Welcome 2014!
Well, we’re through another year and about to embark on the next adventure. Like so many people, I view the new year as a time to start fresh. To think about where I am and where I want to be. I dislike the concept of resolutions, so I won’t be using that word. But I am planning some goals and challenges for this year.
Round this time last year, I planned to start writing every day. It’s a popular concept and I really think it’s useful. I got off to a good start and I was definitely enjoying it. However, about two weeks into the new year, a co-worker quit the company and I got nearly all the work she was doing. My manager did the math much later on and determined I was being allocated at more than 250%. I could have worked 100 hour weeks and still not gotten it all. I’m the kind of person who gets very much caught up in my work. I love what I do (technology related) and I was determined to make it all work. I’ve been down the burnout road in the past, though, and it was ugly, so I was also determined not to let myself get dragged so far in I couldn’t get out. I did give it my all though, and by the end of each day, remembering my name seemed like a chore. Writing was totally out of the question.
While I didn’t escape burnout, I managed it as best I could. My manager came on part way through the year and made it his mission to get more people hired and ease my workload. I will forever appreciate him for his efforts. We’ve finally managed to get me down to a considerably more reasonable load and the more than two weeks I took off over Thanksgiving and Christmas have started me down the road to recovery. I’ve still got a way to go and things at work are not perfect, but I’m in a hell of a lot better spot than I was.
So, in consideration of these changes, I’m going back to the writing every day challenge. A writer friend on Twitter also suggested including journal writing in my daily quota (Thanks, Janet!). I’ve not written a journal since I was in college, but it’s something I’ve considered lately. I’m not sure how it will fit into this plan, but I’m going to explore it and see what happens! I have a couple of apps for my phone/iPad for this purpose, so I’m going to try them out. I might try a blog post about them and share how they’re working out.
Of course, writing for this blog will count toward my challenge, so I’ll keep everyone posted on my progress as I go. I’m shooting for once every couple weeks for that and potentially some posts to my Supernatural blog. Between those, my fan fiction, and the journal, I should have plenty to keep me occupied!
That’s it for now. If you have a moment, feel free to share in the comments if writing daily has worked for you. Also, any suggestions on how to incorporate journalling into my day would be much appreciated!
Steph's Wordplay 
Your post inspired me to be more structured in my write anything, even for just a little while, every day goal. I wake up at 5am every day and I’ve decided to devote at least 30 minutes of that first hour to writing. I love it. It is a much more calm and focused way to start my day. Before I close my laptop the night before, I make sure to close down all Internet-based programs – email, browsers, and Twitter – so that when I open it up the next morning, I am not immediately distracted.
I love it so far and feel like this is a potentially sustainable plan.
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