Quarterly Goals: Third Quarter 2016

It's the beginning of the third quarter. I'm astonished at how fast this year is going, but I guess it's time to see how I did in accomplishing my goals for the second quarter. Then I'll list the goals for the third quarter this year.

All in all, I did okay. I'm a bit disappointed in myself regarding the two goals I missed, but six out of eight isn't bad, right?

---

Second Quarter Goals

1. Finish TIP Rough Draft - FAILED
I made progress, but I didn't finish.

2. Lose an Inch from Waist/Strengthen Abdominals - FAILED
I made progress, but not enough to meet the goal.

3. Design and Make 2016 Soap Line - DONE
I finished producing all ten of this year's new soaps around the middle of June. They can all be found through Contented Comfort.

4. Finish Building and Plant Garden - DONE
See that picture up above the cut? That's the biggest part of our garden. The tomatoes and peppers are beginning to ripen. We have enough cucumbers coming in that I may start selling the rest at the local farmer's market in a week or two, and we're working on our second round of radishes.

5. Research Audio Alternatives - DONE
I think I know which one I'm going to go with even.

6. Book Two Shows for Later in the Year - DONE
I've booked two so far for the end of 2016 and one for early 2017. True enough, they're all one's I've done before, but we did work a new show in Nashville back in May.

7. Do Two Book Reviews - DONE
I even managed three. Although, I still need to record the video version for the "A Twist in Time" review.

8. Finish Two Blankets - DONE
True enough I'd started these two before I made the goal, but I finally finished them in April and May respectively. That's no small feat considering it took two years in total to finish the angry bird's blanket!

Third Quarter Goals

1. Finish TIP Rough and Rewrites

My top priority going into the rest of the year is finishing The Icarus Project. I intended to finish the rough and already be working on the rewrites by now, but things went kind of sideways for us in May. This whole past month and a half has been a big juggling act, and the soaping side of my business took priority for a bit. It's time to get back to writing!

2. Book a Show or Two for Next Year

Most of the remaining year has been booked, or shows are full up for venders at this point. So I'm shifting my focus to 2017. I'm looking for a couple of events in Chattanooga, TN and maybe lower Alabama or Georgia.

3. Up Online Sales by 2%

Contented Comfort is just over five years old now. The rest of this year and on into next year will be "make it or break it" time for the store. Late summer tends to be the slow season, especially for heat sensitive items like soaps and solid perfumes, but the build up has to start sometime, right?

4. Lose an Inch/Increase Endurance

My work toward improving my health continues. Having our usual schedule go out the window a couple weeks ago put a damper on the progress I was making, so I'm hoping I'll have more luck as we go back to our usual routine.

5. Finish Three of the Six Paintings I Started

Several years back, we began redecorating our house. We painted all the rooms except the master bedroom suite and replaced a worn out couch and recliner with two futons. But that's about as far as we got. I did purchase six canvases and traced coloring pages onto them using a projector to make some custom artwork for the living room and girls' bedrooms. I even started painting a couple of them, but I've yet to finish any of them. I want to change that.

Here are three of the ones I've started. The two for the girls' rooms mostly just need details added at this point, but the abstracts for the living room still need a lot of work.

6. Finish Two Throw Pillows for the Living Room

This one goes along with the last one, and it plays into a goal I'm planning to make for the last quarter of the year. I'm learning how to use my sewing machine. Pillows are one of the easiest things you can make, and I want some nice throw pillows for the two futons I mentioned earlier. I plan to sew the actual pillows and then cover them with crocheted lace in a contrasting color.

7. Harvest the Summer Garden and Plant a Fall Garden

Our summer garden is doing much better this year, even with it being dry. We hope to have a good number of cucumbers, peppers, radishes, and tomatoes. The beans have been disappointing, but we think we got bad seed. (Fifty cent packets from the dollar store don't compare to the ones you can get at the feed and seed. Lesson learned!) We've ordered some broccoli, Brussel sprouts, and lettuce seeds for a cool weather garden, and we have high hopes.

8. Have the Girls to the Point Where They Can Cook a Whole Dinner, with Supervision

I've been giving the girls cooking lessons whenever possible all year. I'm hoping they will be able to cook an entire meal on their own, with adult supervision of course, by the end of September. It's just a step toward their independence.

---

Those are my goals for the months of July, August, and September. Do you have any?