My Summer Goals and (my sorta borrowed) Accountability Method

Have you ever set a goal but didn’t do it because of procrastination or discouragement? Did you feel like total crap, too? I know your pain.

I think that this behavior stems from a lack of accountability. So I decided to change all that by making some summer goals for myself. The whole point of this challenge is to make my goals public so that I feel more responsible in completing all or half of them by the deadline (September).

I got this idea from Jenna Moreci, a YouTuber and author, who’s productivity increased thanks to this method. According to her:

 

“The risk of public humiliation is a very effective motivator.”

Jenna Moreci

With that said, my goals are to…

 

1. Finish Editing Ruin

For those of you who don’t know, Ruin is a fantasy comic that I’m working on. I just finished the third draft four weeks ago and plan to spend the entire summer editing the crap out of it. Then I’ll let go of it for the sake of production.

2. Outline the sequel to Ruin

The idea is to be able to write five books in the series. I’ve already wrote a rough synopsis for the sequel—I just have to flesh it out.

3. Finish Editing Retaliation

Retaliation is a science fiction novel that I’m working on. I’m currently fixing some issues that I hope I can finish sometime this quarter.

4. Start Drafting Retaliation

After I’m done “editing” (see #3), I’ll implement my notes into another draft.

5. Read 2 (or 4) Books

I’ve only read critical texts, college anthologies, and pricey textbooks this past semester. I need some aliens, ray guns, magic, espionage, and whatever other fiction I can get my hands before I go NUTS.

Since I’m a slow reader, I’m making this one flexible. I’m looking forward to reading Rise of Empire by Michael J. Sullivan and Strange Magic by James A. Hunter.

6. Write a (or 2) Short Stories

Another flexible one. I want more writing in my life, but I don’t want this to overshadow my other larger projects. I’ve already started writing a murder thriller that’s so dark and gruesome it scares me.

7. Write a (or 3) Guest Posts

After my blogging hiatus last year, I want to be more involved in the blogging community. The hope is that a blogger (or three) will be willing to allow me to post something on their sites.

I’m actually already ahead in this one (no…I’m not cheating!). Again, it’s flexible because I don’t want this to overshadow my larger projects.

8. Post Once a Week

If guest posting doesn’t satisfy my need to rejoin the blogosphere, posting once a week sure will. That’s 14 posts total!

9. Be more active on social media (Twitter/Facebook/Pintrist/etc).

I feel like my social media feeds are lacking something: Me. Don’t get me wrong! I retweet, like, and comment (sometimes). I just think I should be a little more active—not spammy active—just mellow active.

10. Get Podcasting Equipment

Yep, I’m planning on launching a podcast! I pretty much have all of the equipment save for the intro/outro music, media host, and editing software. You’ll hear more about this in the future so keep an eye out!

 

And there’s my ten goals for this summer quarter. Although I’m aiming to get all of these done, I need to complete a minimum of five goals to win the challenge. Should be fun.

You can use the same accountability method to help with your productivity too. Don’t forget to link back to this post!

I’ll let you guys know how I did in September!

Later! 🙂