Bad Blogger-February Goals

Wow, where has the time gone!? Obviously, I’ve let everything (reading, editing, writing, work, etc) get in the way of maintaining this blog and website. I admit it: I’m a bad blogger. But rather than virtually flog myself for this shortcoming, I’m going to just jump back on the proverbial bicycle and start 2015 with renewed vigor. Here are my goals for February!

Professional:

–Try not to let job rejections get me down. Yesterday I received three new rejections, each stating something along the lines of how I was “a competitive candidate” but that they chose to go with someone “better suited” to the position. My friends and colleagues have reminded me not to take it as a personal attack on my experience or abilities, but to see it as the Universe telling me that that was not the right job for me. I hope they’re right. And maybe I’ll be able to enter the academic market in the Fall.

–Continue to apply to any and all jobs matching my skills, interests, and abilities. I can’t let the rejections stop me from applying. And I need to learn to market my education and experiences in a way that show that while I’ve been in school non-stop, it doesn’t mean I don’t have applicable experience. This may require a serious CV/Resume overhaul and I desperately need to seek professional help.

–Try to get one of my dissertation chapters published. I’m nearly done with the suggested edits to one of my chapters and I need to try to get that submitted somewhere ASAP. The worst they can do? Reject me. I have nothing to lose.

Academic:

–Finish the edits to the three completed chapters. In this way, I’ll be all set to write the last two chapters, as well as an intro/conclusion, and be able to submit the entire manuscript to my advisor for the full edit. I strongly believe that if I can just keep my chin up and my motivation high, I can finish the dissertation in time for a Summer 2015 graduation. It’s ambitious, but doable. There’s honestly no reason I shouldn’t be done already. But I’ve let issues with my advisor and my own personal fear get in my way. No more. It’s time to buckle down and get it done.

–Make sure I’m keeping tabs on my students and emails. I want to make sure that this, what may be my last semester teaching a class, is the BEST semester EVER! This weekend, I need to make sure that I’ve made my video introduction and have checked on their discussion posts.

Personal:

–Get the dogs caught up on their vaccinations. With moving twice in the last 6 months, my poor pups are about a month overdue for their updated Bordotella shot. Also, we need to get them their annual heartworm test and set back up on Trifexis. Now that we’re more settled, I have the time to research vet offices more thoroughly (the last couple of experiences in the area have not been great) and find them their new, sole veterinarian office.

–Date Kyle. My husband and I have been trying to save money and eat healthier, so it’s rare to find the time to go on a date that is both inexpensive and doesn’t involve a restaurant. I’m hoping to set something up, like a drive out of town to go hiking or a trip to Savannah, just the two of us. No phones, no distractions, no stress.

–Finish Make it Happen by Lara Casey. This book, and Lara’s story, is incredibly inspirational. But it forces you to face your fears, acknowledge your mistakes, and challenges you to stop chasing perfect. At times, I shy away from this difficult task, but I make it my goal to finish this book this month.

–Keep up with going to the gym. I’m paying for the gym membership, I better use it. I’ve done really well in the last couple of weeks, but this week, I really lost track. Tomorrow, I’m going to kick butt and get back into that gym. No excuses. It’s all about making a schedule and sticking to it, not letting my irrationality get in the way.

–Same goes for meal prep. Again, I was doing really well cooking up all our meals on Sunday so they were ready to go. Since I had to wait, though, this week to buy chicken on Tuesday, it threw my schedule off and I failed to meal prep this week. I’ll be going to the grocery store on Sunday and making sure I have everything ready for meal prep (including lunches) this week. I’ll also make all of Kyle’s lunches on Sunday so he doesn’t have to go out for lunch.

–Make time for phone calls. I’ve gotten better about maintaining more contact with friends and family via text/Facebook, but now it’s time to take it a step further. I need to make it a point to spend at least 15 minutes in a voice conversation with my loved ones. It doesn’t have to be every week, but it needs to be more than once a month.

Here’s hoping that I can manage everything while maintaining my sanity and a smile on my face!