Task it Tuesday - Jan 8

Originally created by The Geeky Blogger, Task It Tuesday is a weekly meme to help you--and me--get things done. The challenge is to post a task or list of tasks you want to complete before next Tuesday. These tasks can help you with your blogging life, reading life, personal or professional life.

So much to do at the beginning of the year. Most of it is fun stuff. Here is how last week's to-do list ended up:

• Set my goals for 2019: writing, real estate, and personal. Deadline 1/2. First things, first. DONE
• Finalize my 2019 Business Plan. Deadline 1/11. DONE
• Finalize my President's Award application and submit it to my office for review. Deadline 1/10. DONE
• Complete three marketing proposals. Deadline 1/6. One done and two to go.
• Write all my known meetings and vacation days into my work calendar. DONE
• Put together my 2019 vision board. DONE 
• Pack for NYC. We are taking a short trip into the city. Deadline 1/3. DONE. Trip was fun.
• Start reading books for January virtual book tours. The first one is coming to NYC with me for the drive down and back. Started Tandem Demise by Duffy Brown.
• Start my Read Through the Bible in a Year with a Chronological Bible Reading Plan. Seven days done. 

So what does this week's list look like? 

• Daily Bible reading.
• Exercise - though day or days are up in the air because most mornings I have something going on. Right now slated for Wednesday.
• Finish two marketing proposals. Deadline of 1/9.
• Finish time blocking this week's calendar. I have to complete Wednesday and the weekend days. 
• Stick to my 5-5-5-5 plan for reaching out to more people: 5 calls, 5 texts, 5 emails and 5 handwritten notes every day. (I failed on Monday, but I sold a house this weekend so I won't beat myself up too much.)
• Update my CRM. I need to create some regular distribution lists. I have one of 100 people. I would like to expand that for marketing campaigns.
• Finish cleaning the office. Probably won't happen, but most of it is done. The closet is the only thing left.

What is on your to-do list this week? What are you striving to accomplish? 

Mailbox Monday - Jan 7

Mailbox Monday is a meme started by Marcia of To Be Continued. Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It now has a permanent home at the Mailbox Monday blog.

I swear it is impossible to be back to Monday again, but here we are. We had a great weekend in New York City. The girls love to go before Christmas, but we couldn't fit it in this year. Though it rained Saturday, the weather was warmer than usual, which made walking around more pleasant.

John's Pizzeria in Times Square

NYC Library

Grand Central Station

We ate our meals in some new places, though John's is always on our list, and visited a few spots we have never been before. 

As far as my mailbox at home, thanks to a gift card I received for Christmas, this little beauty that had been on my wish list for a long time showed up.

I also ordered a couple of Kindle books thanks to promotional credits I received over the holidays.

Then I picked up this Kindle freebie as well.

That's it for my mailbox this week. What did you find in your mailbox? Is there anything you're especially looking forward to? 

Enjoy your week. Happy reading!

2019 Personal and Professional Goals

Alright, let's get down to brass tacks. Here's a bit of help in case you don't know what I mean by that. It's time to set those 2019 personal and professional goals. Looking for my writing goals? You can find those here.

PERSONAL GOALS

GOAL 1: Read the Bible this year

A group of my friends and I are reading the Bible together in chronological order. Hope you'll consider joining us at https://www.facebook.com/groups/ReadBibleChronologicalOrder/ Right now, I am reading before bed, which is working out great. 

GOAL 2: Exercise on Tuesday and Friday mornings

I've come to the conclusion that I need to start small. Two days a week is better than no days a week. If I manage to meet this goal, then I can increase to three days a week. This might require me getting up earlier than I like, so bedtime might need to be adjusted.

GOAL 3: Learn to say "no"

This will be the hardest goal this year. I stink at it. Anytime someone asks for a volunteer, my hand goes up. I swear it might take me attending meetings with hands tied behind my back and my mouth taped shut. 

REAL ESTATE GOALS

GOAL 1: Time block my calendar

I also stink at this. I am a paper calendar person. This means to be effective and accurate, I need to write it down in my paper calendar, and then, transfer all the data to Outlook so it transfers automatically to my phone. Think this might need to be added to my calendar as a Sunday evening chore. I pulled out my business plan and it has a great daily calendar, weekly calendar, and activity tracking sheet. 

GOAL 2: Double my volume

Without meeting Goal 1, Goal 2 will be impossible. I know it. I've known it for a long time. Here's what I need to do: time block the calendar so that I can contact the people I know regularly; set up a system where I mail important information to people at least once a quarter (prefer once a month); spend one day a month creating listing and buyer kits so they are handy when I need them. Just these few steps will make a huge difference. 

GOAL 3: Read at least one business/sales related book each quarter

I have several here that I want to get through: The Seven Deadly Sins of Sales and Outrageous Authenticity by Leigh Brown, Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller, and Reach Your Greatness featuring James Malinchak and other leading entrepreneurs and professionals. Creating Magic by Lee Cockerell is on my list to read this year too.

Have you set your goals for 2019? Anything you want to share? Get ready tomorrow for Task it Tuesday. It's helping me stay on task better. It could help you too. 

2018 Goals Review

I'm a bit behind with this. I did it in my mind, but it never made it to this blog. Whoops!

Before I set my goals for the new year, I review my progress from the year that has passed. I'm not someone who beats herself up about missing the mark, but I do use those moments to gauge how I can do better.

So here's what 2018 looked like for personal and real estate goals. You can check out the review of my writing goals here.

PERSONAL GOALS

GOAL 1: Daily Bible verse reading and prayer

I did much better in 2018 than I had in previous years. I've found if I read right when I get up or right before bed, I am much more successful. Having the YouVersion Bible App on my phone is a big help.

GOAL 2: Schedule days off in my calendar

This goal still needs a fair amount of work. I did pre-schedule days off. I just didn't honor a lot of them.

GOAL 3: Exercise three days a week

Never happened. I think I worked out four times in 2018. This must be a priority this year.

GOAL 4: Pamper myself once a quarter

Maybe not once a quarter, but I've made great progress. I spent more on clothes, got my nails done a few times, and made a point to go out to eat with friends more often.

REAL ESTATE GOALS

GOAL 1: Time block my calendar and add to Outlook 

This is such a hard thing for me. It's kind of like asking a panster to write book outlines. I hate it!!! That said, I am committing to it for 2019 to make the most of this year.

GOAL 2: Review Class Options and Sign Up

Goal met. Not usually an issue for me. I end up with more credits than I need because I'm a big supporter of the RAPV and because continuing to learn is important to me.

GOAL 3: List at least 5 more properties than I did in 2017

Well, I didn't list five more--guess I didn't realize how many I listed in 2017--but I did list two more. If I count the four properties I assisted on, then I can claim to have surpassed my goal. My number of sales stayed consistent and my volume went up, so it was a good year.

GOAL 4: Read at least one business-related book a quarter

I read two last year and started a third one before the year ended, so this was at least close.

How did your year go? Is there anything you're especially proud of?

Beginning of the Year To-Do List Update

Here is my second update for this week:

• Set my goals for 2019: writing, real estate, and personal. Deadline 1/2. First things, first. DONE - look for another post about goals this week.
• Finalize my 2019 Business Plan. Deadline 1/11. DONE 
• Finalize my President's Award application and submit it to my office for review. Deadline 1/10. DONE
• Complete three marketing proposals. Deadline 1/6.
• Write all my known meetings and vacation days into my work calendar. Meetings are in, blogging dates are in, and some time off is in. 
• Put together my 2019 vision board. DONE - check it out on Facebook
• Pack for NYC. We are taking a short trip into the city. Deadline 1/3.
• Start reading books for January virtual book tours. The first one is coming to NYC with me for the drive down and back. 
• Start my Read Through the Bible in a Year with a Chronological Bible Reading Plan. You can join us here. Two days strong. LOL! 

How are you doing with your weekly to-do list? What is the most important thing you wish to accomplish this week?

Beginning of the Year To-do List Update

I am doing my best to stay on top of my to-do lists and stay sane. I've already made some progress with this week's Task it Tuesday list. Here is where I am at:

• Set my goals for 2019: writing, real estate, and personal. Deadline 1/2. First things, first. DONE - look for another post about goals this week.
• Finalize my 2019 Business Plan. Deadline 1/11.
• Finalize my President's Award application and submit it to my office for review. Deadline 1/10. Just need to submit it to the office.
• Complete three marketing proposals. Deadline 1/6.
• Write all my known meetings and vacation days into my work calendar. Meetings are in, blogging dates are in, and some time off is in. 
• Put together my 2019 vision board. DONE - check it out on Facebook
• Pack for NYC. We are taking a short trip into the city. Deadline 1/3.
• Start reading books for January virtual book tours. The first one is coming to NYC with me for the drive down and back. 
• Start my Read Through the Bible in a Year with a Chronological Bible Reading Plan. You can join us here. Read my first day and should make it through the rest of the week. Added all the Scripture verses through the end of June into my Christian planner, so I have one place to check what I need to read each day. 

How are you doing with your weekly to-do list? What is the most important thing you wish to accomplish this week?

Task it Tuesday - Jan 1

Originally created by The Geeky Blogger, Task It Tuesday is a weekly meme to help you--and me--get things done. The challenge is to post a task or list of tasks you want to complete before next Tuesday. These tasks can help you with your blogging life, reading life, personal or professional life.

Welcome to 2019! I'm sitting here an hour and a half before the ball drops and running through my mind all I have to do this week. Here's the list as I see it now:

1. Set my goals for 2019: writing, real estate, and personal. Deadline 1/2. First things, first. 
2. Finalize my 2019 Business Plan. Deadline 1/11. 
3. Finalize my President's Award application and submit it to my office for review. Deadline 1/10.
4. Complete three marketing proposals. Deadline 1/6.
5. Write all my known meetings and vacation days into my work calendar. 
6. Put together my 2019 vision board.
7. Pack for NYC. We are taking a short trip into the city. Deadline 1/3.
8. Start reading books for January virtual book tours.
9. Start my Read Through the Bible in a Year with a Chronological Bible Reading Plan. You can join us here. 

I'm sure there are more, but this is a good start and nearly manageable. Depending upon weather in NYC, I might get a bit more done than expected. I'm not walking through Central Park in the rain. 

Here's wishing all of you a new year filled with blessings.