That’s right folks, you heard it here first: I EARNED MYSELF A PRODUCTIVITY STAR YESTERDAY! O.O
Okay, for those who aren’t in the know. I’m a very easily amused person. I always have been. It makes it easy to distract me from a bad mood, and difficult for me to stay focused. That said, I’ve learned how to harness that easy giddiness to motivate my personal writing goals. I have a day planner that I use to keep track of word counts, submission deadlines, and other writing-related projects. A few weeks ago, I went out and splurged (for $4!) on a bunch of stickers. That’s right: stickers. Smilie-face stickers and star stickers. Here’s how each one plays out:
More than two stories “out” at any time, on the day of the 3+ submission = Green :-)
2x daily word-count requirement (1000+ words)= Yellow :-)
4x daily word-count requirement (2000+ words)= Orange :-)
24 hour submission turn-around = Red :-)
Finishing a new book = Blue :-)
Completing a Scavenger Hunt Special Bonus Writing Challenge = Purple :-)
And then…there are stars. Shiny, wild-colored stars. There are only two possible ways to earn these much-coveted stars:
1. Sell a Story = Star
2. Commit 3 hours (or 3,000 words) on one day = Star.
Now, for those of you who have any inkling of how busy I am, you know that even three hours is an insane amount of time for me to devote to one thing, much less to my own writing. It usually takes me about 30 minutes to write 500 words, if I’m cruising, so usually, 3 hours is about what I’d need for 3k words. It’s hard. It’s usually an every-so-often weekend-bound goal.
BUT NOT YESTERDAY!
+3057 words on the novel.
STAR.
BOOYAH.
…and she says she doesn’t color code her clothes.
I don’t! But maybe I should consider giving myself stickers for not dressing like a hobo… My heavens! With shiny little stickers, I COULD RULE THE WORLD!
Hehe, brilliant idea! I used to reward myself with reading time, but that totally spiralled out of control (aaah, just óne more page!).
Cheers,
Sengaia a.k.a Marloes
(p.s: did you get my message on theDis4dot-mail?)
SENGAIA! Oh my word, it’s been too long! I haven’t had a chance to read your email there yet (to be honest, I haven’t checked it too regularly, as I’m sure you can tell >.<), but it's so good to hear from you! I'll write back a proper message tonight when I get off work. ^_^ And I can only imagine what would happen if I rewarded myself with reading time! ^_^ I suspect my experience would be much the same as yours.