November Goals

Hey all. First off, I just updated my Food Philosophy page. It's clearer, more detailed, better organized and gives a better picture of why I eat vegan. Also it's a lot of words. I'm a talker. I feel like I had all these poorly articulated ideas partially on the page before and it's hopefully better. 

So I meant to write a November Goals post on the 1st, because that's the "Calendar Day" to start things like this, and I really like milestones like that. But, eh, it didn't happen. It may seem obvious to you, but I literally have to remind myself that today is as good a day as any to start something. I'm a pretty big sucker for New Year's, new months, even new weeks, so I'm breaking out a little bit trying to set some goals on a Thursday. On the third of the month. Get crazy.

I'm a pretty big fan of The Shu Box and Sarah made the wise observation in setting her November goal that one change at a time works better. 

I love my enormous lists of areas I'd like to work on: my spiritual life, flexibility, sleep, studying, eating, exercise, reading, relationships with friends, relationships with family, my romantical relationship, managing my anxiety so this doesn't happen as often, etc. However, I'd like to try the strategy of just one goal this month.

But if there's only one, I want it to be significant. Something really worth sticking to and turning into a habit. 

Goal: Spend 10 minutes each day reading a verse/praying/listening/sitting quietly.

God and I haven't been hanging out much lately, and I don't think that's helping me be a calm, trusting or kind person.

I plan to set a timer each day to make sure it's actually 10 minutes. Most likely it'll be in the evening on work days because OB mornings start way early and I don't really see myself staying awake if I try to do it in the morning. 

And to make it a real goal, let's fit it into some SMART criteria:

Specific: Read 1 verse, pray, listen, be mindful for 10 minutes each day.

Measurable: I'll move slowly through a Bible section, I'm thinking Psalms. It'll be hard to measure my "mindfulness" level, but I expect practice will help. I'll continue through the month and hope that it becomes something I want to make more permanent.

Attainable: 10 minutes a day is very reasonable. I don't even know what I do to make time vanish the way it does but I wouldn't be surprised if this makes me feel like I have more time, because I'll be spending it better.

Relevant: There's nothing more relevant than God.

Time-bound: As above, 10 minutes a day for the month.

Happy November!