MICRO goals

fashion friday: in which i contradict myself
is it wrong to post picks from the latest crop of anthro sale finds after eschewing excessive commercialism yesterday?

i hope not.

while i do aim to minimize, declutter, and simplify, i want to look good doing it. one thing i am starting to grasp is that a lovingly and slowly-built collection of nice pieces is less wasteful than buying supercheap threads that will disintegrate in the washing machine after one wear.

plus, it never hurts to look . . . right?

5 wintry anthro sale finds
blustery jacquard wrap is a slightly daring cross between sweater + poncho — but i think it works! $80
i coveted the harvested honey coat for months and now it’s on sale — but sold out in my size (and still $200).
okay, i know this firewarmed shift looks like a sad sack on the rack. but picture it belted + booted, by an open fire! from “feh” to “festive” for $60.
the mary shirtdress ($60) looks flattering, and is begging to be winterized with tights and a cardigan.
finally, this strong-of-will tank definitely says holiday party to me! picture it with skinny black pants (or a skirt) + sparkly shoes. $40

be here NOW: december MICRO goals
i am already thinking about what i would like to work on in the new year! and don’t you worry, there will be plenty-a-post coming up on those topics. but really, we’ve got a little ways to go before the clock strikes 2011. i don’t want to miss december in a frenzy over what is to come!

and therefore, i would like to make a few goals for this month. and i’m aiming for MICRO, a mnemonic that i came across while perusing organizing your way, one of my favorite organization websites. MICRO stands for:

measurable ➜ create goals that can be easily tracked, such as ‘spend two hours weekly on work-related reading’ rather than ‘study more.’

inspirational ➜ make sure there is a reason behind your goals, and that you know what it is! if you can’t come up with a reason why you want to train for that marathon, maybe a different activity would be a better choice.

concrete ➜ to me, this one goes hand in hand with measurable. don’t just aim to ‘waste less $’; instead, be specific: ‘i will limit my shopping for clothing items to two pieces per month at max total $XYZ’.

realistic ➜ perhaps the hardest letter for me to adhere to! looking back, a few of my 2010 resolutions strike me as a bit unrealistic.

obtainable ➜ maybe a goal is realistic in the long-term, but not obtainable NOW. i would put my resolution last year to dive into the spanish language into this category. as someone who tends to overschedule, i need to consider both the magnitude of the goal AND the context it will be fit into!

so here goes: a few goals for december

☑ finish the tab pages on this site. all i have left to complete are smile and cook! this is quite doable.

☑ implement a weekly work plan. each sunday, i create a plan for the week’s upcoming workouts, cooking projects, etc. i would like to add a work plan which includes presentations to work on, reading to do, etc. i also want to be very careful to make each plan itself realistic and obtainable!

☑ weed through my closet. i would like to give away/donate any items that i do not regularly wear anymore.

☑ choose one volunteer project to partake in. i would like to find something that combines my interests in children and health to get involved in. this month, my concrete and obtainable goal is to spend time researching and coming up with a list of possible options.

all right, that’s it! off to work on my grant (a mental workout instead of a physical one this AM!). do you have any goals for the month?

—————————————————————-

12.2.10

workout: 4 miles easy (9:13/mi, 0.5% incline) on the TM while reading runner’s world plus weights (and i’m SORE today!)

– 2 x 11 pushups
– 2 x 12 plie squats (with pulses)
– 2 x 12 lat pull-downs (55 lbs)
– 2 x 12 seated rows (40 lbs)
– 2 x 12 walking double lunges (8 lbs each)
– 2 x 10 tricep dips on bench (body weight)

cooking: nope, it was a leftovers night.

grant report: it’s going to be a grant-filled weekend . . . and then it is going to be DONE!