mid-December my brain was second-guessing itself on a daily basis.
Then Tuesday it hit me like an Acme ten-ton weight: I only need one goal. Yes, really. A couple of years ago, I set up all the lists and files for David Allen's Getting Things Done productivity system, which I love, and which works well for me--if I remember to use it. But I don't remember to use it, mostly because the lists are on the computer and the files are stuck in a cubbyhole that usually has things piled in front of it. I've had more success just keeping my daily chore lists on colorful Post-Its, because I can see them and carry them around. But now I realize that all I need to do is transfer my task-level lists to Post-It notes, move the files to an accessible location, and apply the one goal: Review my lists daily. Since all my other goals are on those lists somewhere, they should take care of themselves.
So. My one and only goal for 2010 is: Unless illness prevents, review my lists daily.
Y'all may beat me over the head with it as much as you like. :)
And a Happy New Year to all!