I’m the first to admit I’m a critical person. I’m a judgy person. And there are some people that I look down on. I don’t mean people in my everyday life. I mean people who show up on Jerry Springer.

I also judge people who put themselves out there to be judged. Celebrities for instance. I will judge celebrities in a heartbeat.

But, like most other prejudices, they really do come from a place of ignorance. And the more we seek out knowledge, the fewer prejudices we can hold on to.

This all came up because I was listening to a podcast that had some questionable guests. Guests that I nearly skipped because I didn’t think that these women had anything to teach me. But, I figured, I’d try to be a little more openminded. Plus, I’m a completionism and I can’t stand to skip episodes of anything. So, I ended up listening to a podcast with the COO of Hooters. And let me tell you, this lady schooled me! She taught me so much about that company, and an entirely different view of women in the work force. She also gave me some advice I’ve been trying to put into practice that I’ll be getting to in a minute.

And she was just one of many people I didn’t think I was going to learn anything from. I’m glad I didn’t skip these podcasts, and I’ll be sharing the advice I learned with you today.

Advice from Kat Cole, the former Hooters COO.

Yeah, she is a classy, hardworking, badass woman who worked her way from Hooter waitress to COO of multiple companies. She was going all over the world opening up stores when she was in her early twenties. Did you know that Hooters sends more of their employees to college than any other company in America? I didn’t know that until I listened to her. Did you know that the vast majority of upper management at Hooters is female, because the company has a strong policy of promoting from within? Not so exploitative as I thought.

Now, here’s the thing that really bowled me over. She told a story about someone giving her grief at an opening about working for a company like Hooters as a woman. She said, “I always come to an argument with the assumption that I’m wrong. Because it’s a lot easier to walk that back.” (This is a paraphrase, by the way.)

This is brilliant! I started using that right away in disagreements and conversations. And it’s true! I’ve started saying things like, “Oh? Tell me about that. What do you think about this situation? Where do you think I went wrong?” And in practice it works wonderfully. It’s so much easier to say, “Wait, no, I’m right after all,” than to say, “Oh, wait, you’re totally right.” Especially for someone like me, who hates admitting I’m wrong.

Advice from Jillian Michaels

I’m not big into fitness. I’m more into emotional wellness that will over time limit the factors in our lives that cause us to be unhealthy. If I’ve found balance in my life I’m less likely to stress eat. If I’m not depressed, I’ll be more likely to go do active things.

Suffice to say I’m not Jillian Michaels’ target audience. But I used to work at a few health food stores, so I’ve come into contact with her philosophies often. I didn’t find myself approving of her methods, especially when it came to her over the top screaming on Biggest Loser.

But after listening to her talk logically about healthy living (and how she agrees with me that the keto diet is not healthy. It’s amazing how finding common ground makes you more open to listening to someone.) I have a totally different opinion of her.

I’m still not her target audience, but that’s kind of the point. Not everyone is going to be receptive to her intense method. Not everyone is going to be receptive to my method either. Michaels said something about the people on Biggest Loser that really stuck with me. She said that the people on that show were unhealthy, in a life-threatening way. And she had a few weeks, sometimes a few days, to try to make an impact on their lives that could save them. These weren’t people who had an extra fifty pounds, some back fat that bothered them, and no real weight related health problems. Basically, different people need different tactics in their lives. And desperate time call for different measures. (Not desperate measures. I hate that saying.)

Advice from Leah Remini

I don’t judge Leah Remini. I actually love her work to fight against Scientology. And so I picked up her book, Troublemaker, kind of expecting to read more about her fighting against the church.

And there was some of that in there. But that wasn’t the biggest part of the book. I learned a lot more about how she became the successful woman she is. I learned that she went on audition after audition until she got a job, and then she kind of blew it. I learned that she had a bunch of different non acting jobs that she was terrible at. I learned that she was on a ton of piolets that never made it, and a ton of shows that didn’t go past the first season.

And that’s comforting, because she’s a success story. But she failed a lot before she got to that success.

Just in case you’re wondering, I’m not exactly an Amazon best seller. My books are out there, and I’m proud of that. But I’m not making enough to pay my bills. Not even my Netflix bill most months. But that doesn’t mean I stop. That means I just keep right on writing books, and I hope that every one is better than the last. I keep trying new markets, new platforms. And I hope that you do the same, whether you’re writing or acting or whatever your dream is. Keep trying.

We all have our own strengths and weakness. No one is great at everything, and no one is ever done learning. I can safely say that every single person has something to teach you. So don’t shun these lessons, no matter where they come from.

Station 86 is shocked when a Khloe assassin begins killing members of the all powerful council. Officer Sennett Montgomery and Councilman Godfrey Anders swear to find the assassin after Godfrey’s wife is falsely accused. But the killer, and the council itself, are not what they seem. Neither, as it turns out, is Sennett’s daughter.

Get it here now, for free.

And don’t forget, Station Central starts on April 13th. Unless you’re signed up for the PBW Update, then it already started.

So, I did my first quarter review on Monday. No surprise there, I’m a big fan of the review process. And in the past, I’ve written a lot about my quarterly review process and how I use it to move forward successfully for the rest of the year. I’ve done a few of these because my organization and review process is ever evolving. I’m always learning new things and discovering new tools. Then, of course, sometimes a tool I was using gets discontinued because someone decides to stop working for themselves and get a day job.

For those of you who know I’m talking about Lisa Jacobs, that sounded a lot snarkier than I mean it too. If you didn’t read her explanation of why she’s gotten a day job I highly suggest you do so right away. The last lesson she taught me was that you’ve got to put your family and yourself first and that your needs and wants are going to change over your life. I thank her for that, and for having the courage to take that sort of leap.

However, that and a few other things caused me to completely rethink how I set goals for 2019. I’ve been trying these new tools out, and I like them. So, here’s how I’ve been planning differently.

The Bullet Journal Method

And by this I mean the book by Ryder Caroll. If you haven’t read this, you probably should. Mind you, I’ve been doing Bullet Journaling for three years. I’ve read everything online, seen all the videos, and nothing struck me more than this book. It got me back to basics with my journal, but at the same time freed me to be more creative in the pages. I read this, and I immediately started changing how I journaled and planned.

The most powerful change is that I’ve been writing down my daily to-do list instead of keeping it on an app as I have for years. Mind you, I think the app I was using was great. It did everything I needed it to do and gave me a clever wrap up at the end of the year. I loved that. But let me tell you what happened when I started writing down my to-do list every day.

• I started being a little more critical about how I was spending my time. I thought everything I was doing was essential. Turns out it doesn’t feel like everything is as essential when you’re rewriting it every day.
• I was more clear about all the little tasks that take up time. Like my morning, evening and afternoon routine. These routines take roughly half an hour and are essential for my well being. They include a small amount of promotion, a medium amount of home care, and a large amount of self-care.
• I finally tracked all the minor weekly chores and made a chart. So I know what I’m doing every day.
• Finally, I became aware of exactly how much I was trying to do. Before, tasks would vanish as soon as they were done. While this is satisfying as Hell, it leaves nothing behind but the things that aren’t done yet. So I don’t get that emotional boost of a long list of things I’ve actually done. Also, I find that I suffer from depression when it feels like I haven’t done enough. It’s a problem, I know. But if I feel productive, I feel better. It doesn’t help me feel productive if my completed tasks vanish. Having a list on the page that shows exactly what I’ve done today helps a ton.

The Erin Condron Goals planner and budget

Since I didn’t have the Lisa Jacobs planner this year, I was casting around for a different one. What I landed on was the Erin Condron goals planner. This book, let me tell you how much I love this book. Basically, you pick six major projects. Then, you do a weekly check on, with what tasks need to be done for that project that week. At the end of the book, there’s a great introspective review process. At the start of the book, there’s a group of great goal setting questions.

I also got a budget book. I’ve been terrible at tracking my spending my entire adult life, but this budget book is helping a ton. Mostly because it’s fun to keep track of things in it. There are stickers. It’s easy to pull out the little book in the morning and write down everything I spent the day before. By the way, not a sponsored post. I just really like Erin Condron.

For that matter, though, you really don’t need either of these books. I just advise having no more than six projects, tracking weekly progress and keeping track of your spending. Just do those two things, and I bet you find that you’re succeeding more.

The 19 for 2019 list from the podcast Happier

This is not exactly the same as the 19 before 2019 or the 18 before 2018 lists from Lisa Jacobs. This is a list inspired by the podcast Happier by Gretchen Rubin.

Here’s how it works. The 19 before 2019 is a list of things to wrap up in the last quarter of the year to move into 2019 on the best foot. But a 19 for 2019 list is nineteen things you want to accomplish in the year 2019. As such, they can be more long term and grander. Gretchen also suggests adding things not just to feel accomplished, but to make you happier.

I can’t share all of my 19 for 2019 list, as some of it is sensitive. But you know I like to be public with my goals because it keeps me accountable. So here’s what I can share with you. Expect occasional updates

1. Make progress on the Dave Ramsey Baby Steps.
2. Finish the last draft of Station Central. (Already done. Episode one will launch on April 13^th. Unless you’re signed up for the PBW Update. Then you already got the first episode on the first.)
3. Finish the second draft of the new fantasy novel, Falling from Grace.
4. Finish the second draft of the other new fantasy novel, Wolf’s Eye. It was last year’s Nanowrimo novel.
5. Finish the third draft of Falling from Grace and give it to my beta readers. (I’m currently looking for beta readers if anyone’s interested.)
6. -Redacted
7. -Redacted
8. Write a new novel for Nanowrimo
9. Finish the third draft of Wolf’s Eye and give it to beta readers. (Again, if you want to be a beta reader, please shoot me an email at nicolecluttrell86@gmail.com.)
10. Write the rough draft of a new science fiction novella.
11. Publish Station Central online and in e-book form. (August 30^th)
12. Strengthen my meditation and yoga practice, until I’m practicing every day.
13. Read 25 books
14. Get a literary agent
15. Read the essay from Simple Abundance every day.
16. Use the Kona Marie method to declutter my life.
17. Have wonderful holidays, even little ones like Labor Day.
18. Grow succulents and herbs.
19. Find ways to limit my waste, especially plastic waste.

Stay tuned each quarter for updates. And, of course, I want to hear from you! How do you clear out old business and get ready for new business at the start of each quarter? Want to share your 19 for 2019 list? Feel free to redact a few as I did. Let us know in the comments below!

Station 86 is shocked when a Khloe assassin begins killing members of the all powerful council. Officer Sennett Montgomery and Councilman Godfrey Anders swear to find the assassin after Godfrey’s wife is falsely accused. But the killer, and the council itself, are not what they seem. Neither, as it turns out, is Sennett’s daughter.

Get it free right now.

Station Central starts on April 13th. But the first episode was available today if you’re subscribed to the PBW Update. Sign up here now.