It’s only been 33 days since the Buzz launched and I’m happy to report things are going well! There’s been 29 articles published, 654 people have visited and 4,126 pages have been viewed. I’m happy with those numbers but I want next month to be even better! This means I need to get serious about setting some goals.
So this last weekend I sat down with my wife and we wrote some goals which I want to share with you.
(I’ve found writing goals in the present tense is more effective then the normal “My goal is too…” You might write goals differently — that’s fine, this is what works best for me.)
I started with one year goals and then broke them down into monthly goals. Here are this month’s goals.
It’s November 1, 2011 and…
- I have my advertising package created for the Buzz.
- I’ve figured out a way to advertise on the Buzz that does not take away from my reader’s experience.
- The Battle Ground Buzz now has a complete restaurant directory that includes every restaurant in BG.
- There’s now a free product available that I’ll give away to people who sign up for the newsletter.
- Two businesses have paid to advertise on the Buzz.
- I have a total of 50 articles on the Buzz.
4 weeks to accomplish this
It’s October 3rd which means I have 4 weeks to meet my objectives. I’ll follow up on this post in a month to let you know how I did. I’ve found that in order for goals to become reality they need to be specific, have a deadline, and shared with others (in order to create accountability). So now I’m accountable to all my readers — and I know you guys will hold my feet to the fire.
Now let me ask you – what are your goals for the remainder of this year? Have you written them down, set a deadline and shared them with someone?
Maybe you want to buy a house or would like to take the family on vacation. Maybe you want to lose weight or quit smoking. Whatever you want to accomplish I’d encourage you to make some written goals. And if you feel like it you can share your goals with us by leaving a comment below. I know it can be scary but sometimes it’s good to take a little risk.
About Joshua Monen
Josh is the founder and editor of the Battle Ground Buzz. He started writing online in 2007 and hasn't looked back. He left his "safe and secure" job in corporate America in May of 2011 to pursue writing full-time. Feel free to email him at josh@battlegroundbuzz.com.
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November 1, 2011:
1. I have finished writing the first draft of the book, “First Families of Vancouver’s African American Community: From World War Two to the Twenty-First Century” and distributed copies to the First Families Steering Committee for review.
2. I have worked with the Committee to develop and begin implementing a schedule for book production and printing by Feb. 1, 2012.
3. The Committee and I have also developed and begun implementing plans for promotion (media contacts, book release events etc.) and fundraising (contacting donors who can contribute the final $10,000 of our $62,000 budget).
4. I am starting to think ahead about ways I can help the Battle Ground community stay sane and healthy when the book is done (shorthand in my family: “WTBID”)!
Jane, thank you for sharing your goals with us. I’m excited about your new book! I know you’ve worked very hard on it.
Thanks, Josh. I’ve expanded my Goal #4 to say “ways I can help my community stay sane and healthy” – because, as you know I believe, community starts with “two or three gathered in my name” and expands to embrace the the world – not just Battle Ground. This is where we are, and this is where we owe our best efforts, but it doesn’t stop here – it reaches out to all creation.
Good point Jane. What we do here doesn’t have to be limited to here. But I think it is a good starting point.
re: Now let me ask you – what are your goals for the remainder of this year? Have you written them down, set a deadline and shared them with someone?
by jan 1
1) finish all my schoolwork for the quarter including the 12 page thesis paper.
2) lose 10 pounds.
3) meet with the Portland Folk Festival committee and organize our efforts to become an official non-profit organization. sponsor 2 benefit concerts. recruit more committee members.
4) co-write poems with 10 of my friends.
5) fulfill all my volunteer and service commitments
Thank you for sharing Slim. Those sound like some worthwhile goals.
If you lose 10 more pounds, Slim, you will be even slimmer – don’t overdo it, we don’t want you to disappear!