MONDAY MOTIVATION - Slip and Slide

Good morning, everyone!

I've had a busy week. Still laying out the studio re-do. I spent most of last week painting two ladder shelf units and the new foot stool crate. I like to sit on the sofa in my office, away from the loving animal assistants, but I need my feet up. On the up-side, the sofa is cleared, cleaned and put back into place so I can use it. 

Another big project was rearranging my Little Golden Book collection (all 272) to make room for my Doctor Dan Medical Kit. I'm still researching that item but as you'll see from one of the pictures below, the toy doesn't appear to have ever been played with. all the components are still within the rubber bands holding them in place. The only deterioration is in the plastic wrapping.

However, once I had the LGB shelf in order and put the sofa back in place, I wound up laying components for another project I need finished by the end of the week on the sofa.  LOL It's a process, I tell you.

The meeting with the retired Combat Training Officer was an amazing experience. Listening to him talk was an emotional experience. He answered all of my probability questions and I finally feel as if I have everything I need to finish An Ozarks Homecoming.  Now to just make the time. 

My problem is I can not work in chaos - I think I've mentioned this a time or two. With the studio remodel in progress and needing my 'office' off the dining room table by this Wednesday, my real focus has been on the studio project and things I can move out of my way once the one creative project is finished. I'm seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I need to locate a couple of organization items tomorrow and the rest should be here Wednesday. I'm so ready for this to be done and be able to write with a clear head.

I will only get three work days this week. Bob will be home on Wednesday after being gone a full month! The weekend belongs to him. 

*  Make the house presentable

*  Get blog posts for the next two weeks set up

*  Continue to get studio/ office in order. 

Keep in mind, while the studio and office are in the same room I do have specific areas for each. Right now I'm focusing on the studio part. With that, the 'office' work station will be on the large island in the middle of the room. Phase 2 - the 'office' is going to take a bit longer - probably during my holiday break. 

I have been using my HB90 planner. Right now my kanban plan is in the planner. I don't have space to put the physical board up in the office just yet.  Part of my board tickets are for the blog posts for the month of August as well as continuing progress on the studio. 

We have the final two Something Blue authors this week then we'll be moving on to new books and authors. Holiday stories should be coming out beginning this month. I'm ready for holiday reads! Who's with me?

All my best

~Angela

 

 

MONDAY MOTIVATION - Back On Track!!

Good morning, everyone!

Wow, after last week I'm ready for a fresh start.

I didn't get any writing done last week because I crunched to get things out of the way in preparation for a FREE on-line writer's conference I heard about from Sarra Cannon earlier in the week.

WEBSITE

I encourage everyone to check out the website and watch the videos. Just go to SCHEDULE 2022 then click on the YouTube icon next to the sessions that interest you.

This was an intense three days of great information on both Writing and Publishing. My brain is kind of on over-load as I took copious notes and screenshots from most of the sessions. I still have a few to go back and watch thanks to a migraine that hit on Friday. I made connections with some really great people and found some new sprinting groups I hope to take part in. 

One thing that was a REAL eye-opener is how much time this whole writing business thing is going to take. I mean, I KNEW but I just didn't absorb the enormity of the process. I know the over-all journey is an evolution and I'll get there. That's what Sarra Cannon's HB90 course is all about - avoiding the overwhelm while still moving the needle forward.   

The coordinators realized they probably could have timed this better, since this is Camp Nano month so they've scheduled the 2023 YouTube conference for June 23-25, 2023.  Mark your calendar for an amazing conference from the comfort of your own home!

Speaking of Sarra Cannon, She did an awesome presentation on Saturday talking about Planning To Thrive. She is a planner girl and pretty much everything she does involves a planner. She also just opened registration for the Publish & Thrive course that starts in a few weeks. Here's her video with all the details:

PUBLISH & THRIVE INFORMATION VIDEO

Note that she does offer payment options as well as a bundle savings when you purchase Publish and Thrive PLUS the HB90

I do have a busy week but one I'm SUPER excited about.

I have an interview later today with a retired combat training officer from Ft. Polk Army training grounds. This interview should clinch the research I need to finish An Ozarks Homecoming. I don't recall if I mentioned but a few months back I finally realized what my hero's internal struggle is - all stemming from an incident when he was stationed at Ft. Polk. However, I'm determined to not misrepresent the military in any way so I needed to find someone who could tell me if the incident that led to his struggle is plausible. Jason should be able to answer those questions. 

For this week:

1 - Continue work on studio

2 - Kanban board

3 - Write 500 words per day minimum - beginning today!

The 500 word per day challenge came as a result of meeting  Joe from SixCats Press during the AuthorTube Conference. I'll link his video down below. I'm a few days behind to be in sync with him but as Amber McCue would say - I'm right on time!

That pretty much brings you up to speed. I'll be back tomorrow and Wednesday with the next two Something Blue anthology authors - Robyn Neeley and Annie Rains.

All my best

~ Angela

 

MONDAY MOTIVATION - Time for Family

 Good morning, everyone!

I warned you last week would be a busy week. I got back from the BTP Conference on Sunday, finished flying through the house touch-up before Bob's Mom and her husband arrived on Monday afternoon. They left Wednesday after breakfast. With their departure, I just wanted to breathe. I've promised Bob most of this week belongs to him since he'll be leaving a week from tomorrow. 

He isn't always home for 4th of July. I'm not sure what we'll do since he'll be home but I would be happy sitting on the sofa watching Macy's and Capitol 4th. 

I hope to get the Something Blue authors back tomorrow and Wednesday but at this moment I can't promise.

For one, Tabby finished her antibiotics this morning. With the Feline Leukemia rearing it's ugly head more and more every day, she wants to snuggle with me more and more. I'm a strong believer in that the Earth Mother brings me these animals to make their journey to the Rainbow Bridge a one full of love. 

That said, here is my week:

* Blog what I'm able to fit in

* Finish HB90 course and set up Kanban Board

* Mixed Media art class (Tuesday night)

* Find work table so I can participate in said class

That's it for me this week. What's your adventure?

All my best

~Angela 

MONDAY MOTIVATION - Busy Week!

 Good morning, everyone!

Have you been checking out the Something Blue authors? These gals are super talented. 

Speaking of talented folks, I have a fabulous surprise for you this week. How many of you have seen A HEAVENLY CHRISTMAS on the Hallmark Channel during Christmas?

That movie is one of my favorite and 'must-see' holiday movies. The movie has also brought me a dear friend, Gregg McBride.  Gregg wrote the story. You can find out more about him on his YOUTUBE Channel

Gregg just released his first children's book - Biron the Bee Who Couldn't, released last Friday. In his honor, I'm stepping away from the Something Blue authors to shine the spotlight on Gregg all week long! You won't want to miss all Gregg has to share.

This week and next are super-busy for me. Bob comes home Wednesday, I leave for the Between The Pages writing conference on Friday. I'll get home on Sunday night and my in-laws arrive the following Tuesday. The house is my main focus this week. They've not visited in six years.

Beyond that, I really want to spend quality time with Bob. We've not just enjoyed each other's company in his past two trips home. With that in mind, I will do my best to schedule blog posts ahead between cleaning jags and conference time. 

We had the live kick-off for the Q3 of HB90 boot camp. If you recall, I had cracked my ribs two days before the Q2 kick off so the whole thing kind of tanked. I'm healthy and ready to make Q3 a productive quarter. By the weather forecast, the temps are going to be unbearably hot for the remaining of the summer so a good time to stay in and stay focused.

I'm also hoping to participate in Camp Nano and get serious about writing/ finishing Book 2. I am hoping to meet with the combat training officer on Wednesday to get a couple of questions answered. Bob will leave on the 5th so I will have the rest of the month to pound out words! I should have a word count bar up on my blog soon, courtesy of Sarra Cannon's husband, George. 

My Top 3 for this week:

1 - Put studio back together.

      I'm after Progress, not Perfection.  My in-laws haven't seen the studio since they helped lay the floor six years ago. All we had was walls and windows at the time.

2 - Straighten up the rest of the house. Presentable not Perfect

3 - Pack and be ready to enjoy three days of being with writer folks and being away from the house!

I'll be back tomorrow to shine the spotlight on Gregg McBride. I hope you'll join me!

All my best

~AngelaBTP

MONDAY MOTIVATION - Weekly Plan & HB90

 

Good afternoon, everyone!

Coming in late simply because I got sidetracked. 

As I told you in THIS POST, I took Sarra Cannon's HB90 course. I still have three days left of the course. I have spent a good portion of the past three days getting my social media calendar put together. I didn't feel I could effectively work the HB90 Q2 kanban board if I didn't have my social media road map.  That planner is finally in order. What does that mean?

Having the SM planner completed means I now know what blog posts and/ or videos and the coordinating projects figured out and know what I need to do.

Bob is home so I won't be working the long hours I normally wood. I'll be doing my posts a week ahead. Bob will leave out a week from tomorrow then look out! 

First off, the only thing I did the past two weeks was to take it really easy so the ribs could heal. I learned a hard lesson as well. The older I get, the slower I am to heal. I thought I would be back to near full-power in a week. Not so much. I fell on the 2oth of March. I'm just now able to do almost everything - as long as I pay attention to how I move/ bend.

Here's my plan for this week:

* Finish the HB90 course and Kanban board for Q2

* Finish research to answer military exercise question

* Spend quality time with Bob

The hard work will begin on April 13th when I dive into An Ozarks Homecoming yet again for Camp Nano.

What's your plan of attack for the week?

All my best!

~Angela

MONDAY MOTIVATION - My Weekly Plan

 

Good morning, everyone!

I've decided to go back to the Goal Setting posts for Monday with a bit of positivity woven in. Please bear with me on this transition.

Here we are - the first quarter of the year almost gone and I'm just now setting goals for the year. 

One of the first things I did was sign up for Sarra Cannon's HB90 Bootcamp course. I've followed the idea through her videos for the past three or four years but decided now was the time to actually take the course. I've followed Sarra for years. Life has thrown her lots of curves in the past year yet she is still smiling, still positive and still motivating others.

Her HB90 course has you setting and managing three main goals to through in a 90 day period.  We've just started this round but she offers the course four times a year. Follow her (under HeartBreathings) on YouTube, FB and IG to get a heads up when the next round will begin... usually the last two weeks of a quarter so the next round should begin about mid-June. She uses the Kanban board method. I'll drop one of her videos at the bottom of this post.  I love working with the Kanban board and have used her system very loosely the past couple of years. With having lost nearly the first three months of this year, I decided 'loosely' wasn't going to work if I want at least two more books published by the end of the year.  You will also find her HB90 planner in her ETSY SHOP.

We had our kick off call yesterday. For the next seven days, we'll be given assignments to help set us up for success. There's a lot of prep work. We don't even get to the KanBan board until Day 6 or 7. 

I'm already off to a slow start, having slept through the first twenty-five minutes while on pain meds. I am not a skier and usally pretty steady on my feet but...

We had about 2.5" of snow last Thursday. Most of it was gone by Saturday morning but I took the least steep part of the yard to go out to my truck. I needed a grocery trip. I made it to the truck once to start the vehicle warming up, came back into the house for my purse/ phone - then promptly fell on my backside going back to the truck. Mind you, there wasn't 1/4" of snow left anywhere I was walking and the temperature was above freezing. I was fine til I went to roll over so I could get up... and heard the #4 rib pop on the right side. So all the things I planned to do, like have my HB90 workbook/ planner ready to go for the conference call on Sunday didn't get done. I'm comfortable sitting/ reclining but getting up to move is like doing crunches, compacting the rib into the one below. So not comfortable or condusive to accomplishing anything. Of course, Bob is on the boat so I'm managing on my own.

My Top 3 for this week are simple

1 - Remember to take it easy so this rib can heal

2 - Work on An Ozarks Homecoming EVERYDAY

3 - Remember to take it easy

I'm not going to push myself. I need this rib to heal before I have to start working in the yard/ garden. That said, I think getting older is going to make healing a slower progress than I would like. It is what it is.

Here's one of Sarra's many videos using her HB90 method and her Kanban board:

What's on your agenda for this week? Are you writing? Share in the comments below what is going to be your biggest hurdle this week in achieving your goals!

All my best

~Angela