helllllllo.
As of 8AM this morning, my family is just over 1.5% through Paul's deployment. We're doing it!
But that's not why I am in your inbox. I am here because tomorrow is my birthday! 35! It's an odd year. I'm adjusting my business (more on that here and here). My kids are past the "Mama, mama, mama, mama, mama, mama!" phase (we're now in the much more manageable "Mom? MOOOOOOM!" phase). And my husband just left for a good long time.
And so. The question is...what I am going to do? How am I going to spend this 36th trip around the sun? How do I want to spend this next year?
To help answer these questions, I went back to my roots and wrote a BIRTHDAY TO DO LIST. The last time I did this I was twenty-five. In the past ten years I have learned a lot about who I am and how I work best. I have added a ton to my plate. (I learned how to throw plates!) I have also learned how to say "ehhh, not for me." (I say that a lot more now.)
But ultimately, I am still the same person who LOVES lists and a challenge and making time for projects.
What makes this type of goal-setting different from my new years' goals? For the most part, my 2020 goals are habit-based. I think of these birthday lists as a dream list of project-based things that I want to do before my next birthday. Some I will attempt while Paul is gone. Some I will look forward to doing with him when he gets home. Some are expensive. Some are free. Some will take a lot of planning. Some I will decide to start and finish in an afternoon.
When I described this list on Instagram I said "it's mostly a bunch of unrealistic fun stuff." And that's exactly right. Unrealistic fun stuff! Sounds great. (pssst... click here if you can't read my handwriting above.)
I want to be clear: I have no expectation that I will do everything on this list. I am going to run out of time. I am going to run out of energy. I am also going to for sure run out of interest. But –– and this is key –– I don't care. I think setting big, ambitious goals is inspiring. I look forward to crossing any of these projects off. This is fun stuff! Chickens?!? MAKING SHOES? Taking the time to revamp the Get To Work Book website?! I loved dreaming up 35 things, but honestly? It will be so great if I do FIVE of these things.
Goal-setting is a BONUS activity. It's the stuff we get to add to our lives. Some seasons there isn't as much time for bonus projects. I can guarantee that parts of this deployment will wear me out and break me down. BUT ALSO, I'm a hyper-organized, introvert and the grandparents will be coming down to visit sometimes! There are going to be parts of this deployment where I decide to thrive.
For me, at the start of this next challenging year, it's exciting and inspiring to think about all the things I want to do instead of focusing on all the things I have to do.
Maybe something like this sounds fun to you? Maybe you're in the middle of a difficult season? Maybe you don't want to wait until your next birthday to try something new? I made some simple WANT TO DO lists like mine. (These are all set to print on 8.5x11 paper but you can print them smaller of course.)
Click here for a printable list of 5 things.
Click here for a printable list of 10 things.
Click here for a printable list of 20 things.
Click here for a printable list of 35 things.
Click here for a printable list of 50 things. (Get it!)
