We’re one month in to 2017…how are your New Year’s resolutions holding up? They say it takes twenty-one days to start or break a habit, so we should have some analytics. Did we go to the gym three times per week? Have we stopped drinking soda? Are we meeting our writing goals?
If you feel like you haven’t met the exciting goals you set for yourself at the start of the year, never fear!!! It’s not too late. We still have eleven months to go in 2017, and by the way, who said we have to live our lives by a calendar year, anyway?
My father is a retired professor, so our lives revolved around the school year, not only for our education, but also for family life. To this day, I get ecstatic over “Back to School” time at Target and have to refrain from loading my cart with fresh notebooks, glue sticks, and yellow number two pencils.
Businesses run on a fiscal calendar, which gets into a lot of tax information that makes my head spin. For instance, I started my company in the middle of the year, so my fiscal calendar doesn’t start in January. When my fiscal year is up, I have a better idea of where I stand financially and where I want to grow.
Here’s the great thing…you get to choose when your year starts! January 1st is gone…so what?!?!
Start tomorrow. Better yet, start it today! Pick a date and then each month do a review to see where you did well, where you need to grow, and then set new goals.
Create Your Own Writer’s Fiscal Year
Technically, the fiscal calendar is used for tax purposes, and I’m not talking taxes here. Even if you’re not ready to incorporate, or become an LLC, S-Corp, or any of that (talk to a certified accountant if you have questions!) choose the date you’re going to start your own “fiscal year.”
Once you start, perform an annual review. This doesn’t have to be a long drawn-out process. Simply list your wins, the things that happened that were awesome, and then list the lessons you’ve learned. You could call them mistakes, but I prefer to focus on what I can learn and how I can grow.
Next, spend a few minutes on your goals for the next quarter, then for the year. On yesterday’s Writers Chat show, author James Watkins discussed how he likes January to be a month of “thinking, praying, and reading.” I loved that so much. How exciting to create that kind of margin in your calendar. Of course, when you set a goal to devote that amount of time to those things, it often means that you say no to other great events. However, if you write your goal down, not only are you more likely to attain it, you may find it easier to say no to offers in order to protect the time you’ve scheduled.
Additionally, I like to list the things I can control, the action steps I’m going to take to ensure I meet my goals. If your goal is to get an agent, don’t list “get an agent” as one of your action steps. You have no control over which agent says yes to you. Instead, write down things that you are in control of, such as, “I will send query letters to ten agents.” Or, “I will research, write, and revise a proposal.” Another suggestion, “I will invest time and funds to attend a writers conference so I can pitch an agent face-to-face.” If that’s on your list, make sure to register for the Blue Ridge Conference!!!!
To help with your writer’s fiscal year, I’ve created a little PDF worksheet for you, a Basic Annual Review. I hope it’s helpful in getting you started with your goals. At the beginning of the next quarter, re-evaluate. At the end of your writer’s year, you’ll have data to see how you did.
[reminder]Do you already have a fiscal year or annual review? [/reminder]
Bethany Jett is an award-winning author of The Cinderella Rule, speaker, ghostwriter, and founder of JETTsetter Ink, a consulting and editing company. She has written for numerous publications, created the My Moments Planner, Serious Writer Companion, and is the founder of Serious Writer Academy and the Build Your Brand Program. Her newest work, Through the Eyes of Hope is now available online and in retailers nationwide.
Bethany is a military wife and all-boys-mama who is addicted to suspense novels and all things girly. She writes on living a brilliant life at BethanyJett.com. Connect with her on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram (new profile), LinkedIn, and Twitter.
No Comments