Getting ready for 2015 – part 3: setting Goals

I realized I never closed the loop on my “Getting Ready for 2015” thread, so here goes.

The insight that I need to separate “lifestyle changes” (things like ‘get to the gym’ and ‘cook more’) from “goals” (big projects to do) really helped me. A LOT of the things on my “to do” list were not goals or projects, but things I want to implement in my life. So, I was able to move them to a different list. (So many lists!)

From the remaining, I used the following filters:

• “what can you realistically achieve in one year?”
• does this goal do something for anyone more than just me?
• will it be challenging and fun enough to commit to?
• do I think it fits into my bigger vision of who I am and why I’m here

Very possibly, these are not what a coach or therapist might suggest, but they work for me because I can embrace them wholeheartedly.

So, here’s the final list – with a few comments for clarification. Aside from the 1st, they are just alphabetical, not in order or importance.

1. finish the MA project at EMU – big big big. It will be on ADHD, but the closer I get, the more it looks like a meditation on the word “normal”
2. ADHD and Improv – I’m still under the spell of Nachmanovitch’s “Free Play” and I think Improv is my best way to help move that idea along. Working with Kirsten in Orlando was great and I think there is real potential here.
3. A2 ADHD Showcase – I want to do at least 2 more of these in 2015, possibly 4. The first was fun. I’m hoping to have more participation, but that’s always a goal.
4. Amy Benefit Concert – I missed 2014
5. At least 2 public performances around ADHD – probably Barnes and Noble or AADL
6. Core and back – back has been getting worse, so this became a priority. The goal is finding the right exercises and implementing them.
7. Family tree – this year, finally pull all those notes together
8. Etsy – the beadwork, t shirts and photography
9. Get rid of extra laptops – I have kept several because of various software or ports. Resolve these
10. Get house painted – farm this out, we put it off 2 years now trying to “get to it”
11. Poetry book – finish it, submit it, get it published
12. Pointless Pub – Tori and Jason are opening a pub and I get to help!
13. Scooter fix – either get it fixed or sell it
14. Wonder Drug – get it recorded and up on YouTube or SoundCloud

These looked do-able (feasible) as of December 2014. I also know from experience that things will come up during the year, so I tried to leave room for those.

Here goes!

Getting ready for 2015 – part 2: using what I’ve learned about ADHD to set better goals

It’s about 3 weeks since my last entry and I think I’ve done it! I think I have my goals for 2015 set! I learned a lot this year and I’ve pulled together everything I’ve learned to try and make 2015 a more reasonable, more successful year.

One theme that’s come up over and over this year is accepting that “there is waaaaaaay too much on my plate!” Depending on which of my systems I’m looking at — my SCRUM system (stacks of white paper covered with post-it notes) or my online system (currently Wunderlist),  I’ve had a backlog of up to 400 items! Insanity.

Granted, I knew enough even 3 years ago to divide them into “likely” and “unlikely” clusters, but still, I would often spend multiple hours per week reviewing and reorganizing those lists.

No more!

I am going into 2015 with no more than about 20. It’s been gruelling trying to figure out what to give up, but I recognize that 2 finished projects are better than 50 that are “coming along”. (And, to be honest, I am not “giving up” on any of the, they are just going into the “look at later” pile.)

I need ONE MORE PASS at the list to see if I’m satisfied. In the meantime here’s a peek at last year’s “high level” list. Let’s see if the 2015 list is any cleaner!

 

Scheduling Things on the Wrong Day

I wonder if this is a sign of getting better or backsliding?

I planned a picnic at Gallup Park for the ADHD group, date: Sunday June 13, time: 11:30 a.m. I made flyers and announced it on the meetup site. Then today, I added it to my calendar. Date: Saturday June 12, time: 11:30 a.m. Caught it right away and fixed it in my calendar.

So, does the fact that I put it in wrong mean I am not on top of things? Or does the fact that I caught it and fixed it mean that I am?

Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Unintended Consequence of Getting Better

Right now, I’m sitting at one of my favorite coffee shops in Ann Arbor – Espresso Royale on South Main. I just posted an announcement about my “Who Am I Living With?!?!” which I’ll be doing at Barnes and Noble toward the end of the month. It took me somewhere between 15 and 25 minutes to do it. That included checking my calendar, emailing B&N, emailing a bunch of the members of our group, then posting to Facebook and arborweb and my Google calendar. I don’t know how long it takes “normal” people to do something like this, but I know that to me it seems like a very, very long time. In the Bad Old Days (pre-diagnosis), I had no real sense of time at all, so if it took 5 minutes or 2 hours it would have felt the same to me. It made it hard to schedule, it was messy and overall, probably unproductive. But I don’t recall ever once saying to myself “a ‘normal’ person could do this in half the time.”

I kind of miss that.