My family (my Mom and my sisters) is notorious for going on “family diets.” We all start out with great intentions and lofty goals with rigid full-steam-ahead-rules of 3 pounds a week, and we’ll meet at moms house every Wednesday at 10 am and the-first-one-to-break-it-pays-everyone-200-dollar-penalties and so on and so on…then somebody breaks it and then everyone quits. I am every bit as guilty at breaking the “the family diet” as anyone in my family is, so I don’t blame any one in particular for this concept failing on an annual basis. This year, I told my family I’m not doing “the family diet” with them. Because it never works. By their reaction to my “defiance,” you would think I had committed a mortal sin. So when I caught word of “the family diet” fading off into the sunset, with no positive results (again), I was not at all surprised.

This week on the Mompreneur boards, Gwen from RC Toys started a simple thread, asking what we are going to do this week to promote and market our products - our PR goals. It was a great thread - so I wrote out my goals for the week - basicly stuff that I am already working on, (which are normally a million different things at once) but it was great to s-p-e-l-l -i-t -o-u-t. It made this cluttered ongoing mess of projects in my brain a lot more do-able. Well, actually they are always being done, but this way I was able to look back at the end of the week and realize I am constantly moving forward, and not just spinning my wheels (kind of like the dry erase board, in a mini version.) There were no “rules”, no “penalties” - so simple and uncomplicated - just do what we can and be accountable - to ourselves first and foremost, and to each other, just for fun. And it worked.

It was so cool to see what we all accomplished or didn’t accomplish throughout the week - and it was all okay, we supported each other - and it was fun. I hope we do it again.

I’m new to blogging with Mompreneurs, so I feel honored to start out today, having just received some great news, which I’ll share in a minute. But it has all happened because of setting goals on a dry erase board. 10 or so years ago, I purchased a huge dry-erase board. It has been the center focus of my office, in the last 3 places I have lived.

I started it one January, and wrote all of my short term (1 year) and long term (2-5 year) goals and things that I need/hope to accomplish on the board . As the year progressed, I’d refer to the board regularly, not always consciously, but it was always there. I now do this every year.At the beginning of the new year, my brother and I visit the board, check off all the things we accomplished, re-assess what wasn’t, and set new goals for the year. Then we high five all that was accomplished and wipe the board clean and start anew. (This year, cuz we’ve been so dang busy, we weren’t able to get to this til yesterday, but I’m glad it was somewhere in the first quarter!)

WOW!! We accomplished over 95% of the things we set out to do last year!!! What an amazing feeling!!! As we wiped clean each goal met, I felt amazingly proud! I had to pull my hubby and son in the room just to show them how empty the board was!!! 2007 was a great year (and a quarter!) And 2008, even with the Writer’s strike, we are kickin’ butt in the goals department.

By the way, “finding other Moms online that are in business” was one of my goals - and it lead me here to Mompreneurs Online - one of the happiest goals I’ve met this year! The other on the top of my list - win a Grammy for 2009 - I am now an official voting member for the Academy, as of yesterday!! “Stardust” will be submitted for Grammy consideration at the latter half of the year. I also just received a letter a couple of hours ago that we have been selected to sing the National Anthem at the 2008 College World Series - OPENING DAY!!  Two years ago, this reality was just simply a hopeful dream  written on a dry erase board!

What are your wildest dreams?  Write them down.  Visualize them every day. Take the daily steps you need make them happen, and before you know it those dreams are unfolding just for you.

Music Mom Cher