Confession time. The only bloggers I despise more than mommy-bloggers are those GenY bloggers who think that they have all of the answers. "I did 'this' and now I have this fantastic job. You should follow my advice." "I quit my job after two weeks and now my life is awesome, you should too." "I up and moved across the continent and things have worked out perfectly after doing so, feel free to do the same.""Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts, and recycling it for more than it's worth."
Listen. I'm all for people being positive and sharing the wonderful parts of their lives, but I'm not up for listening to impractical advice. In the aforementioned scenarios and countless others in the blogosphere, there's so much about the writer that isn't disclosed. As such, it makes it hard for me as a reader to determine what is and what isn't applicable to my life. This unfortunate scenario plays out repeatedly across a lot of GenY blogs.
Fortunately, there are a few millenial bloggers out there who do give good, general, and most importantly, practical advice. Today I'm going to borrow an idea from my fellow blogging partner Akirah (who happened to borrow this idea from Rebecca over at Modite) and post my goals for the month of November. Historically, I've had a list of long-term SMART goals on hand or on mind at all times, but since watching the economy completely bottom out after finishing my MBA (taking any pipe dreams I had along with it), I've been kinda wandering around sorta aimlessly for the better part of a year. I'm hoping that this taking on of smaller goals one month at a time will help refocus me on what/wherever it is I'm trying to get to...
November 2009 Goals
(In no particular order of importance)
1) Start budging my money again.
- I've kinda fallen off the wagon with this lately, mostly because I haven't had any money. Now that I do, I need to start keeping track of where it all goes.
2) Make my job work for me.
- Long story short, I'm not happy with my current job. I don't like it and if I continue on my current track, I don't see me staying long. But instead of throwing in the towel and moving on, I want to try and make this work. I'm sure that completing this goal will involve at least one uncomfortable meeting or phone call with my company's owners discussing how I feel like I'm being used incorrectly, but hey -- a closed mouth doesn't get fed.
3) Complete at least one book that I've shelved.
- I've been in the middle of reading "The Goal," "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies," and "The Historian" and have been for the last two months. For one reason or another, I've lost interest in each of these books. So in an effort to rid me of that nagging feeling, I'm going to work my way through them, little by little.
4) Blog at least three times a week.
- Every day is too much and once a week is two few. Blogging thrice a week gives me enough of a "release" to let new thoughts into my mind.
5) Exercise at least twice a week.
- I'd much rather do this three times a week, but my work and social schedule don't really allow for excessive amounts of time to get sweaty. Oh well, I've gotta start somewhere.
6) Work in time for my friends.
- Life has been full lately. New job, new lady, changing work schedules, football season, etc. As such I haven't had time for a lot of people that I wish I had an extra moment for. Here's to me making a conscious effort to "reconnect" with some of the friends that I haven't seen in a while.
Looks like the theme of the month for November is "finding a balance." Here's to hoping that in a month's time I will have managed to find life's "happy equilibrium."
5 comments:
i understand what you mean by those people that state "do what i did and you will have a wonderful life"...its sickening and retarded to think that what they are saying is true...you might as well believe those infomercials about working from home and making $60,000 a year
...balance in life is key
I really like this list.
First off sorry your job sucks, it sucks knowing you get up and go to work only to hate it! Luckily I haven't had this yet, but I am sure it will come.
I definitely think you need to make time for your friends, that's very important especially since you don't like your job.
I love to read!! IF you ever get time you should read the book "the hunger games" i simply could not put it down! I am not one of those that enjoyed Pride and Prejudice, I have read it twice and neither time did I like it haha. I read it for a Lit class, and thought that was why I didn't like it so I read it again and still couldn't dig it.
This was a good post!
"Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts, and recycling it for more than it's worth."
Ah, one of my favorite quotes, the other is from the same piece;
"Don't read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly."
Goals are important, I need to get better at laying them out myself.
Yay goals! And it looks like you've made some good ones. Actually, I'd say most of your goals are hopes of mine as well. Good luck! I can't wait to read about your progress at the end of the month.
Good goals!
And I don't like those know-it-all bloggers either.
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