Habits over Goals – My New New Year’s Resolution

I’m a very goal focused person. I’m very good at creating goals, I’m okay at meeting those goals. Of course, I don’t succeed in every goal I set – I don’t think there is anyone on the planet that does—but I am good at working towards them. If I set a goal, I’m going to work towards that goal until either its complete, or it’s no longer possible. I will just keep grinding, pushing myself to complete that goal any way possible. Even if its not always through the healthiest methods.

But while I might be good at meeting these goals, the work I do to get there is often not sustainable. Nor am I good trying to create systems or habits that would make a goal like this not only easier but also repeatable.  Nanowrimo is a great example of this. For thirty days I work myself to the bone, with so many other amazing writers, and hit that 50k words. I write in the middle of the night, while I’m eating dinner, on my lunch break, any time I can find. And I hit that goal. For a little while I celebrate. I might even keep writing with the same kind of intensity, high off the excitement of the accomplishment. But within a month or two I go back to the same old bad habits. Sitting on the couch and scrolling through Instagram instead of writing, not prioritizing or setting aside time for writing. And letting time go by without completing another story, or seeing another set of my characters find their happily ever after.

While I don’t think hitting 50k words every month would ever be realistic on a more routine basis (at least for me, if you can do it, I am very jealous). But it would be nice to use the time I spent feverously getting all these words to create habits that would carry me through, and help me finish stories until the next year, when Nanowrimo strikes again.

So this year, instead of setting New Year’s Resolutions of what I want to accomplish, what books I want to write or revise, how much I want to read, or how much promotion I want to do, I want to focus on growing habits that will help me meet those goals. Not once. Not just for this year. Not just when I push myself too hard, or demand too much of myself. But every month. For good.

The biggest habit I want to create is to set aside time for writing and revising routinely. Not just when the mood crosses me. Not just when nothing else is going on. But on a routine basis. It has been a long time since I have been able to create this kind of a regular schedule, but when I did I had the most successful year of my career. As I’ve proven in other areas of my life, keeping consistent, and just working through always breeds results. Eventually. It’s the getting there that can be difficult. Especially when you can’t see the results right away.

While I’d certainly love to duplicate that fantastic year I did stay on schedule, I know expecting that, especially my first year of creating a new habit, is unrealistic. But it would be nice to feel like I was making better progress on my stories. Over the last few years I have struggled with staying connected to one story, and seeing it through to completion. Too often it feels like I work and work and work on a story, and it doesn’t get anywhere. Or takes forever. Intellectually I know if I keep going, if I maintain that consistent schedule, I will eventually see and feel that progress. But being unable to force myself to stick to the schedule, to stay consistent, to often stops me from seeing the results that I want.

For 2024 I’d like to find a few times a week that I will write and stick to those times. I want to focus on not just selecting times when I might want to write, but treating those sessions with the importance they deserve. Like a doctor’s appointments or job interviews, I want to view these times as unchangeable and unavoidable. Not something that can be moved aside or ignored when life gets in the way.

I’d also like to develop a habit of reading more. Not only am I a better writer when I am reading, the constant stream new ideas and beautiful words fuel my creativity, but also reading makes me happy, and doing more of it makes me a happier person. To fit more reading into my life might mean I need to change my reading style. Maybe listen to more audio books or getting a kindle unlimited subscription again (which I loved but was afraid I didn’t use enough, so I cancelled it a few years ago). Whatever the option to bring more writing into my life, I want to focus on it and bring more joy to my life. 

And most of all, I want to find a way to integrate these habits into my life without disrupting any of the other habits I currently maintain. Over the last few years of have done a lot of work to create an exercise habit that has helped me to lose over twenty pounds, as well as bring down my blood pressure and cholesterol. While I love writing, and want to do more of it, I don’t want to forfeit one positive habit for another. Especially not when it comes to my health, which is more important than any story or character I might write.

These are the habits I want to work on implementing this year so far, but I’m sure more will come to me as the year goes on. Maybe when I integrate these habits into my life, other positive habits will arise for me to create. Only time will tell.

Until then, I will work on creating these good habits, anxiously anticipating how they will help me accomplish all the goals I wish for in a healthy consistent way. And maybe bring some more success and peace to my life.