Talk About Tuesday - New Things Afoot

Hi everyone! It's once again time for Talk About Tuesday! (Weird how Tuesday comes once a week, but seems to come so quickly.) Be sure to follow the link and check out everyone else's posts.

Happy April Fool's Day! I have to say that I was not really raised with fooling others on this day and when things happened to me I always ended up feeling very dumb, so now I shan't be doing any April fooling. But kudos to all who have fooled in good fun (especially Darren - read about it here).

As organized as I usually am, you would think I would have this meal planning thing down. Right? Wrong! I tend to be very sporadic. I'll adopt a practice and keep it up for a couple of weeks, and then suddenly it's gone. So this weekend, in the midst of cleaning house, I suggested to my husband that he cook two meals a week and I would cook three, and then the weekends could be left overs, frozen foods, or (gasp!) take out. We decided to give this a shot. This means I really only have to plan three meals a week. Not that I have planned them. Well, he makes dinner on Mondays and Thursdays so I have to do Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. I'm planning on making "Pollo Bowls" tomorrow night. I see Friday as being a crock pot day. Wednesday I'm not so sure about. We'll have to see.

One of the new things going on is my desk! We have a small, one-bedroom apartment, so there is not a lot of room. But I felt that I needed a desk, and my wonderful husband humored me. He found me this adorable desk, went to the store with me to buy it, and then put it together for me. He's so handy! :-) Anyway, so far it's working out well. I have my computer and a couple of essential files on it along with a couple knickknacks. The best part is that it gives me a place to set my things when I come in my door. This way I know exactly where they are and I won't have to move them later. This is key! For a place that only has two adults and two small cats, it's amazing how things move.

Last, but certainly not least, you may have noticed that I've given my blog a face lift. I went over my accessories and got rid of some, added others, and gave my "About Me" section a much needed overhaul. I plan to add some video or audio soon, just to make things a little bit different. As always, I welcome everyone's comments and suggestions.

Thanks for reading my blog and have a beautiful day!

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March - A Month In Review

It's been a busy month over here. Here's a quick, handy summary of what's gone on.

My First Post in A While, Trying to Get Back Into The Swing of Things - Catching Up

9 Tip to Be a Great Admin

My First Rant Day (Maybe I should do this again? What do you think?) - Rant Day

10 Weird Things About Me

Our Trip to the San Diego Zoo - San Diego Zoo

Step 1 of 7 Things You Must Do to Achieve Your Goals

A Reposting of a Rather Sentimental Poem That Has a Great Moral - Friendships

Steps 2 and 3 of 7 Things You Must Do to Achieve Your Goals

Health and Fitness (It includes a nifty slideshow!)

My About Me Page (a much-needed overhaul)

Steps 4 and 5 of 7 Things You Must Do to Achieve Your Goals

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How to Achieve Your Goals - Steps 4 and 5

I've been posting a series based on Marcia Francois' wonderful seminar "7 Things You Must do to Achieve Your Goals." If you haven't subscribed to my blog yet, then please go check out my first two posts - Step 1 and Steps 2 and 3.

Step one was to know your mission. Step two was to set big, juicy goals that stretch you a bit. And step three was to write down your goals, and follow that up with sharing it with someone to more fully commit yourself. These next two goals really go hand-in-hand. Let's see how.

Step 4 - Evaluate your lifestyle. If you are so busy that you cannot find time for things that are important to you, you have to learn to say yes to yourself. Look at your goals that you've written down, and see if you actually have time to accomplish the steps that lead to accomplishing your goals. If you don't you realize that some things need to change. Look at your daily and weekly schedule and find areas you can cut back on so that you will have time to work towards your goals. Often the things we do, we do only to please others and not to support our goals.

Step 5 - Realize that you always have a choice. You always have a choice as to how you respond to things that happen to you. If you want to be a person who achieves their goals, you must make wise decisions about how you spend your time. You cannot spend time doing things that are at odds with your goals. When you say yes to one thing, you are saying no to other things. Learn to say yes to the correct things. Start saying no to things that are not in line with your goals.

So we've already determined our mission, set our goals, and written them down. Now we need to take some time to evaluate our lifestyle to make time for reaching our goals and acknowledge that we always make a choice. It's up to us to make the right choices to work towards our goals.

Stay tuned for the end of this series with steps 6 and 7.

If you would like to receive a free copy of Marcia Francois' series on 7 Things You Must Do to Achieve Your Goals, please click here. To learn more about Marcia, her qualifications, and how she can help you, please visit her website by clicking here.

Can't wait for Rachel's next post? Of course not! Click here to find out how you can subscribe!

My About Me Page

Well a couple of great bloggers have posted this week about writing an About Me page. Darren made a great post over here and Jamie Harrop made a post over here over here. This, of course, has forced me to take a look at my own About Me page. You know what I found? Of course you do, you've looked at it. It's pretty lame. So I read and reread those posts and I read a few different people's About Me pages. And mine has now been updated. Take a look!

Health & Fitness

Earlier today I was approached by Aruj. He puts together slideshows on his blog, and then lets other bloggers use them and embed them on their sites. How fun!

Anyway, this year one of my major goals is to lose some weight, so I was definitely interested in this slideshow. Take a look!


Make Your Own Slideshow

Thanks Aruj!

How to Acheive Your Goals - Steps 2 and 3 of 7

This Tuesday, for Talk About Tuesday, I made a post about the wonderful series Marcia Francois has called 7 Things You Must Do to Achieve Your Goals. I have since continued with the series and am delighted to share steps 2 and 3 with you.

Remember that step 1 was to know your mission. Any goal you set must relate to your mission in life.

So for step 2 - Step specific, juicy goals. Why? Specific goals give you a sense of direction. Marcia quotes the Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland when she says, "If you don't know where you're going, how will you know when you get there?" Setting a juicy goal means that it is big and bold. It's going to stretch you a little bit. For instance, take a goal you think you want to accomplish within six months. Now, give yourself three months to do it. You will be more focused, you will work that much harder, and in the end you will accomplish your goal.

Step 3 - Write them down. This seems simple, doesn't it? But I think a lot of people (myself included) forget to do this. You know in your head that you want to accomplish something, but it is much more real when you write it down. You make more of a commitment to yourself to accomplish it. Take this a step further and share these goals with a friend, an accountability group, or your coach (if you have one). A great example is this post by Leo at ZenHabits. He let all of his readers know of his goal and now he has that entire support group to help him accomplish it.

So now we have a great basis to get started. Know your mission, set specific, juicy goals with your mission in mind, and finally write down your goals and share them with a support group. Be sure to check back next week for steps 4 through 7!

If you would like to receive a free copy of Marcia Francois' series on 7 Things You Must Do to Achieve Your Goals, please click here. To learn more about Marcia, her qualifications, and how she can help you, please visit her website by clicking here.

Friendships

I don't normally repost or forward these types of things. This is a poem that has circulated and I got from a coworker and on down the line. It really illustrates how we often forget that time goes by quickly. In life, oftentimes things like friends get pushed by the wayside, even if we don't think they're less important than anything else.

Around the corner I have a friend,
In this great city that has no end,
Yet the days go by and weeks rush on,
And before I know it, a year is gone.
And I never see my old friend's face,
For life is a swift and terrible race.
He knows I like him just as well,
As in the days when I rang his bell.
And he rang mine, but we were younger then,
And now we are busy, tired men.
Tired of playing a foolish game,
Tired of trying to make a name.
'Tomorrow' I say, 'I will call on Jim
'Just to show I am thinking of him.'
But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,
And distance between us grows and grows.
Around the corner, yet miles away.
'Here's a telegram sir, Jim died today.'
And that's what we get and deserve in the end,
Around the corner, a vanished friend.
Remember to always say what you mean.
Because when you decide it's the right time, it might be too late.

Talk About Tuesday - Goals

I'm so excited to participate in Talk About Tuesday again. I've been so busy lately that I've been letting my blogging slip. But now I have something really great to blog about, so here I am! This is actually going to be the first in a series of posts about how to achieve goals. Stay tuned to learn all of the steps!!

In the last several months, I have been focusing on the future and on improving myself and figuring out what I want to do. I was going through various blogs recommended by my Google Reader and I came across Marcia Francois over at http://www.takechargesolutions.org. Marcia is a time management and organizing coach who helps people organize their time, space, business and life. Among her repertoire is a session she has regarding 7 Things You Must Do To Achieve Your Goals. I was lucky enough to sign up to receive the audio of those seven things, and you can too by visiting http://tinyurl.com/2etlkp. You will receive the seven things in seven separate clips, each about 3 to 4 minutes. They are well worth your time.

The first thing she covers is that you must know your mission. She points out that many people choose goals that other people suggest, that other people are doing, or things that they think they should be doing. I completely agree. I'm often swayed by the opinions of those I'm around, not just in what they think I should do, but also how they think I should do it. Yet, if you don't have a clear concept of your mission in life, you cannot set appropriate goals.

Since listening to this audio, I've been thinking about my mission. I truly believe that everyone should have a mission statement for their life. At times it may change, but it's important to know where you want your life to go. I'm currently mulling over different thoughts relating to my marriage and my career. How fun!!

Be sure to check back for number 2 in the series of 7 things you must do to achieve your goals.

Special thanks to Marcia for letting me blog about this series. I can't wait to go through them all!

San Diego Zoo

Chris is taking an anthropology class this semester and he was assigned a zoology project that involved, you guessed it, going to the zoo. The point was to observe primates and then he as a paper to write on it. So we decided that today was the perfect opportunity. We had a blast!!! I'm going to post some of the pictures we took. I have to point out that we're not really big on taking pictures of each other, but the animals are so adorable that you have to take pictures of them!





That is exactly what all of the gorillas thought of us!




These are Wolf's Guenons. They are so tiny! The one on the left is the mama, and the other two are smaller, but still nearly full-size.


Of course we went through the entire zoo, but since our focus was on the primates, that's mostly what we took pictures of. We had a blast! I can't believe we've lived here for three years and this is the first time we've been. Oh, well, better late than never . . . right?

To learn more about the San Diego Zoo or to find out how you can help to keep it going, visit http://sandiegozoo.org/.

10 Weird Things About Me

How exciting, I got my first tag for a meme ever! I'm weird, so I'm thrilled. Thanks Marcia! Be sure to check out http://tinyurl.com/ywnf8w">10 Weird Things about Marcia.

Ok, so here's 10 weird things about me:

1. I hate working, but I love my job. Although I cannot wait to quit working forever, my job is great.
2. I don't like the food on my plate to touch each other.
3. My husband has a smaller ring size than me.
4. Until recently I thought that Garth Brooks was the same as the guy in Brooks & Dunn.
5. I love surprises, but I always demand presents early (Christmas, birthdays, etc.).
6. I got married at 18 in the County Recorder's Office, and I couldn't be happier.
7. One of my favorite shows is ">Batman, The Animated Series.
8. I didn't go shopping for Easter dinner ingredients until Easter, but I made and gave my husband his Easter basket four days ago.
9. I never learned my multiplication tables, but got all As in math.
10. I think it's weird to brush your teeth anywhere outside of the bathroom.

So there you go, my weirdness in a nutshell. Believe me, this list could go on. :-)

Rant Day

Today has officially become Rant Day. Maybe I'll make every Friday Rant Day. It will get rid of my negative energy before the weekend. Now, usually I'm in a great mood on Friday. Heck, it's Friday!! I'm actually in an especially good mood today because tomorrow is my 21st birthday. But I started thinking about one thing and that just led to other things and so here are. Let the ranting begin:

• People who cut class. My husband and I are taking a psych class on Thursday nights. Every week there are two tests (one for each chapter of reading she assigns). She gives one test before the break and one after. Several people have been taking the first test and then leaving in the middle!! It's so annoying to me. They are missing over an hour of lecture, plus the other test. These same people are the type that text message and whisper while she's lecturing. Our prof is actually very interesting and lectures on material related to the book and the tests. This is a huge pet peeve of mine.
• Those who try to put love in a box. It's not an intangible, fanciful thing. However, it is also not something that can be specifically defined in a certain way. There are so many different types of love and so many factors that influence how we love. I feel that it is simply not possible to specifically categorize love. It is frustrating that many people feel they have to. Because they do that, they judge other people who may not love the same way, and often they can have trouble if someone they are in a relationship with has a different love style than them. Instead of communicating, they simply decide that the other person doesn't love them and they end the relationship. So ridiculous.
  
• People who don't like Umbrella. I know that at first it may sound annoying to some (including me). But if you listen to it, it's a great song about love and commitment. How can you not enjoy that? Seriously!!

Ok. I feel better now. Do me a solid and watch the Umbrella video. Listen to the words. Really!!

9 Tips to Be a Great Admin

Who am I to write such a post? Nobody - but I happen to think I'm awesome. And I think that most of the time (ha!) my boss(es) would agree. I started off in my current position as a data entry person, then administrative assistant, and currently I'm the office administrator. Yes, it's a very small company. That doesn't mean I have any less work. My boss is just as crazy as yours (maybe crazier). This post could go on forever, but I've narrowed it down to the top 9 things that have helped me and may hopefully help someone else.

1. Learn how your boss thinks; adjust accordingly. This is not brown-nosing. You are going to spend 40 to 50 hours per week doing work for this person. You want this process to go smoothly. Unfortunately, different people think differently. I know that your boss is insane and thinks like a crazy person. That's okay. You don't have to think like a crazy person, just understand how Boss thinks. When you do, you will be able to understand what Boss wants when they ask for things and exactly how Boss wants it done.

2. Invest in an awesome stapler. No, really. This sounds dumb, I know, but bear with me. You know how Boss wanted you to magically put those papers together five minutes before the meeting? Remember that you almost did it and then your stapler jammed? Or that day Boss grabbed your stapler really quick, it jammed, and then you received their wrath? Yep. Get a great stapler.

3. Take lunch out of the office. You need that 30 minutes away from your lists, desk, computer, e-mail, phone, Boss. Trust me, your psyche will thank you.

4. Understand that everything is your fault. Of course it is. It's your job to make your Boss look good. It's your job to do . . . basically everything. When something isn't going right, it will be your fault. Deal with it. In two years you can move up and then it will be somebody else's fault. Just remember that it is NEVER your Boss' fault.

5. When you mess up, 'fess up. Your Boss would much rather hear it from you than discover it on their own and then realize you did it. This is hard for all of us, especially if we're new at a particular position. I have a hard time with this too. I have a system for when I mess up. When I realize the mistake, I first try to fix it. Then I apologize and 'fess up. This lets my Boss know that at least I was proactive about fixing it. Boss is not as mad this way.

6. Realize that it is your job to be awesome. You will not be thanked. It's important to take pride in your work and go the extra mile. The reward comes from your own good feelings. Boss pays you to be awesome. Being awesome is nothing special. If you weren't awesome, you wouldn't work there. This means you will rarely get a Thank You or a Good Job. It's okay, nobody else did either.

7. Proofread everything. This is how a typing project should go: Type, proofread, spellcheck, proofread. It takes an extra 3 minutes, but will save you from looking dumb for misspelling something. The same goes for typing an e-mail, writing a note, etc.

8. Never say I Don't Know or I Forgot. Those phrases should not even be in your vocabulary. We both know you forgot or truly don't know. We know you are human. Boss thinks you are super human. Say that you'll follow up on it, you'll find out what's going on.

9. Appreciate yourself. You know that you're doing a great job. Reward yourself once in a while. Let your Boss know you'd like to take an extra half hour for lunch for Administrative Professionals Day. It really is okay.

Catching Up

I can't believe that it's been almost a whole month since my last post! I came down with that flu that the whole country has and it hangs on. I got sick, got better, got sicker. I even went to the doctor, just to be told there was nothing she could do. Lovely. I've let so many things go while I've been sick.

But today I feel pretty good. Not quite well, but pretty darned good. Chris went to take a nap, so I cranked up my iPod and decided to take care of business. I scrubbed my kitchen and then sat down to catch up on my blogs. I had over 100 blog entries piled up in my Google Reader. So I read most, scanned a few, starred a few. And I'm planning on blogging on the things I've learned.

So, basically, I've been down for the count, but now I'm back in action. Look for me to start blogging regularly again this week!!