HEY T'es Capab' (Janvier)
January, the month to get shit done, is brought to us by INTROSPECTION. My third eye has 2020 vision.
And now for something completely different.
You've still be putting it off, haven't you Joe? January First would have had the best effect. Imagine: T'ES CAPAB' kicks off the New Year with another instalment of your pseudo-monthly newsletter. Well. You did as close to your best as you're willing to admit. You also had a lot to do so... it's okay. January Fifth isn't... quite as good. But it should still have the right effect. People'll be like "whooaaa". So, keep it up.
Don't go pee now, KEEP WRITING.
I'm asking you to keep your head down now so you can realize it's time to perk up in the coming days. The first five days of January were a blur that mixed into the month of December, and if that blur persists you'll wake up in the middle of February and you won't even have gone skiing yet. So shake it off. And get focused.
One of your New Year intentions was "No work on weekends." This Sunday you weaseled your way into class prep (it's the first week back!), writing (one of my other intentions was to write more!), and professional development (what? I can't better myself!). {DUDE STFU} Either say what you mean! Or mean what you say! Because right now your "intention" is just a bunch of letters—coincidentally ordered to read "noworkonweekends"—that don't mean anything. You have to decide between amending it to, "Less work on the weekends" or setting a time limit for work on weekends. Or defining what kind of work is not right for the best days of your LIFE—the weekend ones! "Prioritize time with friends and family, and get outside." There, how's that? Even reading it over, you're not sure. Just don't forget.
Le chemin est drette là. And maybe that's why you lose focus in January. Il est là devant toi mais pas totalement clair. Et tu te dis que ça va se réglé. Tu y arriveras. Oui, mais écoute : tu seras encombré par plusieurs défis et travaux. Petit, tu es capable, mais laisse tomber ton arrogance.
Yeah, you have things to do. Who doesn't? Get cracking.
In January, you will:
Write about 15 minutes every morning, for you.
Choose an essay topic for the Dalton Camp Award. (It's due on March 22, and you are going to win that $10,000 prize.)
Choose a project management skill to learn in February.
Teach four "Narrative Writing" classes, based on four longform articles (all of which you will read).
Teach four "Journalism 4" classes, focusing on systems and deadlines.
Read, edit, and grade 54 stories from your J4 students.
Write X amount of blog posts for at least two clients.
Devour the five books for Q1: The Bigger Picture, Personal Branding for Entrepreneurial Journalists, Telling True Stories, Literary Journalism, and On Writing Well.
Read the Fantasy anthology compiled by Jorge Luis Borges as needed.
Write a will.
Find a physical therapist.
Find an eight-foot-long ski.
Go skiing at least once.
Buy a suit.
Floss.
January will be sober. You want to change your mind state? Try cardio. All the kids are doing it.
Write all this down.
Okay? Okay! Vas-y! T'es capab'! Capucine faut qu'elle aille dehors là!
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