Do It Myself Blog – Glenda Watson Hyatt

Where the heck does the time go? 2008 is already half over! Canada Day is already here, marking the beginning of the second six months of the year.

I figure it is good time to review my goals for the year and see how I am doing.

My Contribution to the Blogosphere

My goal was to comment on ten blogs per week – five comments on blogs I had previously commented on to further strengthen those relationships, and five comments on new-to-me blogs to expand my network by forming new relationships.

Well, results are less than stellar. Some weeks Friday comes around and I realize I haven’t made any comments! By now, I should be approximately halfway to 520 (or 260) comments; yet, my total is only 89.

However, I am not including the comments I make on Disaboom blogs since they don’t link back to this blog. Besides, reading Yaro Starok’s Blog Profits Blueprint, I’ve learned that blog comments create traffic streams, not traffic rivers. Although, my intention was to contribute to the blogosphere, not to generate traffic – that’s a side benefit of leaving comments.

Am I beating myself up for not meeting my goal? Nope! Those weeks that I can do better, I will try. The world will not end if I don’t reach 520 comments by December 31st.

My Word for the Year

I chose FOCUS as my word for 2008. To me, FOCUS entails minimizing my technologically-induced ADHD, decluttering and simplifying my surroundings, multi-tasking only when appropriate – tasks requiring my full attention will receive it. The results have been mixed.

When my husband had an unexpected two-week hospital stay in March, nothing else mattered. I was focused on what was happening with him and getting him well and home again, as I should be.

My desk remains fairly clutter free. The rest of my office still needs decluttering – like I have had time!

After blogging at Disaboom for five months, I finally found my blogging groove there and have a direction for that blog. That made writing June’s posts much easier because I wasn’t scrounging for post topics. June is the first month I maxed out the number of paying posts I can write for that blog. Can I continue that through July and beyond?

Reading ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income by Darren Rowse and Chris Garrett reconfirmed, yet again, that blogging is my future and that I can make a decent income from it – if I focus and work off my bootie! I publicly declared my goal of attending SOBCon 09 – the business school for bloggers – to learn how to become a better and more effective blogger. My ultimate goal is to become the first ever Six-Figure Left Thumb ProBlogger!

Launching Accessibility 100 has provided my blog with some direction and focus.

But, I still suck at curbing my technologically-induced ADHD! I’m easily distracted by email, Twitter or whatever rather than focusing on the task at hand. There is definitely room for improvement. I’ll keep working to maser my high distractibility over the next six months.

My Bucket List

Wow, search engines love my bucket list! Currently, this is the top-ranking entry page on my blog. Go figure!

• Spend more time with my kitty purring in my ear. – I do whenever she decides to cuddle.
• Listen more to my husband’s beating heart. – We’ve talk quite a bit and I try to really listen to him. I also like listening to his heart beat; it’s such a comforting and reassuring sound.
• Write love letters to him. – None yet. Expressing what he means to me is difficult to put into words.
• Find a way to get to the north shore to watch the eagles soar. – I still need that magic carpet ride!
• Meet more of my invisible friends. – Yes! I’ve met Suzie Cheel in Australia and Todd Jordan from Missouri!
• Be in the ‘real’ world more. – Hmm, how should I measure “more”?
• Connect with more of my invisible friends in a real way, if I can’t meet them in person yet. – I’m working on it.
• Become more physically active. – In this heat? Are you kidding!
• Finish selling the first print run of my autobiography. – Autographed copies are still available!
• Continue searching for a cp-friendly bra. – Still searching! (I don’t believe I included this here.)
• See Anne Murray in concert, finally! (I’ve wanted to see her for years and she is finally coming to town on May 5th!) – She was fabulous!
• Get organized for when I do kick the bucket. – It’s a good thing I haven’t kicked the bucket yet!
• Make a positive difference or impact on people’s lives. – I hope I am. You, my readers, are in a better position to say whether I’m succeeding here or not.
• Reconnect with my penpal Paivi and my Brownie friend Karen. – Yes, I’ve managed to find email addresses for both and have contacted them!

That is my six-month progress report. Not bad, eh?

How are you doing with your 2008 goals? Are you still on track or do you need to refocus?