KEEPING SCORE

I'm busy.

It's spooky to be this busy.  Think of any point in your life where you had a "Hell Week" - cramming for too many final exams in too few days, that last week before your wedding, being understaffed on the job, etc.  Now imagine that running off into the unforseeable future. 

That's busy. 

And it has to be done.  'Cause if you don't do it (or can't pay someone else to do it), it won't get done.  Ah well.  It's good that I love what I'm doing.  And that lack-of-sleep-thing won't stop me, not with all the caffeine I'm packing. 

I got so busy that one of those little daily planner thingees just wouldn't cut it.  I buy 'em every so often, let them collect dust, and then throw 'em out during a spring cleaning (2 years later, on average).  So, I ultimatedly went into Excel and set up a spreadsheet.

Each row of the spreadsheet was a single, solitary day.  I filled up a bunch of columns with tasks I find necessary: whether it be working on Collection #2, paying writing-related bills, forcing myself to network with the outside world, submitting short stories to magazines, etc.  I throw in non-writing-related stuff too (b/c life intervenes in so many different ways), like chores or exercise. 

Um, if you don't know how to work Excel, put this blog entry under the nose of someone who does.  He/she can probably set this up in five minutes or less.  Buy him/her a lunch or something.

Each simple thing gets a score of 1 point.  I edit something: 1 point.  Send something to my editor to look over: 1 point.  Post a blog: 1 point.  MOST IMPORTANTLY: NEVER LET ANYTHING HAVE A "0" SCORE BY THE END OF THE WEEK.  Do something for each task, each week, and stuff won't slip past you. 

My goal's 25 points per week.  And I've yet to miss my quota.  I try to add stuff in the mornings, during lunch breaks, evenings, weekends . . . I need more hours in the day.  Last week was my busiest week to date.  I actually hit 36 points.

Yep.  I need a vacation.  The irony is that I'd probably spend (at least) a third of the time hunched over my computer, trying to knock down points as efficiently as I can.