Achieve

#reverb10 for December 28, 2010 Prompt: Achieve. What’s the thing you most want to achieve next year? How do you imagine you’ll feel when you get it? Free? Happy? Complete? Blissful? Write that feeling down. Then, brainstorm 10 things you can do, or 10 new thoughts you can think, in order to experience that feeling today.

This one is easy. It is something I have worked toward every day since starting this blog, taking a wine class, and a food writing class, attending countless networking events, and yes, quitting my safe publishing job. This year, I would like to achieve a new job or jobs that are in line with my interests for the first time in my life. Sure, I have had some great jobs that have given me great professional experience, seven years of Marketing-Communications with lots of Media, Public Relations, Event Planning, and Social Media thrown in for, what I feel is a very well rounded background.

And while in each position I have given my all enthusiastically and never held back, I always wondered what it would be like to have a job that incorporates the skills and experience I have with things I love in my non-work life. In June 2009, I finally discovered that I want to work in food, wine, hospitality, or travel, and my blog was a baby step into breaking into those industries. While it has helped me to make great contacts and to immerse myself in food, wine, and travel, I haven’t quite found a way to use my experience in one of these fields in a way that pays the bills.

I love to work hard; anyone who knows me can attest to the fact that I usually overdo it, but when I achieve what I want, I feel as though, most days, that work will feel lighter and will offer contentment.

How will I achieve this goal and the resulting feeling? Get started today!

Continue to add daily content to my blog, sometimes twice daily

Increase my outreach and involvement in the blog community by reading and commenting more

Attend as many networking events as possible

Sign up for professional development opportunities

Write more guest posts for other websites and become more consistent on sites like Examiner

Search for lesser known job websites that might be targeted toward fields I am interested in

Seek out informational meetings or interviews with some of the contacts I have made

Redesign my blog to further showcase my Marketing experience and blog success

Focus more on organizing and a schedule as I enter the New Year

Think positive thoughts and relax; being a control freak and a worrywart will get me nowhere

What is it you want to achieve in 2011?