posted on January 16, 2018 by Mary J. Williams

LET’S TALK ABOUT… RESOLUTIONS

Happy New Year. A new beginning. As the calendar turns from December to January millions of us all over the world feel compelled to make ourselves promises we will never keep. Oh, I know. Some of you have constitutions of steel. You make up your mind to do something, you go the distance. I say, good for you (with only a touch of respectful sarcasm).

For the rest of us mere mortals, we can only wish we could drop the pounds we swore we’d lose as quickly as our sworn on a bible resolutions.

I admit I fell into the trap a time or two. This year I will… Fill in the blanks. Before the second week of January, I’d rationalize why I hadn’t stuck to my diet. Or cleaned out my closet. Or started writing my new book.

By the end of the month, I was still in rationalization mode—with a great big helping of guilt added on to make me feel twice as bad. I’d failed. Again.

Goals are great. Important. We need something to strive for. We need a purpose in life—large, small, or somewhere in between. However, when what we want seems unattainable, more often than not, we quit.

My solution? I started to give myself smaller goals. Instead of saying I have to lose twenty-five pounds this year, I say, this month I’ll lose five pounds. Or three. Then a few more the next month. And so on. By the end of the year if I only lose five pounds? Great. A check on the positive side.

As a writer, I try not to make a goal for how many books I want to produce in a year. My purpose is to finish one, then the next. Then the next. So, no matter how many I write, I always feel a sense of accomplishment. Instead of beating myself up because I only finished three instead of the four I resolved to write, I can pat myself on the back. Yay! I finished three books.

My point is simple. For this year, and every year to come, give yourself a break. And the best way to make your goals doable? Find something you love and strive to be better. Whether you write books or sew quilts. Or cook. Or read. Or knit.

I guess I do have a resolution for January, February, and all the months and years to come. For myself—and for all of you. Be kind to yourself. Forgive yourself when you make a mistake. And try to understand, we aren’t perfect. We never will be. But, we can try to be better. A little at a time.

Every day. Every month. Every New Year.

 

Mary J. Williams

Mary J. Williams

It Has Always Been My Dream To Write A Book

And I always knew it would be a romance novel. When I was a teenager I assumed my book would have a historical setting, those were the kinds of stories I liked best, I even grew my hair long so I could be like the heroines in my favorite stories. But now I see myself and my books in the present dealing with the joys and sorrows of our modern world. Harper Falls is a place my imagination dreamed up, but it is based in reality. I grew up in Washington State and went to school in a small town on the Columbia River. Harper Falls is that town but an idealized version. I hope you enjoy reading about the town and the characters.

And as much as I enjoyed telling their stories, these books are not the end of my dream but the beginning.

http://www.maryjwilliams.net

2 thoughts on “LET’S TALK ABOUT… RESOLUTIONS”

  1. Gwen Sargeant says:

    I loved your article Mary

    1. Mary J. Williams says:

      Thank you, Gwen💞

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