Sunday, January 1, 2017

One SMART word for 2017: THRIVE


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Last year at this time, I wrote a post about how I always set goals for the new year instead of resolutions.   This year, for 2017, however, I decided to pick a SMART word for the year.  What is SMART?  Attributed to George Doran, SMART means Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time based.

Why am I not doing goals this year?  It's not often like me to vary from a tradition.  I usually have a huge list of things I want to accomplish in the next year.  This year, however, is very different for me.  I am not sure where I am headed.  Some might call it a mid-life crisis (or is that what happened when I got married for the first time at age 42?)  But I want the second half of my life to be better than the first half.


I don't know where I will go this year.  Right now my SMART goals pertain to where I am at the current moment.  So that is why I decided to chose a word instead of setting year long goals.  My word is THRIVE.  Why thrive?  Why not set goals?

Things could change.  I currently sell on eBay.  Maybe by the end of this year I will have decided to go for my Master's Degree, or we could be in the process of adopting.  (We have taken the class, just need to get the house up to code and go through the home study.)  If I say I want to do a certain amount on eBay, either of those things could disrupt my plans of my measurable eBay work.  There may be other new selling platforms or other opportunities that will come my way, and if I make THRIVE my word, I won't be feeling like I bailed on a goal as I can evaluate how I want to thrive all the way down to a minute by minute basis if I would like.

Some of the biggest New Year's Resolutions are to lose weight, save money, and read more books. Let's think about those for a moment.  Lose weight?  A few years back I was at a faith and fitness camp where John Heart , former Natural Mr. America, was a speaker and trainer.  He asked us in a session why we keep losing weight because all that happens is we start finding it again.  So I am going to make a decision to eat healthier.  So that I can see how I am doing, the scale will be used, but that's not my total focus.  I actually lost weight over Christmas.  I love chips.  As I write this, I am eating some Veggie chips.  They are not lower in calories than potato chips, but my first thought was I wanted some tortilla chips and liquid cheese.  These organic, non GMO chips where I know what every ingredient is has to be better than some bright orange liquid cheese like substance.  But even if I did eat something I couldn't pronounce, I could chose better next time.

I want to take time daily to do things I enjoy.  I love to read.  This week, I started a cross stitch sampler for the first time in sixteen years.  It's important to take time to do things I want to do.  I can't focus on work my entire life.  I have Kindle Unlimited to help me explore new areas on a budget.  Anyone can publish a book through the Kindle program, and if it is enrolled in the Kindle Unlimited program, you can read as many as you would like for one monthly fee.  There is fiction and non-fiction.  I love to learn and my subscription is well worth the price.  Since I signed up, I have read lots of books about online selling, blogging, writing, designing items, and more.  The way my interests have changed over the last year, I don't think I will be into just one area, and using the word THRIVE allows me to follow my interest as it may change through the year.

I know how to save money.  That is what much of this blog is about.  But for 2017 I want to learn how to make more money.  I value working for myself, so it will likely fit into that.  It's measurable, but I am not saying that I am planning on doing it a certain way because things may open up later this year that at the moment I couldn't imagine.  I know a number of people who design shirts through Amazon Merch were taken by surprise at how much they were able to make.  I haven't even made $100 with it yet, but I know that multiple streams of income are important because if one dries up, you can move to another one.  I had a problem buyer a few years ago on eBay and my Paypal account was temporally frozen from withdrawing money because of all the reports that were filed against me (he lost the dispute).  But if I had no other way of receiving money than my Paypal account, I would have been in a bind for about two weeks.

So what can you do to THRIVE this year?  How are your goals SMART?  What do you hope to do in 2017?  Whatever it is, keep at it.  I just finished the entire bag of chips.  Ooops.  Didn't mean to do that.  But am I going to use that to keep me from trying to make healthier choices -- absolutely not!  Do what you can.  Let the results take care of themselves.



2 comments:

  1. I used to sell items on ebay, too. I enjoyed it so much!
    Much luck and best wishes to you in 2017.
    Dianna

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    1. Thanks! I've been selling on eBay for over 18 years now. It's feeling more like a job and no longer being as enjoyable as it once was, but I value having a flexible schedule. I am thinking it might be time to start thinking about something else. :)

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