Boy, my reset week went by way too fast. But, I made some great progress and have some things figured out. For the current 12-week period, I’m looking to make some notable movement toward five major areas of business focus.
The five areas of focus for my Degrees of Maternity business goals are as follows:
- The LRCU Membership (a youth leadership community that I provide for some 3rd-8th graders I’m mentoring)
- Reading Tutoring Services (through Degrees of Maternity and for the tutoring company I returned to this month)
- Grant Writing Services (for the K-12 academy I also do reading tutoring for)
- Content Creation (for the Degrees of Maternity blog site, L.I.T. News Newsletter, and LRCU Newsletter)
- The Degrees of Maternity Summer Reading Program (starting in June 2026)
And, I’m using The 12 Week Year by Brian P. Moran and Michael Lennington, Atomic Habits by James Clear, and The Atomic Habits Workbook by James Clear to help me get clear on what I need to actively focus on and how to go about completing the action steps needed to move the needle forward in my areas of focus.
I’m also using my 2025-2026 Teacher Planner by Pen+Gear to document my weekly and daily schedules for carrying out the habits (positive consistent actions) to get the goals got. I will go week-by-week and day-by-day in setting up my monthly calendar.
As stated previously, I tend to do well with scheduling out for the month. So, I’m just planning out the month of February for now (with a detailed layout of what I’d like to see accomplished by the month’s end). I’ll tackle the planning for the month of March once I get toward the end of February. And, April’s planning will come toward the end of March.
Currently, I’m still putting some finishing touches on February, since I spent the last week doing my reset and trying to get my head wrapped around some type of organized direction. I should be able to get the action items (I need to take toward my goals) written down in my planner for the remainder of February 2026 before this week’s end.
And going forward, I’m going to take the advice of Brian P. Moran and Michael Lennington and take 15 – 20 minutes at the beginning of the week (Sunday) to review the progress made toward goals from the prior week and plan the current one. Then, I’ll take 5 minutes at the start of each day and detail the day’s activities.
These planning sessions should go pretty smoothly since I’ve already determined the high-level to-dos needed to achieve the overarching big goals in each of the focus areas.
Of course, all the planning will be foiled if the execution of the plan isn’t fulfilled. No action. No results. So, mindset shifts and HABITS are currently being worked through, worked on, and worked out.
So much is hitting all at once! Yikes!
Reset . . . restructure . . . rework . . . Whew!
But . . .
I can do it . . . I can do it . . . I MUST do it!
Furthermore, I’m using a composition notebook to document the systems I need to set in place so my habits can productively work within the frameworks for GETTING THINGS DONE. Systems frameworks will include such items as:
- creating documented standard operating procedures (SOPs) for recurring processes
- creating a weekly schedule with as many same day-same time (each day) action items as possible
- setting up a structured working environment (or multiple working environments) conducive to getting uninterrupted work done
- creating automations to streamline processes efficiently
- delegating certain business-related tasks to family members to manage
I think I’ll stop here for now. I’m still working through some of the planning details, but it’s a solid start in the right direction.
I have a lot of mission-driven work on my plate, and I LOVE IT! But, it’s quite the tall order. So, I must be very intentional about what I’m doing here on out. None of this “willey-nilley” — “I’ll just figure it out as I go” — “I got it all up in my head” stuff.
No, I’m going to need some organization, structure, focus, plans, implementation of the plans, good and consistent habits, working systems, and help from others to receive the desired outcome(s) I’m looking for.
degreesofmaternity.com 
Phil – you always know just what to say to keep me in line and in reality. I appreciate you for that. Yes, it does seem like I have waaayyyy too much going on. In fact, I probably do. But, it’s all in my wheelhouse of things I love and am pretty good at. So, some of the items mesh together although they’re different areas of focus. I guess what I’m saying is that some of the work involved seems effortless, because I’m working in my area of genius. (Not that I’m a genius by any means). But, I love all 5 endeavors so much that I welcome the work. And, I’ve already starting putting into place some outside help to give me a little breathing room so I can keep things fun and not too overwhelming with all of the responsibilities that come with these endeavors. You are 100% correct in not running myself too thin to where I can’t do a quality job with any of the tasks I take on. No, I definitely want only the best output coming from my direction, so I’ll make sure to monitor my efforts and make sure they’re living up to what I’ve communicated. And if they aren’t, I’ll definitely be making adjustments. This blog site is one of those priorities that I can’t afford to leave behind. So, you have permission to check me if you see me take another hiatus from my home space here. I sure pray that I don’t ever have to stay away that long again. Furthermore, you are so right on about family. Although I didn’t include any personal goals in this blog post, I have some major ones in my personal life, involving me and my family. And, I can’t afford to lose sight of them. So, I do have a tall order to tackle here. But, I’m going to try it out with some much-needed organization and structure to my life that I’ve never had before. Pray for me, dear friend. I’ll need it. But, I’m excited for where this year will take me and my “reset.” Have a blessed weekend, Phil; and thank you for gracing me with your appreciated presence.
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Jana, while you seem to have most things under control, I get the feeling that you are taking on too much. It is far better to do less better than more worserer!
Keeping overly busy can be a problem that needs fixing. Quality of life is far more important than the length of life. Taking on too much to the point of not being able to complete a task to your standards is unwise. Remember, family is more important than anything else.
Now, that is enough preaching from me, so over and out! If I have misread the situation, ignore the above.
Regards, Phil
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