Day 1: Becoming a Highly Effective and Goal Oriented Individual.
Since I graduated college in May 2010, life has become less routine and to be honest, incredibly less organized. I naively believed I could get some incredibly life changing job in advertising or PR with this piece of paper (BA from UCSD in Communication) I put myself in 30k of debt for, but I was sorely mistaken. I found myself in a retail job with a schedule that was anything but routine. I quickly became the girl with the messy room and messy car to boot because I spent my life trying trying to catch up with debt, rent and sleep. However, this retail job was the catalyst in the chain of events that would ultimately lead me to where I am today (obviously). What lululemon athletica, and most specifically, Matt Hoglund taught me was to set BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals). Although I knew my BHAG was to become an incredibly successful country music superstar, I hadn’t begun to actively think, nor write down what steps I needed to take to get there.
So I started with.. a demo. I needed to make a demo. How? I had no idea. But I’ll tell you this- as soon as I wrote this down with a deadline, things started happening. Doors started opening. One thing lead to someone who pointed me in a different direction and the next thing I know I’m in Nashville recording 3 songs for this demo. It wasn’t exactly easy, but it wasn’t hard either. I created a set of big goals with small measurable steps to get there. Although it doesn’t always work out as planned, I became a much more proactive and effective individual just by creating this goal chart.
Soon, my life became hectic once again with financial pressures and I lost track of that goal chart I had made. I knew I needed a change. I set out the intention of being paid to sing (after all, that’s my life long dream) and sure enough, I found myself in a serving job closer to my house where I am able to get on stage and sing with an awesome live band in between serving tables. I’m by no means financially stable, but the universe has an interesting way of meeting me half way, it seems. That’s a whole other topic, though. I digress. However, I have much more time and energy to work on this music career of mine which has opened doors to new opportunities.. I have a group project and my solo project, a producer, and a manager. All of whom are well connected, extremely knowledgable, and not to mention ridiculously cool.
So, in the last few months, I have found myself in a terrible financial rut, not to mention the personal rut that goes with it. I’m burdened by student loans, credit card debt, fitness hurdles, family stress, and roadblocks on my career path. I struggled with the victim I wanted to be and the proactive, go getting problem solver I normally am. In the last few weeks, I decided to shake things up a bit. I need change. I’ve got BIG hairy goals and I intend to see them through, which isn’t going to happen if I sit in my room feeling sorry for myself.
We all have a choice. Who am I going to be today? Who are YOU going to be today? Despite the hardships, the stress, the hurdles we all face, we have a choice as to how we handle it, how we face each challenge, and how we perceive it, even.
I choose to succeed, to learn from every set back, failure, and success, and to inspire anyone looking for a little inspiration to set BIG HAIRY goals with the belief that those goals are attainable.
So today begins Day 1 of holding myself accountable to being a more productive and effective individual on a daily basis. From keeping my room clean to figuring out how to get my car serviced and tires changed to getting a few recordings I need done, to getting my butt in seriously kick butt rockin shape, I am going to take the steps necessary to stay organized, motivated, and on the road to my BIG HAIRY AUDACIOUS GOAL. Move over, Taylor.
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Michelle Call / Blog
Making "it" Happen.
Day 1: Becoming a Highly Effective and Goal Oriented Individual.
Since I graduated college in May 2010, life has become less routine and to be honest, incredibly less organized. I naively believed I could get some incredibly life changing job in advertising or PR with this piece of paper (BA from UCSD in Communication) I put myself in 30k of debt for, but I was sorely mistaken. I found myself in a retail job with a schedule that was anything but routine. I quickly became the girl with the messy room and messy car to boot because I spent my life trying trying to catch up with debt, rent and sleep. However, this retail job was the catalyst in the chain of events that would ultimately lead me to where I am today (obviously). What lululemon athletica, and most specifically, Matt Hoglund taught me was to set BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals). Although I knew my BHAG was to become an incredibly successful country music superstar, I hadn’t begun to actively think, nor write down what steps I needed to take to get there.
So I started with.. a demo. I needed to make a demo. How? I had no idea. But I’ll tell you this- as soon as I wrote this down with a deadline, things started happening. Doors started opening. One thing lead to someone who pointed me in a different direction and the next thing I know I’m in Nashville recording 3 songs for this demo. It wasn’t exactly easy, but it wasn’t hard either. I created a set of big goals with small measurable steps to get there. Although it doesn’t always work out as planned, I became a much more proactive and effective individual just by creating this goal chart.
Soon, my life became hectic once again with financial pressures and I lost track of that goal chart I had made. I knew I needed a change. I set out the intention of being paid to sing (after all, that’s my life long dream) and sure enough, I found myself in a serving job closer to my house where I am able to get on stage and sing with an awesome live band in between serving tables. I’m by no means financially stable, but the universe has an interesting way of meeting me half way, it seems. That’s a whole other topic, though. I digress. However, I have much more time and energy to work on this music career of mine which has opened doors to new opportunities.. I have a group project and my solo project, a producer, and a manager. All of whom are well connected, extremely knowledgable, and not to mention ridiculously cool.
So, in the last few months, I have found myself in a terrible financial rut, not to mention the personal rut that goes with it. I’m burdened by student loans, credit card debt, fitness hurdles, family stress, and roadblocks on my career path. I struggled with the victim I wanted to be and the proactive, go getting problem solver I normally am. In the last few weeks, I decided to shake things up a bit. I need change. I’ve got BIG hairy goals and I intend to see them through, which isn’t going to happen if I sit in my room feeling sorry for myself.
We all have a choice. Who am I going to be today? Who are YOU going to be today? Despite the hardships, the stress, the hurdles we all face, we have a choice as to how we handle it, how we face each challenge, and how we perceive it, even.
I choose to succeed, to learn from every set back, failure, and success, and to inspire anyone looking for a little inspiration to set BIG HAIRY goals with the belief that those goals are attainable.
So today begins Day 1 of holding myself accountable to being a more productive and effective individual on a daily basis. From keeping my room clean to figuring out how to get my car serviced and tires changed to getting a few recordings I need done, to getting my butt in seriously kick butt rockin shape, I am going to take the steps necessary to stay organized, motivated, and on the road to my BIG HAIRY AUDACIOUS GOAL. Move over, Taylor.
Reply