Today’s Musings:

In my 21-year career, I have consistently executed successful meetings and events – wait, don’t stop reading…I didn’t accidentally post a resume cover letter, no matter how it sounds.  In those 7,670 days, I never missed an event deadline.  With my trusty project plan by my side and the event’s launch date clearly marked on my wall calendar, I focused on the goal and did whatever it took to ensure I hit the target date.  Once the planning process has begun, a planner can’t easily (if ever) move an event date.  There’s always contingencies and backup plans to be considered (for inclement weather, pandemics, terrorist attacks, strikes), but once the contract has been signed, the flights scheduled, the rooms booked, and the date set – the “show” must go on as planned.  The straightforward mantra I murmured to myself throughout my career, and my driving force when the project seemed insurmountable, was a simple, “It HAS to get done.”

I started writing my book on March 19, 2021, during the early first months of the pandemic.  I understood the process would take time – to write, to organize, to rewrite, to create recipes, to test those recipes (the industry standard is 7 testings for each recipe). My aim was to chip away at the book, a little at a time, until it was done.  It’s over two years later, and I’m perhaps half-way finished.  At some point in 2022, disheartened with my slow progress, I turned to my reliable companion, the Project Plan, and organized the chapters and recipes into a comprehensive, yet still fluid, timeline.  Creating a Plan helped me become methodical with the process; I’ve completed five chapters, 64,646 words.  Five additional chapters are still waiting for a significant rewrite, and most of the recipes are in need of retesting. 

Knowing that developing and following a timeline is my Planner’s mind’s raison d’etre, I haven’t understood why this book seems to be progressing at a snail’s pace.  Today, I realized the answer is BECAUSE I LACK A TARGET DATE.  I envisioned myself plodding along, assuming I’d finish when I finish, without any hard date in mind.  That philosophy, while it may work for some writers, isn’t the solution for me.  So, I’m putting it out here, that I’ve chosen the event date, the date I will type the words “The End” on my book.  I now have a target – and accountability, although the added pressure seems to have given me a momentary bout of writer’s block.

Target:  Friday, November 3, 2023. It HAS to get done.

Today’s Recipe:

The sophisticated combination of citrusy-floral lemon verbena and Earl Grey tea with just a pinch of warming, earthy nutmeg provides unique waves of flavor in these Earl Gray Lemon Verbena Thins Cookies. These cookies would be a brilliant addition to any proper English tea table, rubbing elbows with teeny finger sandwiches, sponge cakes, and freshly baked scones with clotted cream and jam.