Give Yourself A Break

Life isn't perfect, and that's okay. Time for a reset.

Rachel D. Adams - Realizations (selfie)

If everything were perfect, life would be boring. How often have you heard this?

Sometimes I would prefer boring to what life has handed me and my friends. Definitely! However, that’s just not how things go.

So, what do you do when you realize things aren’t going to plan? Well, one of the authors I see as a mentor, Sarra Cannon, goes through what she calls - resets. When things don’t work out, she and her family work together to find a new method of doing things that keeps their goals on-point.

Resetting is beginning anew.

In the digital age, it’s considered restoring a device to its default state.

If you were writing something but had a block, unable to move on, a reset would mean taking the story back to a bare-bones outline. That would allow you to review everything and possibly get a new perspective. This has worked for me before.

When I was diagnosed with ocular melanoma, I had to come up with a reset for my goals when it came to my book releases. Your healthcare can definitely come out of nowhere to force you off your path.

I find myself facing a reset again. Q4 is already here and I imagined I’d be further along in my processes.

I would not change any decisions I’ve made. Friends and family come first. Finding joy in life comes before everything else. Considering my continuing diagnoses…I plan on enjoying life, friends, and family as much as possible, because you never know what tomorrow will bring.

Therefore, I’m reconsidering my timeline for my Q4 2024 goals.

It takes me a full week to revise and format a manuscript once it gets back to me from my editor. As you may recall, I decided to send Books One and Two of The Dragon Tasker Series to a trusted editor (Jenna O’Malley if you’re looking for an editor). It will take the rest of this week to finish Doppelgangers & Deceit. It will take me another week to go through Packs & Portals.

I still have a weekend of children coming to visit this month that I’m looking forward to. I have my CT scans and chemo injections this month as well. That usually take it out of me. I wanted to release Book Three by the end of this month.

Demons & Disaster would not be up to the standards I want it to be if I were to force myself to release it in October. Time for a reset, folks!

Resets are for mental health. Just typing up this article has me feeling less anxious. The weight is lifting from my shoulders. I’m no longer barreling toward burnout. That’s how I know this is the correct decision.

Doing a reset now allows me to still get everything done in 2024 that I wanted to have finished in 2024.

What date will I have Book Three, Demons & Disaster out? The Winter Solstice. Saturday, December 21, 2024. I celebrate the winter solstice similarly to how most people celebrate Christmas. I give gifts and spend time with family and friends.

So this year, my gift to myself and everyone else will be the new release. Setting it back also gives me time to possibly try a pre-order and plan giveaways. I won’t be rushed and I’ll have some time available for other projects as well.

The book release is not my only reset. I get depressed over summer. My skin burns quite easily. I’ve gotten sun poisoning before. Also, I despise humidity and heat. Some people talk about having seasonal affective disorder. I’ve never been diagnosed with this. However, I know I go through more depression during the summer than any other time of year.

I become a hermit who rarely goes out when it’s hot outside. But come fall and winter, I become active. My mind is coming around now, and I have so many projects I’d love to get to. I also plan on resetting my health journey including taking time outside and exercise that has been non-existant through summer.

I can get my planner out and for Q4 I will be adding meal prep and weekly exercise schedules to my writing plans. I’m going to be sure I make time for enjoyment with my family and friends as well. Time for myself will also be included. All of these things make me happy and keep me healthy.

Resetting is the best thing to do in this situation. Most importantly, I don’t feel like a failure. I’m not giving up on my goals. I’m simply resetting my timeline.

Have you ever needed a reset? What was the circumstance? Do you feel like a reset is something you may need? Share your answers with me!