How Important Are Milestones?

Today, I’ve got a snazzy Life List Club Milestone Party for you, which happens to coincide with my 200th post. Is that some serious New Year’s Karma, or what?!

Holy cowbell! TWO. HUNDRED. POSTS. Whoa.

I’ll confess that when I started More Cowbell, I imported 40 posts from my time at Writers In The Storm. Still, when I launched on April 1st, in my wildest dreams I couldn’t have imagined writing 200 posts in my lifetime. What a difference a year makes!

Really. I’m doing a post next week for the New Year that talks about it. I’ve discovered that even when I’m not accomplishing the Big Kahuna goals, the change to my writing mindset over the last 12 months (hell, the last six) is mind-boggling.

That’s the real importance of a milestone to me. Whether or not they’ve made me change my habits. For example, I write about 6 days a week now. I used to average 3-5 days a month.

While I wasn’t unhappy before, I am SO much happier now. My husband thanks me all the time for chasing my dreams. I’m a better wife and mother because of it.

Your actual goal, in my opinion, is the smallest part of a milestone. The mindset required to complete the thousand little steps that get you to that goal…THAT’S where the magic comes in. It’s important to celebrate those baby steps on the way to the Big Kahuna.

My critique buddy, Laura Drake, did a post on celebrating the process just last week called Writing and Hershey’s Kisses. It’s definitely worth a read if you’re having the holiday/New Year’s writing angst that I’m seeing floating around. Or even if you’re just feeling worn out with your quest to achieve.

Back in early July, I joined up with the Life List Club. I figured I’d try it a few months and see if I liked it. We blog-hop every other Friday and focus on writing inspiring and thought-provoking posts. I had no idea I’d love it as much as I do.

A great definition of The Life List can be found here. This is my second Milestone Party (we do them every quarter) and they’re all about reflecting on our goals, partying down and giving away really groovy prizes!

I am giving away two prizes – one to a commenter on this post and one to a subscriber. If you do either of those things in the next week (between now and midnight on 1/5/12), I will enter you into the hat for your choice of the following:

• A guest post by me at your blog.
• An interview of you and promotion of your cause/site here at More Cowbell.

Both prizes should be a BLAST and I hope you’ll join in by commenting below or clicking on the “Sign Me Up!” subscribe button in the upper right of this screen (by my picture). Maybe you’d like to do both…don’t be shy! I’ll announce the winners on Friday 1/6.

I have an interview with Kate Wood, one of my last Milestone Party winners, coming in January and I did a guest post for Stacy Green at her snazzy blog in November.

Other Milestone prizes (below in bold):

• David N. Walker – 2 Prizes total – one commenter/1 subscriber
  To a lucky commenter or subscriber, one interview on his site and one guest post swap.
• Jennie Bennett – 2 prizes total to her commenters
  A copy of Totally Cliche’, the ebook in which her work is published.
• Gary Gauthier – 1 ebook to a new subscriber
• Pamela Hawley – 2 Prizes (1 subscriber and 1 commenter)

Winner’s choice of one of the following:

1. Winner publishes a guest post at Hawleyville.
2. Interview the winner for a future post in Hawleyville.
3. OR Pam will guest post at winner’s blog and promote at Hawleyville.

• Sonia Medeiros – $15 Amazon card to 1 commenter
• Marcia Richards – 1 Prize to a current or new subscriber
  An Amazon gift card and the opportunity to guest post or be interviewed on Marcia’s sexy, fun blog.
•  Jess Witkins – Prize to 1 winner
  One lucky subscriber gets an iTunes gift card and the opportunity to guest post or be interviewed on Jess’ blog.

Be sure to visit all Life List Club sites to see their posts – comment/subscribe to win prizes! You can click on each person’s name above or find the entire LLC Blogroll in my right sidebar.

What exactly is The Life List Club?

The Life List Club is about connecting, and publicly stating some life goals you’d like to accomplish over the next 12 months (for me that will be by the next 4th of July). It’s about encouraging others in their goals. Think ROW80 with some more life-focused goals in the mix.

Below, I highlighted the goals I’ve achieved (even parts of) in green. The rest are a work in progress. Those that I’ve decided are unfeasible, I’ve crossed out.

Jenny’s Life List

1. Finish the polished first draft of my high-risk pregnancy memoir.
2. Visit ROW80 blogs and bloggers every week – encourage at least two new people.
3. Exercise a minimum of 3 hours a week. (HIGH on my list! Current avg = hr/week)
4. Try kickboxing classes at 24-Hour Fitness. (I signed up for 10 weeks yoga instead)
5. Send the rest of last year’s presents – with death, moving and baby I’ve been pitiful in this department. (I’ve gotten some out still trying to find the others. Oy.)
6. Make more time for reading – at least two hours per week.
7. Implement guest bloggers on More Cowbell.
8. Research climbing vines for the back yard perimeter wall – plant them.
9. Create an area to plant potatoes – plant them.
10. Plant the 3 bags of bulbs in my garage!
    [I just hired a gardener who’ll do the 3 above FOR me! WOOT!]
11. Read “Save The Cat” and Christopher Vogler’s “The Writer’s Journey.”
12. Take Bob Mayer’s Warrior Writer again when I have time to devote to it.
13. Take two courses from Margie Lawson’s Lawson Writer’s Academy.
    [I’ve signed up for two – one worked out and one didn’t.]
14. Look into teaching at LWA or elsewhere online.
15. Attend the 2012 DFW Conference (I’ve started saving for this.)
16. Begin submitting freelance pieces to build writing income.
17. Take Baby Girl to Gymboree at least 1x per month. (I’ve focused on church playgroup so far…Gymboree is still on the list.)
18. Take Baby Girl to Story Hour at the library at least 1x per month. (Didn’t care for this.)
19. Entertain at home every few months. (Success – every month but one!)
20. Have one night a week that belongs solely to my honey. (We’ve managed this about every other week so far.)

Have you made a Life List yet? What about some writing resolutions? Are you willing to share a goal here? If you’re not to that place yet, we’d love to hear about the latest milestone you’ve achieved in your life. Enquiring minds always want to know here at More Cowbell!

Good luck achieving your dreams!
Jenny

Attention: Writers! A writer who would like to become a contributor at The Life List Club, guest posting with us, please contact Marcia Richards: marichards320 AT yahoo.com or Jess Witkins: jessi.witkins AT gmail.com. At this time, the Life List Club accepts one new contributing writer per month. Membership is open to all – just state your goals publicly in a life list page on your site and come see us on Twitter at #LifeListClub.