Goals in a Book [that, you know, I actually use]

The other week, I had an epiphany of sorts.

These sorts of things happen rather frequently, but they never, you know, amount to much. Because, well, the excitement fades, and I'm an inherently lazy person.
However, this epiphany had the idea of changing that bit. Yes, because somehow, I'm going to not be a lazy person at some point in my life (read: quite possibly the silliest thing I've decided in a while, to be honest).

The beautiful part of this brilliant plan was that it was mostly simple things, easy steps, and all together they made a beautiful outlook on the days and weeks and months (and years, but let's not get too ahead of ourselves just yet).
Simple things like, you know, no dishes in the sink when I go to bed. Or sticking 100% to the grocery budget and not being sad about it - but instead just eating different things, depending on the sales (more on that later!). Or writing here more intentionally. Or working on my scrapbooking, printing more photos, and keeping up with all of that (instead of feeling guilty about it!).

I brainstormed it all in my art journal, and then realized I needed bullet points. Because if life was built on bullet points, I would be pleased as punch.
But where to make these amazing lists?
Oh, you know, some new journal that I've set up. Because, apparently, I like to make things for complicated for myself.

In some cases, though, that works out.
In this case, actually, it's working out great.

I'm recycling a made-by-me Midori insert I had started some collage in - but it was bad collage involving just sticking things down with no real thought involved (just pictures that I liked). So, I tore out all the pictures I pasted in ("tore" is a strong word - it all peeled up quite nicely, as I had haphazardly glued it all in) and just started writing in it.
I dedicated a page to each areea I wanted to work on: saving money, scrapbooking, cleaning, blogging, daily tasks to keep in mind, and self-care things.
And I've stuck to it somehow.

I've been adding more pages to it - expanding upon some of those concepts from above, going into more detail, and laying out some more concrete plans for myself. I've got a list of new things to make for dinner (okay, a collection of sticky notes, that have the meal name and the main ingredients I need for them). I've got a spending log on a page, and I am calculating the total expenditures for the week. I've got a plan for cooking and spending better (combined magic, by the way, which I will expand upon soon, if all goes well). And a savings plan.

It's messy.
Not everything is together where it ought to be. The order doesn't make the most sense.
But it happened, to use a popular phrase, organically. I made a page when I thought of something that needed more details added to it. I add sticky notes where I just need a quick added bit or something. I've got a ton of list-pad pages stuck into pages, because that was what I felt like writing on at the time.

It's a collection, so to speak, of the plan of how to make things better. And, oddly enough, it's been helpful.
I'm in it at least once a day. I'm writing my expenses in it, I'm using it to help make my grocery lists for new meals. I'm checking it to make sure that I'm doing what I need to for this blog. And I'm luckily aware enough that I'm able to keep up with my self-maintenance that while I don't need to have that page in front of my face all day, it's there and I see it often enough to be helpful, just by flipping through.

You could say that it's a kind of New Year's Resolution journal. And I would have to agree, though these weren't related to New Year's. But it's still a bunch of "yay, look, things can be better!" and "yay, look, you need to do these things!" - and, for me, it's working.
I'm ecstatic.

How do you keep track of your goals? Do you keep them separate from the rest of your writing and planning or try and integrate as much as you can?

~Havok

If you liked this post, check out these posts!

Simple Goals - A Start
You Need Your OWN Affirmation
Miss One Day, and the Whole World Crumbles