Tag: Goal setting

Writing Lessons

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Yesterday I attended the NSW Emerging Writers Festival. The first session of the day comprised of 5 Australian authors giving their writing tips—Tom Doig, Delia Falconer, Benjamin Law, Laura Jean McKay and Walter Mason.

This was favourite part of the day. It lead me to think about what I have learnt on my writing journey—from book to blogging.

1. Begin by writing. Don’t worry about order—get your ideas down. Form and order come in the editing process. The more you write, the quicker and more naturally, form and order come.

2. Use every spare moment to write. Half of my book was written in 10-30 minute sessions on my daily train commute. I continue this habit with my blogging.

3. Believe in yourself. Self doubt can and will question your ability. I heard it and kept going anyway. I let my audience decide if my writing was good enough. So far, feedback has been positive.

4. Find ways to talk about your work. Initially, I didn’t know how to bring my work up in conversation. So I focused on it. The more I talked about it, the easier it got. Yesterday, I joined a panel at the writers festival to discuss my work and my ideas. It was fun. Afterwards I was surprised and  excited by how natural it felt.

5. Prioritise your time. There will always be a reason not to write—too busy, too tired, somebody else needs something. Find a way to incorporate everything you want to do in a day. This is where writing in short sessions helps.

The secret is—find what works for you and keep doing it. If you really want to do something—you will find away.

 

The Climb

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The Prompt – Run (or walk) to the nearest music playing device (radio, iPod, record player, 8-track) and turn it on.  Select a lyric from the first, random song you hear.  Use that lyric in a piece of writing of your choosing (fiction, non-fiction, poem, letter, etc.).  The Twist – work the name of the artist into your writing as well.

In 2009, I was promoted from Clinical Nurse Specialist to  Nurse Unit Manager. I was excited. However, I was unsure how I would go. I knew I was a good CNS but management—that was uncharted waters for me. I decided I would give it my best shot and see what happened. Miley Cyrus’s The Climb became my theme song and motivation.

“I can almost see it,

that dream I’m dreaming, but

there’s a voice inside my head saying you’ll never reach it.”

I needed to kill off my self-doubt. Playing this song on repeat helped. I wasn’t going to give up without a fight, so I decided the answer was to think positively and start at the beginning—building a strong foundation. Every spare moment—I played The Climb—to calm my mind and ensure my success—it worked. I won the battle and I am now a confident Manager. This role gives me more opportunities to share my knowledge and experience with whoever needs it.

“There’s always gonna be another mountain

I’m always gonna want to make it move

Always gonna be an uphill battle

Sometime’s I’m gonna have to lose

Ain’t about how fast I get there

Ain’t about what’s waitin’ on the other side

It’s The Climb”

Over the last 5 years, there has been lots of new mountains to climb—some easy, some very difficult—but I keep dreaming and climbing. After all who knows what tomorrow brings? I don’t. But—I’m not afraid. If I need a little motivation, I get out my mobile phone and listen to The Climb. I listen as many times as it takes to move my current mountain and ensure my dream becomes a reality.

What song motivates you?

Happy Birthday Toastmasters

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Today you can write about anything, in whatever genre or form, but your post must mention a dark night, your fridge, and tears (of joy or sadness; your call).

This month sees Toastmasters International celebrate its 90th birthday. Founded in 1924 by Ralph C. Smedley, it began as a single club in Santa Ana, California to help young men learn the art of public speaking.  90 years later there are 14,650 clubs in 126 countries and Toastmasters is continuing to grow.

Today, Toastmasters International’s membership is over 300,000 and it uses the tagline “Where Leaders are Made.” Emphasising the connection between public speaking and leadership in modern career paths.

I joined Toastmasters International in 2010 and have enjoyed my journey to becoming a competent speaker. I completed my first speaking manual —Competenat Communicator twice to develop my confidence writing and speaking, before I began the my Advanced Manuals, which I am now half way through.

The skills that I have learnt and honed at Toastmasters have definitely helped in both writing my book and commencing blogging. They help me think on my feet and this year in the impromptu speaking competition—Table Topics—I was runner-up at Area, something I am very proud of and a personal best.

My favourite part of Toastmasters, especially as a sponsor of a new club is seeing people make their first speech to the club called the Ice Breaker—for obvious reasons. This a  particularly stressful time for many new members due to fear, anxiety and lack of confidence. However, mentorship and support from club members gets them through. After presenting their first speech, it is not uncommon for members to cry tears of joy as they realise that they really did do it —the planning, preparation and practice paid off.

If you are looking for a supportive way to achieve personal growth and develop at your own pace I would recommend you consider joining a Toastmaster Club near you. They are a proven way to enrich your life for 90 years.

90th

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Celebrate

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Today is a day of celebration. Pop the champagne—I have 3 things to celebrate:

  • My 100th post—yeah! and most have been put up since late August. These are exciting times. This week I also achieved my 3,000th view—2,000 of which were in October—more than double my views for September.
  • Today, is my mother’s birthday. The irony is I didn’t plan it this way, it just happened. The funny thing is that I started Inspiring Max in May on Mother’s Day as a present to myself. Back then I knew nothing about blogging—but I went for it anyway. Now, although I still call myself a new blogger I understand a little more than the basics and my voice, views and following are growing. Inspiring Max has direction and is meeting the goals I set.
  • My third celebration is that I will be self publishing my book next year with Balboa Press. This was my preferred option and is the self publishing arm of Hay House. My ultimate dream publisher. My feelings at present are a weird mix of scary and excitement knowing—my book that I have worked on lovingly for 5 years will soon be available for anyone who has an interest or need for it. Although, this may not be the final cover, here is my latest option for the cover of Inspiring Hope. What do you think?

 

New Inspiring Hope picture

 

 

What are you celebrating at the moment? Never say never. The only way to achieve is to dream and make an achievable plan.

Great Expectations

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How high are your expectations? One issue regularly struggled with is how high to set your expectations. If you set them too low, your expectations are achieved but they mean little as they were too easy.

“A calm sea never made a skilled sailor.” Anonymous

On the flip side—if you are to set the bar too high it becomes impossible to reach and you give up. This is frustrating and convinces you not to start.

The answer is to make your expectations great and achievable. Set realistic expectations at each stage. Let’s pretend that your great expectation is to sail in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race considered to be one of the most difficult ocean races in the world.

It is dangerous to think you would be able to do this as your first sailing experience. To achieve this great expectation, you would need to set various smaller challenges to build the skills required to achieve your ultimate goal— The Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.

Possible goals may include:

1. Learn to sail.

2. Practice your skills in calm conditions.

3. Learn to read the weather and understand what a change in the conditions can mean and how to manage them. Out to sea there is no protection and unfortunately rescue and death are real options that need to be addressed.

4. Increase the difficulty of your sailing conditions to increase your skills.

5. Join a sailing club and begin yacht racing as a crew member.This will give you experience on decisions needing to be quickly and followed through. It can be an adrenaline rush as you realise that by tacking (changing direction and sailing into the wind), suddenly you can be  leading the race.

6. When possible increase the size of the yachts you are crewing on to gain different experience and increase your skills.

7. When the opportunity presents itself, crew on yachts as they go in smaller ocean racing classics. If this yacht enters the Sydney To Hobart you will become familiar with the yacht which will help develop your confidence.

8. Learn as much as you can about the race and conditions of the Sydney To Hobart Yacht Race. Join a crew, understand the risks and enjoy achieving your great expectation.

Sydney-to-Hobart-race-1

Howling At The Moon

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“Follow your inner moonlight; don’t hide the madness.” — Allen Ginsberg

Do you follow Ginsberg’s advice — in your writing and/or in your everyday life?

I love a bright, full moon. It appears to call me, drawing my attention to it from wherever I am. It reminds me of the marvels of the universe and how anything is possible if we believe—man landing on the moon.

The moon controls the tides and my experience is that it also affects human behaviour. Working in acute psychiatry, traditionally the night of the full moon would be the busiest for the month, with more people presenting to emergency centres requiring help with their mental health for various reasons. There doesn’t seem to be any agreed reason for this situation, but many people can attest to it being true.

China 1-9-13 G Tunnel 312

My favourite full moon I saw in China during the mid Autumn Moon Festival in 2013. It was bright full and red—although very difficult to photograph. The Chinese people celebrate the power of the moon in this family celebration that dates back more than 3,000 years.

Moving forward, I think the time of the full moon each month would be a great time for reflection and goal setting for the next month. Speaking our goals out loud makes them real and gives them power. What better way to do that than to howl them to the moon. If required you can plan for this event by checking the date of the next full moon on any calendar. Let’s join with others who for centuries have used the power of the moon to help them achieve their goals.

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