Trying to Find my Routine

I was good at getting up, having breakfast, getting dressed, and setting my timer for 30 minutes to write Morning Pages. Stream of consciousness writing or brain dumping. I got sick in November and it just got left behind. I need to do this and do it consistently. It gets rid of all those things getting in the way of my creativity. 

Actually spending time writing, has also gone by the wayside. I cannot get my books finished if I am not writing. So, I need to put that time back in the schedule. 

I find I do my best work on second shift. It is quieter and there are fewer outside distractions.  So, I need to adjust my schedule accordingly.  No, this does not mean I get to sleep all day. I do have things to do during the day.

First up on getting back to a routine and being human will be to take down my Christmas tree. I got the icicles off it before New Year's, but have not had the energy to get much of anything done. I do have to get it down as my new bookcases arrive tomorrow. It is in the way of where one bookcase will go. The boxes which hold the decorations are in the way of where the other will go.

I am going to do it in stages as my energy level is still not up to par. I am not going to cause a relapse this time. The baby elephant is still sitting on my chest, so that will limit me.

Routines are important. They are the basis for organization. I am a list maker. So, I make a daily to-do list. It matches things on my calendar which are scheduled. I have two calendars. A huge desk calendar where I write everything down and the calendar on my phone which alerts me to when I need to leave or take a conference call. I also put book deadlines on it. 

As I go through my day, I cross off the things on my list and complete my other tasks. Some days I get through the entire list. Other days, there are items carrying over to the next day. Eventually, they all get completed.

Do you have a routine? Is it working? Do you need to change it up? 

TTFN

2020 Off to a Rocky Start

I've been doing a lot of this, without the dog. Got the official diagnosis today, but knew all along it was bronchitis. Had I known my doctor was going to send me to urgent care, I would have gone last week. However, I am now on an antibiotic, getting lots of fluid, and even more rest. 

All the things I had planned last week are still not done. Hopefully, by the weekend I will be in good health and able to get things done. Most are simple housework chores. Some other things were not finished before the holidays. I need them done.

In addition, I need to decide on an illustrator for my alphabet book.  I need to finish the How section of AAE. I have a book scheduled to be finished by Jan. 15th and another to be finished on March 31st. 

Sometime this month I'd like to meet with my member in the Central Kentucky Igniting Souls Chapter. Excited to have my first member. Just don't need to make her sick.

Was looking forward to Pulaski Writers' Alliance on Friday. How quickly the antibiotic kicks in as to whether or not I will be attending. Need to get my printer and computer talking to each other before then. 

For the most part, I am staying in my jammies for the rest of the week.  If the antibiotic and Benadryl do their magic, I might be human again by the end of the week.

TTFN

Because I Journal

I always have journals on my wish list at Amazon. My grandchildren, Megan and Jason, bought my gifts this year from my Amazon list. I needed a new one for 2020. I chose this one:

This morning in the early hours of the new year, I made my first entry. I will not share all of my entries with you; however, I will share this one:

She believed she could write books to entertain. So, she learned all she could about writing and she did. 

Only once she finished, she wanted to write another. Was she good enough? She believed she was. She believed she could so she did.

Then came her third book and her readers kept asking for sequels. Could she write a series? She believed she could, so she took a leap of faith and gave it a try. She did.

When in book four she introduced a new character, she had a hit. Then came two spin-offs from book three and book four was started.

She happened on a course from James Patterson and a new book was born. One like she'd never written before. People thought it was her best book yet. 

Book four in the series lost half its word count and a new idea (better) took shape.

She took a sixteen-week coaching course on how to start a business and failed. Not knowing the things she needed to know.

She read The Year of Yes and journaled in the companion journal. She said yes to things she would have said no to. The result was she found a better coach. Her ideas and opportunities have multiplied. 

This is where I am starting 2020. I have gained the confidence I'd lost and am continuing to grow.

TTFN