Hey everyone
I've been having problems getting onto the 3FC site.
That combined with my weird work hours hasn't made for much posting the last few days. Anyway, I don't have much time to post right now, but thought I would share the piece I wrote for the paper this month. I'll be back tomorrow to make real replies and get caught up on reading!
It feels much longer than 12 months ago when I decided to sit down and make a contract with myself. New Year’s resolutions are nice, but I needed something concrete, something I could refer back to when temptations began to overwhelm me. I wanted a plan with steps to follow to ensure my success, clear goals to meet, and defined rewards for meeting those goals. I had read about making a personal contract, and after a little searching on the internet, I found a template for one that fit my needs.
The amazing thing about setting goals for yourself is that it reminds you of how much control you do have over a few things in your life. Writing out those goals in contract form had an interesting effect on me. The contract not only helped me to realize that control, but the whole concept became binding. For me, that document was more than a piece of paper with a signature; it was more than a promise or a fond hope. In fact, it ultimately felt like a pathway to my salvation.
My personal goal had to do with weight loss. I had recently begun a new diet regimen and met with some success, but was afraid that my desire, or the diet itself, would begin to falter as time wore on. I took all this into consideration when planning out my contract. I looked to the successes of others and to past triumphs of my own, and used those to set the foundation.
With the basic knowledge that there wasn’t an obvious medical problem holding me back, I armed myself with language that incorporated exercise, a balanced diet of adequate proportion, plenty of water, and writing a daily food journal.
Specific rewards were set up for reaching milestones, and another promise to celebrate any success, no matter how small. Half of a pound lost would be reason for joy, not disappointment. Each step of the journey would be noted, and each would become a building block for the next step.
It is hard to describe the shift in thinking, but it was dramatic. Maybe the difficulty lies in the fact that it was so dramatic and yet so simple. I really hadn’t done anything different than before, but this time it meant something. The contract felt real.
Although weight loss is high on the priority list for New Year’s resolutions every year, other goals, such as reducing your debt load or completing a specific task, can also be incorporated into a contract. The whole idea is to make it fit your needs.
The gist of my contract was to accept any positive change, but the understood hope was that it would translate out to an approximate weight loss of one pound a week for the entire year. I am proud to say that I did meet that goal, right down to the pound.
We have been told that goal setting is the means to reaching our dreams. I would like to encourage all of you to pick a dream of your own and to utilize whatever tools you have available in the realization of that dream.
Andria
Good Morning Fellow Sanctuary Dwellers!
I am also a southern girl myself. I'm from Alabama, but I don't like the heat so now I live in Wisconsin, and well, it is a little bit colder than I like.
I don't have a queen of the house right now but I plan on getting one as soon as we are settled in the new house. I do have two divas (my cats) and two very sweet rats. 
Talk to you later...
