Who am I to complain about my job? I don’t sit in a cubicle all day, stock shelves, or deal with annoying co-workers. I love my work, and I hardly ever need a break from it. But when I reach a goal, whether it be a first draft, revision, or a thumbs up from my editor or agent on something I’ve worked on, I definitely reward myself. Here’s how.
1) I Take a Break. This doesn’t mean a week’s vacation. No, it’s more like a day or two, where I clean the house and catch up on laundry and bake a lot. If I can’t be Martha Stewart full-time, I can at least try for a few days.
2) Read. When I read books, I need to give myself to them completely, with no distractions. So, I usually take a few nights to devote to a good book or two. Instead of putting my girls to bed and then heading to the computer to work, I settle down on the couch with Maximus, my big black lab, and read.
3) Shop. I’m not a crazy spender, but I do like to reward myself with little things like a sweater or some nice yarn for a knitting project, or even just some lip balm or something. A lot of times I splurge on food, like buying lamb instead of hamburger or a $15 bottle of wine instead of whatever’s on sale.
4) Knit. Gotta keep my hands busy! Hats are quick, two-day projects, so those are my favorite. When I’ve got an easy pattern, knitting is kind of mindless and relaxing, and in the end you have something to show for your mindlessness!
5) Blog. Right now, I’m hardly blogging at all on my personal blog. There is just too much to do with two book projects, freelance, and kids. If you see me posting often on my blog, it’s because I’m either procrastinating or rewarding myself for having accomplished something. Mostly, it’s just procrastinating though.
~A.F.
3 Comments
October 31, 2008 at 11:17 am
Angie,
I don’t know how you do it at all. I’m very behind with my web site. It’s on my list!
October 31, 2008 at 1:13 pm
A web site is so important! I know you can do it…after you shamed us all in the arm wrestling championships, I believe you can do anything!
October 31, 2008 at 7:19 pm
Okay. You’re right. Now that I’ve made my slacking public I need to repair my image. Check my site out after this weekend. I’ll squeeze it in between workouts (I’m already bulking up for next year) and painting.