Are You Celebrating the Small Wins Along the Way to Your Big Goals?

Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

Writing a novel is a BIG goal. Revising a novel is a BIG goal.

It’s easy to feel like the goal posts for those big goals keep getting moved—especially if your ultimate goal is a traditional publishing deal.

Much about the publishing world is out of your control.

So let’s focus on what is within your control and celebrating where you can.

How much time do you spend on your writing?

It doesn’t have to be a lot. Even 15 minutes is better than 0 minutes.

Sometimes life interrupts our well-laid plans. Remember to give yourself permission to step away from writing when other concerns need to take precedence. You can always pick writing up again.

Have you made it a habit yet?

A habit doesn’t have to be daily to be effective.

If your schedule allows you two times per week when you can write, that’s great! Take advantage of them. Put them on your calendar.

You’re not in a competition with anyone over how much time you spend writing or how many words you get on the page.

Show up when and where you can and get some writing done. While inspiration might be nice, you don’t need it. Just show up.

Have you set writing goals that are totally your own?

You’ve probably heard of SMART goals—specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound. It’s a term that started in business and has made its way into higher education, where I first came across it.

For writers, I think SMART should actually be SMARTY.

The “Y” stands for “you-focused.” You, the writer, need to be responsible for each piece of your goal.

That’s why goals like wanting to sign with a literary agent or find a publisher can set you up for major disappointment since they’re not completely under your control.

A SMARTY goal forces you to focus on what YOU can do—like decide how many query letters to send in a week.

Finally, are you celebrating your wins along the way?

For example, with the MG mystery I’m working on, I’ve so far celebrated hitting 10,000 words and then 15,000 words. Those are easy markers of progress.

Other markers might be more qualitative than quantitative like finally figuring out your main character’s arc or learning your antagonist’s back story.

It’s too easy to see what’s not working and what we’ve not yet accomplished. Acknowledge the work you’re doing. Celebrate your milestones of progress.

Be kind to yourself. You can do this.

And if you’d like to know how a book coach like me can help, take a look around my site and then schedule a free intro session with me.