goals, plans, and more about books

A new year always gives me a boost of energy and I enjoy giving thought to what I want to accomplish in the next 365 days. Making lists of goals is the fun part, but I haven't been very successful at putting them into action! Last year I made a "20 for 2020" list, and although I made progress, sadly, I couldn't cross any of them off. This idea comes from author/blogger Gretchen Rubin. If you want to know more, you can read about it here. The idea is to make a list of concrete goals you want to accomplish by the end of the year. It can be things you want to start or stop doing, and you can have fun with the year number, such as "walk 20 minutes a day in 2020." I like to include things I know I'll do anyway, so it's not too overwhelming. I also list a few fun things to do, books to read, and so on. This year I want to make my goals more specific, so instead of saying "make time for exercise" my goal is to walk 500 miles in 2021. I'm trying to come up with ways to hold myself accountable too, and asked a friend to compete in the walking challenge with me. Another approach I'm trying is to break down some of the goals by month, instead of resolving to do it all year long and failing. January is the month I chose to start a book club! (So excited! 😊) In February I want to take 21 minutes every day to do something I enjoy. In March I want to read for at least 21 minutes every day from an actual book. (More on that later.)  August is the month for biking the Walkway Over the Hudson because that's already planned. I'm still tweaking the list and thinking of ways to make my goals attainable and specific. 

As I was making my list, it struck me how many of my goals started with "make time for" or "schedule". Clearly, time management is something I need to work on. I have a feeling if I can accomplish #17 on my list,  (come up with a plan to limit phone time) that will go a long way in freeing up more time. I do think I'm slowly learning how to make better use of my time since I found a planner I love and am doing meal planning and grocery shopping ahead of time. The Homemaker's Friend 2021 planner has already given me so much joy!

Among my favorite features are the space for a menu on each day, a place for writing tasks at the beginning of every week, and tabbed sections for tasks, projects, info, and shopping. I keep a running list of menu ideas in the tasks section, grocery list in the shopping section, and random thoughts/blog ideas/21 for 2021 list under "projects". The blank spaces are highly important to me for writing reminders, random ideas, and other things that keep me awake at night. All I have to do is grab my planner, write it down, and move on! 

Since my last post, I've had some questions about where to get some of the books I mentioned and how to listen to audiobooks. I very rarely own any of the books I recommend. I can't even remember when the last time was that I read a hard copy of a book! I'm fairly certain if I didn't listen to books, I'd hardly read at all. There's always other things to be done, but I can listen to a book while I drive, walk, cook, clean, do wash, sew... anytime, anywhere! Now, I understand my situation is different from those with families and it is probably not advisable to go around with earbuds in your ears, listening to a book, while there are children in the house. I'm just saying what works for me! It helps me stay motivated to do tasks I don't really enjoy if I can escape through a book at the same time! As for where I get the audiobooks, I mostly use the apps Overdrive (Libby is similar), hoopla, and LibriVox. With the exception of LibriVox, these apps are through a public library - I do not pay for audiobooks. Because the book has to be purchased by the library, there are a limited amount of titles available, but I can almost always find what I want. Sometimes you might have to put a hold on a popular book and wait awhile until you can borrow it. You can also electronically recommend the library purchase a book you want to read. They may or may not buy it, but if they do, you'll be notified. Another thing you can do if your library doesn't have a wide selection is get a library card from another county (in the same state). For example, I can also borrow from Allentown library, and I suppose there are others I could sign up for. I'd be interested in ideas from others who listen to audiobooks, as well!