by Kasia | Jul 3, 2016 | Business, Writing
Come the first of the year and the world is busy setting goals, resolutions, objectives, or aims for the next 365 days where they hope to change their lives, grow happier, healthier, leaner, smarter, or richer.
Trying to improve yourself as person in all areas of life is a good thing. Growth is healthy, it opens us up to opportunities, and removes the monotony of daily responsibilities.
The truth is that most people aren’t going to keep to their New Year Goals. Half will give up by the end of January, another half by March, and the majority would have thrown in the towel by the end of June. The few who do make it to six months are most likely to achieve their yearly goals and be better for it.
Where do you fall in the group?
If you’re on track, well done. You’re doing a great job. Keep at it. You can achieve anything.
If you’ve fallen off the bandwagon, it’s not too late to get back up.
Start today. You can do it!
June is the perfect time to reassess where you’re at, modify those goals if need be, and kick yourself up the booty and get cracking on those resolutions.
You’re not the same person today as you were six months ago. Ok you are, but the past six months you’ve have gone through new and old experiences, your needs may have changed, as well as your likes and dislikes. These might be just subtle changes but they may impact what you want from the year.
It’s ok to modify your goals to suit you today. They’re not set in stone so you can adjust and adapt to your current situation so that you get the best out of them.
Grab your list of goals (you’ve got them written down, right?).
Good, ok let’s get the party started.
4 QUESTIONS TO ASK WHEN CHECKING IN ON YOUR PROGRESS
1 – Read through your goals. Do you remember setting them as if it were yesterday? Or are you wondering what you were thinking when you wrote them down? Either way, go through them. Ask yourself, do they still apply today? Can any of them be modified to suit your current situation? For example, you might have set yourself a goal to read twelve non-fiction books but you’re just not getting any joy with them. Can you reduce the number to just three and increase the fiction ones? That’s not a sign of failure – it’s throwing realism into the mix and making sure that things get done.
2 – Which goals are you progressing nicely with? A few? None? Both answers are plausible. If you don’t read your goals regularly it’s easy to get distracted with life and every day tasks. Did you tell yourself you’re going to run a marathon at the end of the year? Have you been training as planned? Maybe just sporadically. Ask yourself why you’re not following to plan? It could be because it doesn’t suit your current lifestyle. What can you change to make it work for you today, this week, month? Think in smaller bits and you’re more likely to reach those goals sooner.
3 – Is there anything on your list that is completely ludicrous or not something that is in the realms of your control? Change it or lose it. Why set yourself up for disappointment? Winning the lotto is not a goal? Neither is earning your annual salary on the side if you haven’t bothered to hustle, hustle, and hustle some more the past six months.
4 – Are there any that you still really, really, really want to achieve? What do you hold dear to your heart? Fantastic. Having passion for your ambitions brings you one step closer to achieving your goals. What can you do today, right now, to bring you closer to that one goal that means everything to you? If you want to pick up a new language maybe it’s time to sign up for the course or find a conversation buddy online. Is there a client that you really want to nab for your business – take the plunge and cold call them with a pitch, or send them an email, or make an appointment to see them in person. What’s the worst that can happen?
Need help?
* Break down your goals
* Only do what you really want to do
* Find an accountability partner
* Focus on one goal per week or per month
* Get rid of the clutter – you don’t want your true goals crowded by false ones
It’s never too late to get a move on with your goals. Just remember to keep an eye on them throughout the year. Our minds find it hard to see the big picture especially when it’s in the distance.
Take bite size steps to achieving your goals even if they seem far away. Enjoy the journey and use what you learn to grow as a person and in your business. Sooner or later setting goals and achieving them will be a walk in the park.
I’m off to reassess my goals. It’s been a while. I too might need a kick in the backside to get things done this year.
Do you look over your goals regularly? What sort of steps are you taking to achieve them? Any tips on achieving your goals, whatever they may be?
![Should You Write A Book?]()
by Kasia | Jun 11, 2016 | Business, Self Publishing, Writing
There are more than a million books being published each so why in the world would you want to add your own to the bunch? But the thing is, if you really want to write a book, you probably should.
You may think its been said before, and yes, it probably has, but that doesn’t mean you said it, with your experience behind it, with a fresh perspective on it.
Pick up the latest issue of your favourite magazine and then find one from the year before. Take stock of the articles in each. Do they sound familiar? The same even? Yep, that’s right. Whether it’s health and fitness, gardening or cooking, real estate or parenting, the ideas are mostly the same, they simply have a different slant to them.
The same goes with books.
Whether you are writing fiction or non-fiction you will not find a book that is original. There are no more original ideas. Just fresh takes.
Romance books are all the same. Two people meet, they want to be together but there are multiple situations or people that get in their way, and then finally at the end they end up together.
Mysteries are generally solving a puzzle of who and why.
Books for writers generally repeat themselves but there’s no shortage of them coming out on a regular basis. The information is all the same just regurgitated in a different fashion.
Motivation books. Have you read the gurus in the field? I’ve found that most of their books end up sounding pretty much the same and yet people buy them. Love them. Recommend them to friends and neighbours.
Competition is good. But the good thing with books is that there’s no a limit as to how many you are able to read. That’s why there’s room for writers and authors of both fiction and non-fiction to find an audience for their work.
7 reasons why you should write a book:
1. A book can help you build a professional brand.
As a business, having a book on the market gives you a more authoritative voice. People will consider you and your business as an expert in the field that you are writing in.
2. A book can help increase your market reach.
A book will increase your market reach especially if it’s available from your website and any of the publishing platforms including Amazon, Kobo, iBooks, etc. If you want to reach more people with your business, writing a book might be a good option for you.
3. A book is a product that you can sell for many years.
You own the rights and can earn royalties until you die, which then they get turned over to your estate. Your book can continue earning even for up to 70 years after the authors/artists death.
4. A book is an additional income stream.
if you’re successful. While you should rely on one book to bring home the bacon, you will find that after book three you will start seeing more sales come through. Having a book, or better still, multiple books on the market, can be an investment for your financial future. A risky one, and not one you should rely on, but an investment nonetheless.
5. A book can be a sentimental keepsake for your family.
On a more personal note, it can be something you can pass on to family and friends. A keepsake of sorts, a sentimental piece of you.
6. A book may teach you something new.
Often the idea of ‘write what you know’ gets flipped around, but a better one is to ‘write what you want to know’. A book can give you an excuse to research all sorts of topics from forensic psychology or marketing tactics, to religion or the mafia.
7. You’re accomplishing a goal.
To prove to yourself that you can do it. Writing a book is simple but it’s far from easy. It requires time, dedication, small sacrifices and self-motivation. Trying to put on paper what’s in your head over three hundred pages whilst keeping the reader interested is hard work.
Maybe you’ve always wanted to write a book. It’s an item on your bucket list that you really want ticked off. Just go for it. Don’t wait for permission from anyone else. You might surprise yourself as to what actually comes out.
Having a book on the market can lead to many opportunities including meeting new people, travelling the world, public speaking, a new career, and so much more.
Have you written a book? Is it something you’ve ever thought about doing?
![Should You Write A Book?]()
by Kasia | Jun 3, 2016 | Blogging, Business, Self Publishing, Writing
May came, May went.
We won’t see May for another year. It’s been a surprisingly warm one for the sunny Gold Coast. It’s the end of Autumn at this part of the world but the temps have been sitting in the mid-20’s and dropping down to 15 at night (Celsius not Fahrenheit).
How was your May? Did you achieve your goals? Is there anything you wish you did differently that you’ll try in June?
May didn’t go according to plan. I set high expectations and,well, life including work, parenting, training for a marathon, exhaustion, socialising and a holiday got in the way of getting everything done. Ok, ok, I know, these are just excuses.
My main goal for May was to publish my third book, a novella, Lethal Aftershock. And I did that.
My secondary goal was to relax and have fun on my holiday to Fiji. I definitely did that. Maybe a little too much.
I took my laptop to get some writing done in between the sunbathing, drinking, running after my son in and out of the pool, paddle boarding, catching up on reading, eating and sleeping. Who was I kidding, I was in Fiji! Other than a few notes and questions that need to be answered in the next book, I didn’t do any writing until I got on the return flight and my brain started to work again.
Rest is a necessity. Sometimes working throughout a holiday is fantastic, at other times you need to stop, think about nothing and reset your brain. That’s what I did and it was worth it.
I’ve returned refreshed and ready to get back to work. I have learnt that I need to have a break otherwise I will burn out. My day job is mentally draining as is writing books. One deals with numbers, the other creativity. the end of the day, I am knackered.
I’ve found exercise is the best way to separate the two. A quick run or some weight training works wonders and makes the transition from day job to writing much smoother. If you need to jump from different activities a bit of exercise can make you more productive.
These were my goals for May, how did I fare. I’ll give myself a 5.5/10.
May Goals & Progress Report
- Publish Lethal Aftershock – YES!
- Write and schedule two months of blog posts. – YES!
- Send out 30 pitches. – No 🙁 Didn’t send any in May.
- Affiliates. No 🙁
- Run more. YES! Running about 3 times per week!
- Sell and giveaway 500 books. No 🙁 I gave away 18 and sold 8.
- Get 20 email sign ups. No 🙁 Currently sitting on 9.
The giveaway was a surprise. The last time I ran a free giveaway, I offloaded over 100 books without any promotions. 18 is a very disappointing number and I’m wondering what went wrong. I think the day I ran the promotion has something to do with it as did my lack of marketing.
This time around I ran the two-day giveaway on Monday and Tuesday. The only promo I did was mention it on Twitter once. The purpose of the giveaway is to attract readers and without marketing that just ain’t going to happen. Writing and they will come is not a good marketing strategy.
My first year was all about writing. The second year will be a combination of writing and marketing. I have grand goals, the only ones that are actually within my control are the productivity output. I control how much I write and what I write.
Writing is solitary but selling is a social activity. You need to connect with people in order to be successful.
Build relationships, help others, be of use, and quit bullshitting yourself.
Business By The Numbers In May 2016
Queries sent: 0
Responses: 0
Accepted: 0
Follow ups: 0
Income: $0
Books sold: 8 (Australia, US and Germany)
Books Given Away: 18
Income: $ $8.94
Total writing income: $8.94
June Goals
- Finish writing Lethal Attraction, the fourth book in the Lexi Ryder Crime Thriller series. I’ve got the skeleton down, now I just need to flesh the story out.
- Try Facebook ads. My initial budget will be $100.
- Be active on Goodreads. That’s very broad. I need to connect with more people (aiming for 10 in June). I also would like to join a discussion group. To date my usage involves adding books to my ‘to read’ list, writing reviews of books I really enjoy, etc.
- Finish the preliminary draft of a non-fiction book – Writerly Pursuits – this is a book for writers.
- Sell 100 books. This would be a sweet number. In order to do so, I need to work on my marketing skills!
- Submit 30 pitches for non-fiction work – personal finance, health & fitness, parenting, business, etc. Time to earn some extra cash to cover the costs of cover design and editing of book number four.
- Translate chapter one of Lethal Instincts into Polish. This is a personal goal. I want to prove to myself that I can do it. Fortunately the first chapter is nice and short!
- Start being more active in my social media groups. Comment on Facebook groups, be supportive of other writers, get onto Twitter and Instagram. The aim is to spend 5-10 minutes a day on each social media platform.
- Comment on three writers websites three times per week.
- Try my hand at podcasting/skype interview. I have someone I want to interview, and they have agreed to it. I’m about two months behind schedule and hoping they can still fit me in. So I need to figure out how to record on Skype, boost my confidence, and get interviewing!
- Get 20 email sign ups. This is a repeat from last month. Having an email list is very important, you just don’t know when platforms like Amazon are going to change their rules.
How was your May?
Did you achieve your personal and business goals?
![Should You Write A Book?]()
by Kasia | Jun 3, 2016 | Blogging, Business, Motivation
I’m an overachiever 
by nature. Taking a break to put my feet up is not something I can do for prolonged periods of time (unless it involves my laptop or a good book in front of me, of course!). My brain and my body needs to be working constantly.
This is not healthy. Nor is it beneficial for long-term productivity.
Australians are quite lucky that they receive four weeks of holidays per year. Unfortunately, not everyone uses them. Then, they burn out. Go crazy. Get divorced. Lose their jobs. Have a midlife crisis. Waste opportunities.
If you want to be successful and stay in the game, you need to schedule a break.
Aim for a few minutes per day. One day per week. A weekend a month. One week per quarter. Two weeks per year. You’ll feel better for it and you’ll get so much more done.
Everyone has a different definition as to what constitutes a break. Find yours and stick to it.
7 Benefits of Taking a Break for Your Mind & Body
- Taking a short break throughout the day can boost your overall productivity. Next time you’re thinking about skipping lunch, reconsider. Even a 15 minute walk at lunchtime can boost your afternoon output.
- Regular holidays, even if it’s a weekend getaway, can boost your immunity which means less time spent trying to ward off colds and other ailments. Book yourself into a hotel or a bed & breakfast for the weekend and enjoy a change of scenery.
- Want to be happier? If you find yourself constantly working and can’t remember the last time you took some time out to rest and recharge your batteries, you might be unintentionally increasing your risk of depression and becoming a negative party-pooper. A holiday away from home, especially, if it involves sunshine and the outdoors can lift your mood, expose you to some much needed Vitamin D, and put a smile on your face.
- A change in your environment can be enough to improve your health. When we’re consumed by our jobs and daily responsibilities, it’s easy to fall into a rut. A quick break away from home and the office will get you out of your comfort zone and shift your perspective and that is awesome for both your physical and mental well-being.
- Studies have shown that if you’re feeling a bit down – consider SAD (seasonal affective disorder) – during the winter months, evoking memories from your holidays can lift your spirits. So, create some happy memories!ook a holiday to somewhere you’ve never been whether it’s local or overseas.
- A break, whether it be two days or two weeks, gives you an opportunity to step away from stress. We put way too much stress on ourselves to perform in every area of our lives. It’s not possible to be superman or superwoman. Give yourself a break and allow a holiday to help you forget about the day-to-day grind and everything that’s driving you up the wall. While some stress is beneficial to keep us motivated and performing, it’s the bad stress that causes our hair to go grey and leads to heart attacks that we want to avoid. A holiday can make all the difference to your health physically and mentally.
- Burn out. We all want to avoid it. It’s one of the worst things for productivity and success in life and in business. When we burn out, we stop functioning at an optimum level. It usually means that we’ve been pushing ourselves too much for too long. Schedule in that break and you’ll reduce your risk of burning out. You know how your mind and body functions so you should know when you’re at risk of losing your shit because you work too hard. Add a regular holiday into your calendar or even a day spent at the beach or walking through the forest and you’ll get a quick recharge to keep going without burning out.
A regular break is what the doctor ordered. Stay healthy, improve your productivity, boost your creativity, expand your horizons and open yourself up to new opportunities by taking time out to do something that’s fun, enjoyable and takes you out of your comfort zone.
I may have just returned from an overseas holiday, but I’m already organising the next one in three months time and another for the end of the year. It’s all about balance and if you work hard you need to schedule in some play time.
I TOOK A BREAK AND SURVIVED!
One week in Fiji was bliss. I loved it. Fiji is my new favourite family holiday destination. I can’t wait to go back.
Fijians love kids so getting a nanny and putting our darling into kids’ club most afternoons was a no-brainer. He loved it, we loved it, and everyone was happy.
Did you know that there are no venomous land snakes or spiders in Fiji? I didn’t either but found this a relief considering Australia seems to have them all! The only ones to worry about are those in the sea, but you’re unlikely to come across them anyway.
And the people, OMG, everyone is just so friendly and nice and saying ‘Bula’ ten times a day. It was the ideal spot for the family to relax, unwind and enjoy a few cocktails by the seafront.
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Somewhere in the South Pacific
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A bit of hot Fijian entertainment.
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What better way to recharge the batteries?
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The holiday begins. Plane necessities.
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So relaxing and feeling very small in the big ocean!
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Pretending to get some writing done.
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New fave! Bloody Mary nice and spicy!
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Beautiful ocean sunsets. At home the sun rises from the ocean side, it was nice to see it set that way.
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Resting includes fun runs! I came 3rd female & 8th overall in the Pacific Fitness 5km Fun Run in Fiji. Stoked! That ain’t going to happen again!
Do you take regular breaks? Do you see the benefits of taking a holiday out of your comfort zone? How do you like to relax and recharge your batteries?
![Should You Write A Book?]()
by Kasia | May 26, 2016 | Writing
A year ago today, I published my first novel. I was excited, motivated and a little naive. I knew this writing gig was going to be tough. I didn’t want to believe it was going to be this tough. That little bit of naivete is a good thing. It keeps you optimistic and it keeps you fighting for what you want.
Dream big and take small steps to get there. Anything is possible if you can imagine it!
I’m imagining popping open a bottle of Dom Perignon once my writing income exceeds $100k. It didn’t happen this year, but it will happen one day. I believe it, I can see it.
On May 26, 2015, Lethal Disposal was published. My first novel that took me a little over two years to write. It was also a mess. I had it edited, but it still contained errors when it was published. I probably should have spent a few more weeks polishing it and paid more attention to detail when it returned from the editor.
Lesson learnt: Never rely on a third party to do the final edit. Go through it with a fine-tooth comb even if it means having to read your book for the 50th time.
The good thing with ebooks is that you can edit them and republish at no real cost other than time. I had Lethal Disposal proofread and went through it again and republished it since then. I’ll probably do it one more time before I publish an omnibus of books 1 – 3 together.
I’m glad I hit publish on that day though. It changed the direction of my life and turned a dream to a goal and a goal into reality. Ok, maybe that’s a little dramatic. But it allowed me to cross a line that I didn’t think could be crossed. I was a published author. My book was finally out there. I crossed the threshold of no return.
I did it once, so I knew I could do it again. In my first year as a published author, I put out three books: one novel and two novellas.
The goal for year 1 wasn’t to sell tons of books although I wouldn’t have minded if I had. The goal was to get a few books to the market. Three was a sweet number.
My sales didn’t matter. My writing output did.
There’s no point in spending a fortune of money or time on marketing with only one book out there. Some authors will tell you the same thing others will tell you the opposite. So what if a thousand people read your first book, if you don’t have a second or third product available then it’s likely they are going to forget you by the time you do and you’re back to square one. You could try to draw interest with just one and hope your readers will wait in anticipation for the next one. You need to find what works for you. I’ve found it easier to concentrate on the writing first to prove to myself that I am in this for the long haul.
It’s taken me a year to realise where I want to be and what I want to do. A part of me wondered whether I’d get over it, but as I’ve stuck it out and published three books, have two more in the series lined up and came up with an idea for another series that is nagging at me. I know I need to be doing this. I love writing. I love creating stories. My dream of being a full-time author has become an achievable goal.
My motivation is my son. I have three years before he starts school. By that stage, I’d like to be earning enough not to have to have a day job although if I want and I’m still enjoying mine, I can have it. It’s all about choices and having more than enough to pay the mortgage, put food on the table, go on a holiday a few times a year and enjoy a nice glass of wine with family and friends.
It’s all possible but it takes time. I also have a shopping habit. Nice clothes make me feel good. Just the other month, I purchased four pairs of shoes, granted, they were massively reduced, but still!. And, it was my birthday month, so I treated myself a little too much. Well, let’s just say I need to start selling a lot more books to support this expensive habit of mine. We all have our vices, don’t judge.
So what are some lessons learnt in my first year as an author-entrepreneur?
There you have it. My first year as a published author in around twelve hundred words. I learnt a lot. I also proved to myself that I still wanted to be a writer who wrote rather than one who just wants to have written. It wasn’t just a childish dream that would go away once the first book was out. It was no longer a ‘maybe one day I’ll give it a go’. It was happening, and it was happening right now. I was on the road to becoming an author-entrepreneur.
My second year is about to start and there’s so much more I want to do. I’m setting the bar a notch higher. I’m shooting for writing and publishing six books, and aiming to sell and giveaway 10,000 copies.
I currently have the following in the works:
* two more books in the Lexi Ryder series – both full length
* a non-fiction book for writers
* a crime/thriller with elements of the supernatural
* two stand-alone thrillers that have been written but require intense rewrites and editing
* translate Lethal Instincts into Polish (I will aim to do this on my own – a personal challenge rather than a marketing tactic and more for family than anything else)
* publish an ebook + print omnibus of Books 1 – 3 in the Lethal series
* Writerly Pursuits – blog, e-course & non-fiction book
* Personal finance site (currently anonymous)
Mind you, I don’t have all day every day to write. I work four days per week with a two hour commute (my main writing time!), I also have a toddler at home and I’m trying to build a house and train for a marathon, while still getting at least 6 hours of sleep per night and spending quality time with family and friends. It’s a juggling act. There are days when I feel like giving up, days when I’m grumpy, days when my family are grumpy with me, and days when nothing I do is good enough. I let them pass. Generally a break, a run, or a good glass of wine make everything better again – sometimes it takes all three, in that order.
If you want to achieve anything, you’re going to have to soldier on. Giving up isn’t an option because if you do, it wasn’t your dream or your goal to have.
Happy writing and reading! I hope you join me on this journey.
