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This is the 3rd thread for 2022. Post your Challenge numbers here for the week starting Monday August 29, and ending Sunday September 04, 2022. Numbers must be posted on Monday 05, and then each week going forward. You do not need permission to join, just post your numbers and I’ll add you in.
For information and rules on the Challenge, go here.
This is also the thread for the Designated Challenge posts. Information on the Designated Challenge can be found on the information and rules post above.
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My challenges started well but have tanked. I didn’t even work eBay this month and have lost my TRS status. It has been chaos here, and I’m just coming to the end of it. Hopefully, September will see a return to form and good sales. My #8 is to clear the 2nd incoming shelf.
Actually, as I’ve been working through these challenges and clearing these shelves, I’ve been rather thrilled at how useful they are. Once they’re cleared, and I used them for their original purpose, they are a perfect landing zone. Items come in and are placed in a position for cleaning, or repair, or in a box for “missing parts” (items where there’s another piece that I know I have, I just haven’t found it yet.) Then there’s a place for stuff ready to list. It means I can actually queue up listings, and my workbench, where I measure, list, and pack, stays clear of clutter. Just need to get back to listing!
What’s your #8 and how did you do last month?
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My challenge for last month was putting together a BOLO list. I didn’t come up with much. When I’m at auctions or sales, I think about that more often. Right now, I’m really trying to help out my neighbor and get his stuff listed, so my sourcing has been limited.
I did put together a note on the computer specifically for keeping a BOLO list, and it has the few things I thought about. So, I consider that a successful completion of the challenge. From now on, I can add to the list as I think of them.
At the end of last year when we were thinking these through, I was trying to set myself up better for a less time consuming eBay business as my job became a bigger deal. Now my commission with the neighbor has superseded all that, but this work will eventually be worthwhile.
In the meantime, my #8 challenge is to go to a few yard or estate sales. Funny, maybe I’ll add to my BOLO list.
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My #8 challenge is to get rid of all my unlisted sewing patterns, either by listing, donating or throwing them away.
Since a large part of my eBay business is sewing patterns this is a big task. Luckily I’ve gotten a jump on this challenge due to downsizing and moving, so this might be a challenge I can actually complete! However, I’m going on vacation in less than 3 weeks so I won’t have the entire month to accomplish it. Fingers crossed!
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My challenges have tanked this year as well, but I still love the idea and hope to get back to it with a fresh start after the holidays. It’s just been an insanely busy year and I am having a hard time getting anything listed, let alone focus on the challenges.
I had the trifecta of enormous tasks in the past 2 weeks, which is why my listing for that previous week is zero and last week is one whole listing. The first task was to spend copious amounts of time getting my dad situated to go into assisted living and out of his elder abuse situation. The second task was to prepare for and participate in the Oregon City Antique Faire. And the third task was to work with Charlie to get our new Youtube picking adventures channel up and running. Plus all the usual stuff. Oof.
The Oregon City show was a massive amount of work, but well worth it, as we had our best one-day show sale ever. EVER. It was crazy good! We left our house at 4:45am in a loaded U-haul truck, and returned at 9pm….exhausted but happy. People were there to buy….even at 7am!
Here’s hoping for a great September ahead for everyone!
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I listed 40 items this week.
For my challenge, I did go to an estate sale that was walking distance from my home. They had very interesting vintage & antique stuff, but their prices were super high. I didn’t buy anything. The nice part was walking there and back with my son.
@vintage-lacy – Post a link to your You Tube channel when you upload a video! -
I listed 17 items this week. Since I was preoccupied with getting ready for and having houseguests until they left on Friday, I felt 17 wasn’t bad. I’m hoping for higher numbers this week though.
Vintage Lacy: I’d love to watch your You Tube picking adventures, please share your channel!
Wishing everyone a great week!
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It seems that everyone is crazy at the moment! Agree with VL, let’s hope that September is better on eBay for everyone!
VL, I’m glad your dad is getting out of his abuse situation. You’ve posted many times about it and it is horrible. I hope that he is happy and safe now. And congrats on your huge sale!
Spreadsheet updated and Sharyn got the win with more than double the combined total of all the other listings! LOL.
Final third of the year. Only 15 weeks until Christmas. Leaves are turning and falling, cooler weather is settling in, so folks are going to be in front of computers and scrolling on handhelds. List your coats, your Christmas items, and, of course, Fall, Thanksgiving, and Halloween stuff!
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Hi, my sales really picked up yesterday after being D-E-A-D as a doornail. I listed 50 items last week and my store is over 400 items now! I’m really trying to get things moving. I still need to find the box with Thanksgiving and I started listing Christmas this week. It’s super hot here in California but I’ve put out my Fall decor and had a pumpkin spice latte already.
Vintage Lacy I also would love to see your videos. 🙂
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0 Listings for me again last week. I was busy at my volunteer position with the National Park Service and I was out of town for the long weekend, but that’s no excuse I should have listed at least a few things. This week I will do better!
Regarding the challenges, with the chaos of summer I haven’t been working on them the las few months. They have been extremely helpful on the months I worked on them. This month my challenge is to list a painting. I can see one right across the room that will be perfect.
Have a great week everyone!
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We only have two videos posted so far on our YouTube channel and are working on the video from the set-up of the Oregon City Antique Faire, and hope to post that in the next day or two. We’re beginners at all this and there’s a big learning curve, but we are having fun too, and hope that people enjoy watching our adventures.
I’m a novice at posting links on here….so let me know if it works?
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCE74kgS0LJlqYPhlZDFlOSg/featured
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Only 1 this week. The only reason I was able to get that one up was because I already had photos taken from before I got Covid. The fatigue I have from Covid is unreal. Any day I feel like I might be getting over it, a few hours later I get knocked back down again.
Stay healthy everyone!
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@Julie I hope you begin to feel better this week. I also had a variety of symptoms for about a week and then another week of lying around with fatigue. I still felt like not doing much physical activity for another 1-2 weeks.
After a big week last week, I fell down to one listing this week.
@VT you look fun to shop with! Thanks for sharing.
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25 new listings for me. I was on track for 5 per day all last week but then I got another Covid booster on Friday and that knocked me out for the weekend. So much better than actually getting Covid, I’m so sorry to hear you caught it Julie B. I hope you feel better ASAP.
While I was feeling the effects of the vaccine I accidentally deleted 30 of my listings. Oops. But I’m using that mistake as a kick in the pants to do an inventory of my listed items, which is years overdue. I’m guessing that work will cut down my listing numbers this week…
Wishing everyone a great week!
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I listed 9 items this week. I had the time, but I was distracted by various things. One of them I documented here on the forum, see below. I did do some photography over the weekend, so that should help jumpstart the process; however, new distractions have come up and old ones have not gone away.
eBay sold FedEx label for a APO address but FedEx doesn’t ship to APO
@VL – I watched the first of your videos. I’m surprised that the seller allowed you to do all that recording. I don’t watch many scavenging videos, but the ones I’ve seen have always been on the sly.
@Julie – Sorry to hear of the continuing effects of your illness. I’m sure that just getting stuff to the PO is work enough. Rest and get better. Maybe end and sell similar if you want to keep sales moving.@VT – Did you delete existing listings or ones in drafts? If you deleted existing ones, they should appear under “Ended”.
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Julie, I am so sorry to hear you are struggling with fatigue. Here’s hoping your energy returns quickly!
Thanks Christine and Amatino!
Sharyn, so far the response has been all positive to our filming. There’s a lot of people in the Portland area with GoPros, so maybe that helps. We went to the bins last week and angled the cameras down a bit to record what was in the bins and not people’s faces.
I only managed 5 listings last week. The elder abuse situation boiled over and we had to physically go and take my dad out of his home and get him to a safe place. We’d been working on getting him into assisted living, but there’s a lot of hoops to jump through and we were about 1-2 weeks away from making that happen. We wore our GoPros during the rescue and it’s a good thing because it kept things from escalating, at least until the very end, when she forgot herself and let loose. He’s safe now and we’ll have him in his new home by the weekend.
Maybe this will be the week that I actually get a decent amount listed? Maybe?
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Sharyn, they were exsisting listings that I ended to sell similar but I accidentally deleted the ended listings before I did the sell similar with them. They are gone forever.
Vintage Lacy – I forgot to say that I also watched your YouTube videos, I found them directly on YouTube under your channel name. Very cool! I’m super sorry to hear about your Dad’s situation but it’s wonderful that he has you doing whatever it takes to keep him safe.
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VT trounces us all for the win this week! Well done!
JB, so sorry you’re suffering with COVID. Hope you and Christine feel better soon!
VT, that’s rough! I thought I was the only person who managed stuff like that! LOL. It’s brilliant that you found an upside, though. Good for you!
VL, wow, so now you actually have it on video? That’s brilliant! Let’s hope you never need to use it. I pray that your dad is safe and happy for the rest of his life now. Big hugs, my friend!
Sharyn, how frustrating for you! eBay has been handling some strange glitches just lately, it seems a lot more than they used to. Whatever changes they have made to their software appears to have not been particularly helpful to sellers over the past couple years!
Well, folks, wishing you all a fantastic week. May those who feel subpar feel much better very quickly, and may the rest of you have a productive week.
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10 listings for me last week. The situation with my dad has still been extremely challenging, including a trip to the ER, where we spent all night last night. He’s fine now, but it was scary while it lasted. Right now I’d settle for a complete and good night’s sleep.
VT–hope you have a great vacation!
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12 listings. Had a root canal gone wrong this week putting me in too much agony to get much work done. It seems like it is ALWAYS something!
Vintage Lacy – I’m sorry to hear about your dad and the struggle he and you went through to save him from his former situation. I’m hopeful you will find him an asst. living place that he will love.
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Thanks everyone for the good wishes. There are still some things to work out but my dad is loving his new apartment and living arrangements…and especially the food! We took a quick little anniversary picking trip this weekend and had a great time. 5 listings last week, but for better reasons.
Hope everyone has a great week ahead.
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Hey everyone, I’m glad to see you’re all getting back on track!
ChristineR takes the win this week with a good number of listings up, just pipping Sharyn by a nose! LOL. Well done, ladies!
Sorry about your root canal, Julie! And I’m thrilled for your dad, Lacy. How wonderful, after months and months of unpleasantness!
Wishing all of you a magic week. May listing become easier, sales become higher, and pickings become more exciting!
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Can’t believe we’re in the final quarter already! Last quarter was pretty much a bust for me for challenges.
However, my #5 is an Inventory Check of S Category and I SOOOOO need to do this! This one is definitely going on the TDL as I am beyond past due getting it done.
What’s your #5 and how did you do last month?
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Yeah! I listed 73 items. A bunch were on Mercari, which is much faster listing. Mercari gave me a $20 credit too but the fine print says I have to buy a $50 or more item. That’s ok because I do find some things to source on Mercari usually sold by people living near the Pottery Barn outlet.
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I listed 19 items this past week. I did quite a bit of work, but I think it was more organizing.
I did go to a few garage & rummage sales for my challenge last month, so that was successful.
My #5 challenge for this month is “Buy 2-4 higher priced items at auction with lower ROI but higher dollars”. Thing is, I set this goal before I knew that I was going to be working with my neighbor and selling on commission from him. Nevertheless, I think it is a good goal, and I will try out a few auctions this month.
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Wow, Christine, that is a convincing win for this week! Well done! Spreadsheet updated.
You are the best at doing the Challenges, Sharyn! I look forward to hearing how you did at the auctions.
Are you okay, VL? Sending hugs!
I know VT is still away, but hello everyone else? Nobody here?
Have a great week, everyone!
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Zero listings for me last week but I just get back last night from my two week vacation. We had a great time visiting Provance and Paris in France and Bruges, Belgium.
I put my eBay store on time away and averaged one sale a day during the two weeks I was gone. Not great, but better than no sales at all, and I appreciated the simplicity of implementing time away – one of the clear eBay improvements since I started selling on eBay decades ago. I’m trying to get all 15 orders out today so I can start next week with a clean eBay slate.
My number 5 challenge is “my choice”. I finally hit the first of the “my choice” challenge picks! I’m hopeful that I’ll do something with that and break my streak of zero challenges met this year.
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0 for me this week as I was in Iowa visiting mom. I had 14 the week before, which I forgot to post.
My #5 challenge is very do-able so I actually have a chance of completing this one. Its to clean off and organize my shipping table and list any non-listed items that are on it.
ChristineR – Mercari ran a promotion, something like list “30 items by Oct 2nd, get a $20 coupon towards $50 purchase.” I made sure to list 30 items in order to qualify but then I read the fine print which was I had to leave the listings active thru the 2nd. I couldn’t do that because I was leaving for a week and wouldn’t be able to ship if anything sold. Bummer! I would have used my coupon to purchase a huge lot of Ebay shipping tape someone had listed on Mercari.
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@Julie I didn’t read the fine print either until I had listed the items. I don’t usually spend over $50 on an item but ended up using the coupon on a Pottery Batn duvet from an outlet seller. She wouldn’t ho down too much on her price and I had to use it quickly. Sorry you didn’t get to use yours! I hope they offer it again.
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Zero listings for me last week 🙁
I was hoping to get started listing on eBay today but jet lag and not sleeping (until last night) have taken a toll. I’m doing everything around the house today that I didn’t accomplish due to fatigue over the weekend.
It appears that I picked up an ear infection during our trip. I only catch something once a decade or so though, so I’m still feeling fortunate. Covid in France spiked while we were there but we’d had boosters 2 weeks before we left on vacation. Both my husband and I are currently testing negative. Our friends who were vacationing at the same time as we were (but in Switzerland, Spain and Portugal) both caught Covid there. It ruined their trip, so again I’m feeling super fortunate.
Wishing everyone a healthy and productive week!
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Sharyn – I’ve had 4 shots so far. It would be five but the first one was Johnson & Johnson which was one shot instead of 2. The last was the booster made for the variants. Our friends left for vacation before the variant shot was available so I feel lucky on the timing of our trip.
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Had to actually check the calendar this morning to find out what day it is! Working 7 days a week make sit hard to keep track sometimes!
Sharyn takes the win this week, congratulations!
Did you notice we are on week 40? Yep. Getting down to the wire now!
Sorry about your ear infection, VT, but at least you didn’t get COVID. That would have been awful to have at the same time.
Wishing you all a great week ahead!
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20 listings – kind of surprised I squeezed in that many in the short amount of time I was home over the last week. I spent much of the week out of town – again. Between all the stuff I thrifted when I was in Iowa a few weeks ago plus a huge lot of vintage NOS posters I was given this week while in NC, I have SO MUCH stuff to list! I’m kind of excited to get into the posters – they are from the 1980s and include some nice vintage Chicago Bulls/Michael Jordan posters among others. I’m splitting the profits with a cousin.
Have a great wee, Y’all! I’m really hoping to have a quiet productive week entirely at home this week!
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Only 9 listings for me.
It took me a week to figure out I had a sinus infection. Now that I have the right OTC meds I’m finally feeling better. But as usual for me by the 4th quarter I’m kind of tired of eBay. My listing numbers reflect that.
Wishing everyone a great week!
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I listed 27 items this past week.
My neighbor’s stuff continues to be overwhelming. I need to get to start listing clothes this week, and I think I need to reorganize and buy another shelving unit.
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Hello all! Congrats on your win this week, Christine.
VL is busy with her Show, so I guess we’ll hear back from her in a few days. Photos, VL! We want photos! LOL
Nice, JB. I got a box of movie posters at a thrift store. I bought the whole box and they gave me a discounted price so that it worked out to less than $1 each, but they were generic movies, not cult faves – unfortunately. Of course, the 2 that I looked at were popular and they sold right away. Guess I shoulda looked at more than 2! 😀
Sorry you’re not feeling well, VT. Sending wishes you feel better soon.
It’s really great that you’re taking on such a big task, Sharyn. I cleared out one hoarder’s space about a decade ago and overwhelm was a good way to describe it. It got to the point where my heart was breaking because of the stuff going into the dumpster, but I just knew there was no way I could clear it. Good luck!
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32 new listings for me. Not as many as I’d planned or hoped for but a lot more than I’ve been accomplishing lately – I’ll take it!
I seem to be back on track; I’m feeling well and I have a better attitude. Fingers crossed the listing continues! That being said, my sister will be visiting me this week so I may not get as many listings up as I’d like. But it’s so worth it to see her.
Wishing everyone a wonderful week!
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Glad you are feeling better. I fell down last week with only 10 listings. My daughter had time off school and my husband was out of town. I also just took a night to binge watch The White Lotus on HBO while she was at homecoming so that’s unusual for me. Hope to very much get back on the wagon this week.
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42 listings for me.
Good morning, y’all. In a good place listing-wise. I have a new goal to make a certain amount of profit every day. I hope it will motivate me to keep listing each day before I do anything else, until I reach the daily profit goal. Today’s goal is already met but I tend to have a lot of sales Sunday night into Monday morning. The rest of the week will be the challenge.
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Good morning! Apologies for posting late, I was out the whole day yesterday.
Congrats to Sharyn for winning the week, narrowly pipping JB to the winner’s enclosure!
I’ve been so busy I don’t know whether to check my ass or scratch my watch. Hoping things calm down by the first week of November. Our local quilt show goes up on Friday and I’ve downgraded my original 5 projects to only 3 – and I’m struggling to even get those ready with all the interruptions. My new longarm machine retrofit FINALLY arrived and the machine has been rebuilt. Only problem is that it keeps breaking threads, so Himself is doing a lot of troubleshooting and cussing. This year is also the first year that I’ve taken over the quilt registration program for the show, moving our aged quilting group into the age of technology. (I learned last week that I’m the youngest member of the group – by a decade!) Ye Olde Biddies are a little daunted by the new system (snap a photo with your phone, text it to me with your info – didn’t think I could make it easier!) and so it has been quite a battle to get all the registrations in. So between handling registrations, cussing husbands, longarm test sequences, my own quilting for the show, and normal business operations, it’s been a little cray-cray.
Oh, and I have a Witches Dance Flash Mob coming up this weekend, and a full lighted parade to arrange for November 19, with a possible second round on December 3rd.
Also, my booth in the Antique Mall moved – again. 3rd move in 6 months, but this one is a good one. Himself said I’ve been “moving up” and it’s true. I’m finally making sales. Which has the other problem of constantly needing to add new stock. Honestly, I have no idea how VL does it. She must be Superwoman or something! She even runs huge shows, as well as her eBay/Etsy and booth work!
Wishing you all a wonderful, productive, and less hectic, week!
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63 – that is my highest number of weekly listings this year. My goal of making a certain amt of profit each day is working so far. I only leave the house after I reach the profit goal. I’ve already met the profit goal for today but I need to get listing because tomorrow is another day and another profit goal to meet. 🙂
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WOW Julie, that is a big number! Something I’ve only managed once or twice.
I listed 33 items this week.
@Amatino, oh, sure, a witches flash mob. Something we all do every once in a while. 🙂 -
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Hello I’m back after weeks of Brookhaven! No listings for the weeks I was gone, but I did manage 4 listings last week. We got home at 10pm last Monday night after unloading the truck and man I was tired…I must have took half a dozen naps the next few days. But it was worth it! Had a very successful show and sold tons of things. We even managed to do several YouTube videos about the show…my favorite is about what it takes to set up the show…..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC0bX2ZCOoI&t=796s
We also had one of our videos go viral…with almost ten thousand views! I filmed my friend’s house which is decorated with a fantastic collection of vintage Halloween.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRzoBKx6D3g&t=450s
Y’all are doing so well with your listings…it certainly is inspiring me to get back into it!
And Amatino…a witche’s flash mob dance? Video or it didn’t happen!
Happy Halloween everyone!
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Wow, JB, that’s a fabulous number! Too bad you’re an Honorable Mention this year, that would have been a landslide for this week. Instead, Sharyn takes the win with a very respectable second.
VL, that video on how you set up Brookhaven is fantastic! “Magic” is the word, for sure! That Halloween house though… it kind of creeped me out! I’m not good with Halloween, I prefer Christmas. I’m a weenie, I know! LOL
Sharyn and VL – ha! Well, we danced. It turned into just a display rather than a Flash Mob, but it was very well received. And Lacy, “video” or it didn’t happen? Isn’t it usually “photo” or it didn’t happen? 😛 Unfortunately I didn’t get a video, but one of the audience members did a Livestream on Facebook, which you can access here https://www.facebook.com/MelissaMuseArt/videos/492344129494934
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@Amatino – It’s the beginning of the month!
I know that most aren’t working towards their monthly challenges as they had hoped, but I want you to know that I purposely did NOT work on mine this month.
My challenge was “Buy 2-4 higher priced items at auction with lower ROI but higher dollars”. Problem is that I did not know at the end of last year that I would have a consignment agreement with my neighbor that would absolutely flood my home with inventory. I am just running out of space, and I can’t do any additional shopping except for a random rummage or garage sale here and there.
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ROFL! I was just thinking that Sharyn hadn’t put up a reminder, but it turns out that I didn’t get the reminder notification!
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Well, Sharyn, you have a good excuse. With a huge hoard to deal with, you absolutely don’t want to do extra shopping. VT and VL both have the excuse of moving house, and everyone knows it takes about five years to deal with that mess! Me? Am I allowed to say I’ve just been too busy? 😛
My #10 was to clear another shelf. I can tell you right now it’s not going to happen. I’m swamped!
What do you all have and do you plan to do it?
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Honorable Mention to JB for an impressive listing total, and the win goes to Sharyn, aka Hopalong Cassidy. 😉 Seriously, though, sorry to hear that you’ve damaged yourself. May I recommend that you get an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon? My doctors told me I sprained my ankle after falling down a flight of stairs, but after I was still in agony 3 weeks later, I went to see an ortho who told me I had snapped all 3 ligaments in my foot – and it was now too late to do anything about it! It doesn’t show up on x-ray as it’s not bone. Sending you best wishes that it IS just a sprain and you’ll be back to full steam ahead soon. And you can put your leg up on a cushion while you online shop for your lamp supplies…. 😉
Wishing everyone a great week.
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@Amatino – Thanks for that suggestion. I think I will take it.
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38 listings for me – but quite a few of those were multi-quant listings so hopefully they’ll result in quite a few cha-chings soon.
I spent quite a bit of yesterday organizing & cleaning my ebay room. It must be something about this time of year because according to my Facebook Memories, I did the same thing on this date 7 years ago, hehe. My operation has grown substantially since then. It’s going to take me a few more days to get the room back under control.
Have a productive week everyone!
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I listed 25 items. The ankle is feeling much better, and it didn’t really slow me down. I had other things to attend to.
I did call an orthopedics office but decided it wasn’t needed.
Seems like my things to do list (outside of eBay) never actually shrinks. I start to make progress, but other things come up and fill up the spots I just checked off.
On Friday evening, a dead tree on the vacant lot next to us fell on our house. My husband and I are now dealing with the tree service, roofing company, and insurance company, and I need to forward all the communications I had with the landowner a few weeks ago stating that the tree was dead and needed to be removed ASAP. Guess what he didn’t do?
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Good morning, all.
Well done on the great numbers, JB. Good luck with your clean up.
Good for you, VT! I haven’t been in a gym for years, mostly because there isn’t one close to me. A 40+ mile round trip and two hours lost in a day just doesn’t cut it right now.
Sending best wishes that it’s a mild case, VL, and that you get over it quickly.
OMG! Sharyn, were you guys in the house when it fell? I’m guessing nobody was hurt, or you’d have mentioned. Wow, that’s horrible.
I don’t have anything horrible to report. I’ve just been insanely busy. Having completed the quilt show, a quilting class, and a bunch of other stuff, I now have to prep for a parade on Saturday night where the day temps are below 40’F. And it’s a night parade. I tried to suggest to the ladies that we sit this one out but they’re all gung ho. Madness!
Wishing you all a great week!
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Woo hoo! I actually completed my monthly challenge! It’s amazing what I can accomplish when given 48 hours notice that we’ll be having out of town guests! I have a crafters table that is pretty heavy and has crappy wheels. I believe it was Joann’s fabric purchase from back when I used to make quilts. I cleaned it all off and moved it to basement to store.
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@Julie great job! We also have company coming and I’ve got a bunch of stuff in the living room for priority listing. Keep finding more holiday stuff. I think I only have 5-6 Christmas items left and one thanksgiving in the wash.
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I did not manage to list anything this past week. Apart from being busy with other stuff, I was also sick for two days. I had some kind of stomach thing. However, I have a large number of drafts that will make quick work after I photograph the items. Next week will be better.
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no listings last week. Charlie and I have covid again. It turns out that the strain my mom has is different than the strain my dad had, so we have the dubious distinction of catching covid from both parents, at different times. We were assured by her doctor that it was highly unlikely that we could catch it from her, since we’d had it so recently, but apparently highly unlikely isn’t the same as impossible, because it WAS possible. Just a heads up, folks. There are a lot of different highly contagious strains floating around out there….be careful.
2022 has been a very interesting year.
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Sharyn and Vintage Lacy, I’m so sorry to hear you were both ill. Sharyn, my friends got that stomach bug and they were both sick for a month, so I’m glad that yours only lasted 2 days. Vintage Lacy, how terrible that you’ve managed to not get Covid for so long only to have it twice in rapid succession. I hope you recover ASAP!
35 new listings for me last week. 35 is the number I try for every week. But I believe the last time I managed it was in April. It’s been a busy year for me outside of eBay I guess.
Wishing everyone a healthy and happy week ahead!
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28. Posting late because we had company and now we’re babysitting my 2 grand dogs. 1 is a needy 11 lb Brussels Griffon and the other is a 120 lb Beauceron that feels a little like having a horse in the house. At least he is well trained. My 50 lb arthritic mutt is not a big fan of the big dog so I have to watch everyone a little more closely than I expected. But husband, who is the dog person will be back today after a few days out of town and he can take over dog duties.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
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Sorry you were ill VT, hope you are on the mend quickly! We are finally feeling better in our household, although much more fatigued than usual….which I think is normal.
41 listings last week. I spent a lot of time listing over the weekend, once I realized how much Christmas I still had to list.
I finally watched the “witch dance live feed” Amatino….how fun!
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Wow, JB, that’s a big dog! Nice of you to dog sit. My dogs would not put up with “interlopers” so I don’t have that option.
Honorable mention to VL for an excellent listing number, but this week’s win goes to Sharyn.
Are we taking it in turns? I hope not! Sorry to hear that it’s your turn to be sick, VT, and I hope you feel fantastic again soon!
Yay, VL. Glad you enjoyed the video. We had fun, but I’m probably going to give it a rest for a couple years now. It was fun to do, but I won’t mind missing out next year. I have enough to do with my normal dance classes. On that note… Funny story: I’ve been begged for years, years!, to do a Burlesque class. I finally capitulated and said we would do it in January, because we don’t strip naked in class. We wear a tight outfit with our “stripper clothes” on top, so that the moves can be right but there are no nekkid displays. The new catalog information was sent out and it went through all the different levels. To the top. The Head Honcho. She cancelled my class – they don’t hold with none of that stuff here! 😀
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Posting late again – only 12 listings last week due to being preoccupied with a house full of dogs. My dog ended up getting along great with the 2 visiting dogs. They left yesterday. Now to tackle the tumbleweeds of dog hair that’s floating around the house.
Burlesque class would not be for the faint of heart. It reminds me of the stripper pole dancing classes that were popular about 10 years ago. They were advertised as fitness classes and gyms all over the country were installing stripper poles. No actual stripping, but we did have to wear stilletos! I took a few classes but did not have the upper body strength necessary to do any of the pole “tricks” ha ha.
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It was a disappointing listing week for me last week with zero listings. Unfortunately the antibiotic I was taking last week didn’t do the trick and I’m now on a stronger antibiotic for a longer course. I just wasn’t feeling up to listing last week…
I’m feeling better though, at least as far as eBay listing goes. I’ve already completed five listings for this week and tied my total from two weeks ago in just one morning.
I’m headed out of town this Friday for a long weekend so I’m not expecting huge listing numbers this week, but it’s nice to know this week will be an improvement over the last two.
Wishing everyone a great listing week!
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Wow, a new record here folks. The first time we have a winner because they were the only one to list anything!
Sharyn, congrats on your win. It may not feel like much, but YOU LISTED! So you won. Go you!
Due to the epic failure of the Challenges this year, I seriously considered cancelling the monthly challenges entirely. However, after giving it some thought, I have a new Challenge in the works. As usual, I will release it a week or so before the new year to give you time to prepare.
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P.S. Forgot to tell you that I have added a new column to the end of the spreadsheet. It is an “average listing” column that shows what your average listing has been per week for the year to date. It auto-updates as I add each week, so it’s accurate for each week’s numbers. This should help you set your goals for next year.
Unless you have absolutely had an extraordinary year of upheavals, your new goals should only be a small improvement on this year’s average. If you couldn’t list more than your average this year, what massive changes are you implementing to list more next year? Small steps, folks, create big wins. The secret is to keep on keeping on. You can scroll back through the year and see your listings over time. Where were your highs? Your lows? Think about what was going on in your life during those periods? How can you extend the highs and reduce the lows? If you can consistently list, say, 5 per week, by the end of the year you’ve listed 260 items. The word “consistently” is your catch – what happened during the weeks you listed zero? What do you need to change to allow you to list in those periods next year? Or, if you cannot change, can you factor in an extra listing per week to cover the weeks you can’t list?
You have about three weeks to work over your listing history and make some plans. All of our previous years are in the spreadsheet, look at the tabs at the bottom, so you have full access to all your listings over time.
In the new year, I’ll be asking for your new goal number.
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One thing I realized recently is that my increase in listing this year is due to the consignment “job” I have. I don’t have to (actually, can’t) spend time at auctions, online or live, or garage sales. I don’t have room in my house to bring in my own inventory.
My neighbor finally closed on his new house. He will fix up that house until he is ready to move. We agreed that I wouldn’t do any more work until the beginning of next year, then I think I will finish up in by the end of January. I will probably be listing his stuff until the middle of next year. Maybe longer if I decide to scavenge a bit once some room opens up.
I think my goal will be to slow down after his stuff is listed. Not sure how I will reflect that in my goals.
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14 for me.
I have several listings in draft mode, and I’ve been cleaning up some winter type clothing, so I should do better next week.
@christineR – Ha! I was so happy to finish up on Christmas, and then I saw some boxed ornaments that I left on an office shelf. I guess I got a couple more to do. I am pretty sick of them as well. -
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I’m posting late but I knew I wouldn’t be in contention for being the top lister last week so no worries. Only 11 for me last week despite starting out well. Being out of town for half the week really put a crimp in my available listing time. I got back last night so I’m starting out with a short week this week as well, but I’m hoping to have better numbers going forward.
Once again this year I’ve left most of my Christmas items unlisted too late. The few I got up have been selling though.
Wishing everyone a very productive week!
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When it’s time to start a new diet/exercise plan/declutter program/listing goal, you know how you think “I’ll start at the beginning of the week!” but then Monday comes and you should have used Sunday for planning so that you knew what to do on Monday?
You know how you think “well, I’ll start in the new month.” But then the first day of the new month falls in the middle of the week?
You know how you think “okay, it’s nearly the end of the year, I’ll start in the New Year.” But then the New Year arrives and your resolutions don’t survive?
You know how they add numbers? Like 2023. 2+0+2+3 = 7. In numerology, the number seven is the number for perfection!
What does this all mean for you?
The first day of the first week of the first month of the perfect year – is a Sunday!
You’re going to have a Superb Sunday Start in two weeks!
And a new challenge!
Start thinking about it now. Look around you. What do you need to get done? Anything, from the smallest item (pick up that candy cane wrapper that is under the chair) (why can’t these kids pick up after themselves!) to the ginormous oh-my-goodness-I-need-help items (build a cabin for my storage.) Just list everything you need to do, everything you want to do. Literally brain dump everything you have pending, or plan to have pending, or wish to have pending.
Do it any way that works for you. Categorize it, if you like: family, fun, friends, finances, fitness, faith, home, health, hobby. If you’re into mind maps, create one. If you prefer lists, list away. If you like spreadsheets, spread ’em, baby! Make it work. As long as you do your homework this week.
Homework: brain dump EVERYTHING you have on your mind to do next year. I mean everything! It must be in writing, whether by pen, paintbrush, sharpie, or digital. I don’t care if you tape a giant piece of blank newsprint to the door and write your list on that. Just purge your mind! Report back during this week on how you’re doing. Discuss, confer.
Next step next Sunday.
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Hi Amatino, you sure are good at motivating.
I’m thinking a little smaller than this but here goes.
Diet. Started app tracking, eating more veggies and less wheat a couple of months back. It’s helping but need to add in more regular exercise.
Mindfulness practice. I’m so lousy with this but under quite a bit of stress so need to remind myself.
Ebay. I have some listed and unlisted stuff living inside two of my living spaces that needs to get put in the garage. Keeping up with any purchases. In the new year, I plan to start with listing the love-to-buy-but-hate-to-list-but-it-sells-well linens and vintage fabric. I also need to Marie Kondo my personal closet and list that stuff on Mercari.
Bathroom Remodel. We have our insurance settlement and I need to pronto get on choosing a vanity. I’m trying to be cheap and don’t really want to deal tbh. Needs to happen. Then I get lost in the tile process. I love love tile but can’t choose and pick expensive tile.
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Zero listings for last week. Super busy with orders, and also still have lingering fatigue. Plus we had five Christmas trees to put up! I checked out my numbers as you suggested Amatino, and this year I averaged just over 18 a week. Granted, it was an unusually challenging year, but I think I need to set my sights on a more realistic goal, moving forward. I really liked the idea of doing 2020 or 2021 and so forth, but I haven’t achieved my goal once in the five years we’ve been doing this and it would be nice to actually reach it next year! SO I have decided to set my weekly goal next year to 25. I think it’s doable!
I have started making my list, as the homework assignment for this week.
Hope everyone has a great week ahead! Happy Holidays, whichever one you celebrate!
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35 listings.
I’ve occasionally made giant list of things I need/want to do. I call it a Master To Do list. Sometimes I’ll come across one of my older lists from years ago and there will still be items that I haven’t done. If nothing else, it helps getting things down on paper and out of my head.
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25 new listings for me last week.
Amatino: your idea is fantastic! Thank you so much for running this section of the forum and working so hard on motivating us all.
I’m not much for making giant lists (I can barely manage a daily mental list) so this homework should be enlightening.
Wishing everyone Happy Holidays!!!
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I had 24 listings this week, mostly clothing.
I’ve switched from Christmas/gift-y stuff to clothing. I’ll have to throw a few electronic/large items in there before the new year.
This year, many of my challenges had to do with me finding balance with my day job, and then my neighbor asked me to take on a consignment to help with his downsizing. It’s been a great opportunity, but it has been overwhelming. I need to complete that job and then have some me time. My list, which I’ve started, will reflect that.
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While JB gets an Honorable Mention (two weeks left and you’re back in the running!) for her terrific numbers, VT gets the win this week. Congrats on great numbers during the Silly Season!
I’m glad you all like my ideas. I admit to being stumped at first, it’s hard to come up with new stuff that is actually worth the effort, but I feel good about what I have planned.
You’ve all gone for lists, which is great if that works for you. It overwhelms me. I like to see pictures, so I’m a mind mapper! However, with the sheer volume of stuff I have downloaded from my brain, I’ve ended up with lists in my preliminary outline. I will rework these to be more “mappy” when I’m working on next week’s homework.
I began by creating a giant mind map of everything. Then, on a separate page for each category, I listed absolutely everything I could think of. Obviously, I began by creating my first category on the main page, then listing stuff under that category. If something else popped into my head, I would just add the main page category and then create a new list. This way I can keep adding if anything else occurs to me.
All the pages are stored in a folder for easy access.
Over the next two weeks, I’ll just keep jotting stuff down as it comes up. Well…. I’ll probably just keep adding over the next twelve months! 😀
Try to make your lists/maps/spreadsheets/whatever-you-end-up-with as comprehensive as possible. You are going to start the year with a clean slate, so you need to empty your mind of absolutely every teeny weeny
polka dot.. er… item, no matter whether or not it is related to eBay or inconsequential or embarrassing. You don’t have to share everything here. You don’t have to share anything, but sharing a few items helps you to feel accountable. You get to choose what you want to share. So just blurp* it all out into your recipient media of choice, and wipe your brain clean of having to worry or remember anything. Next Sunday we’ll take the next step.*super professional words here! 😉
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Good morning, everyone! Did you all have a fantastic Christmas? Were you all spoiled rotten? Have you all put on several extra pounds, so today you’re wearing your stretchy pants? For me, yes to all the above! LOL
Apologies for not posting yesterday. I meant to, I did! But… Christmas, you know!
Okay, so did you all empty your minds onto paper/digital? Everything is out there? This week’s homework then! This week is all about reflection and planning. Yep, we’re going to plan to plan! I want you to go over all your mental purge and consider the items listed. WHY haven’t you done it yet?
The most common reasons for not clearing items off our TDL are: time, tools, or terror.
Time:
Did anyone hear the COVID joke “2019: the reason I haven’t done stuff is because I don’t have enough time. 2021: nope, that isn’t it!”Yes, we are all busy and it can be inconceivable to find time to fit stuff in. Yet I promise you, a little (honest) introspection will reveal how much time you waste. Finding extra minutes in your day is possible; it’s making them work that is the problem!
The biggest issue with time is more “timetable” than actually finding time, though. If you do find a few minutes free, you’d rather “Netflix and wine”, than “elbow grease and shine”, amiright? For 2023, I want you to consider your agendas, your schedule, and your commitments. “No” is a complete sentence; could be you need to use it a little more often. Can you actually cross things off your schedule? Delegate or negate? Can you shuffle things around so that you do ‘like’ items together? Gym run and shopping run back to back, for example (they’re both exercise, kinda!) Facebook time and check email time while you’re online, then turn both off and focus on your TDL. Can you set a timer to reduce stuff that wastes time (Facebook, Insta, TikTok)? Or to create a deadline – set a timer for 20 minutes and work like mad to get as much done in those 20 minutes as you can?
Tools:
The biggest lesson I learned from quilting is that the correct tools can make you faster AND better! If you need the tools, buy the danged tools! This is NOT blanket permission to go buy that fad trending item you’ve been shipping! But if you know you will be more productive with a new device that you need, go find a good deal and get a new one. Yes, it’s an outlay of cash, but if you save 20 minutes a day by not fussing with the old (insert item), that’s nearly 2 hours a week! Have you ever considered whether your tools and supplies are slowing you down? Watch yourself as you work this week with this in mind.Terror:
Fear has the biggest hidden impact on our lives. This past week, I learned of a lady who was de-cluttering and found an old notebook with her To Do Lists of 2017. A lot of those items were still on her TDL of 2022! How many of the items on your TDL are things that you need to tackle, but you’re nervous? They’re very big tasks, and you’re overwhelmed by the sheer scale of them? They have specialized tools or knowledge requirements and you’re daunted? They have painful/special/heartrending memories associated with them, and you’re afraid to even go there?Which of the items on your huge mind dump fall into any of these 3 categories? What can you do/implement/change so that this year you CAN actually do them? Do you need to change your schedule? Buy new tools? Or get over some fear (real or fancied, it’s all real in your mind) or develop some new skills? Don’t worry, you don’t have to do any of these yet, your homework is to think about them this week. If you haven’t done these things in the past, what is going to be different about 2023 that will allow you to do them? The goal here is to hit the ground running, already braced for what you’re going to achieve!
Check back tomorrow for Part 2 of this week’s homework!
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22 listings for me last week.
I can’t think for the whole year but went ahead and posted my short term goals here. @Retro posted some Ebay goals that are in line with mine. I’ve been catching myself thrifting $15-20 items which I really should stop doing since I have a big backlog. Also need to list and discount pillows and larger items – they take up so much space and I want to get my Ebay stuff out of the guest room closet. I have a bit of inventory consolidating to do as well.
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Zero listings for me last week. I had a LOT of shipping from last minute shoppers and we’re having a big family reunion this week so any spare time was spent making the farmhouse lovely.
I’ve thought a LOT about my master list of things I want to accomplish next year and it’s very very LARGE. It’s a bit overwhelming and I know I should cut some of it, but it all seems important goals to me, so that’s difficult.
Help me, Obi Wan Amatino!
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There are three less common reasons for not getting tasks completed. They are: willpower; won’t power; and want to want to.
Willpower
Did you know that willpower is like a muscle? The more you exercise it, the stronger it gets. Similarly, the less you work it, the more it atrophies. Without constant attention, you can end up with zero willpower at all. Lack of willpower is often accompanied by some of the biggest excuses. You can easily recognize people who have none by listening to their “reasons.” (Yes, it’s in air quotes deliberately!) They will tell you they are exhausted after working a full day. (Nobody else works that hard and still gets stuff done!) They are injured, or they’ve been sick, or their spouse/kids/dog doesn’t help. (Please note: being injured or sick are valid reasons for not doing stuff. Unless you have cancer or something, you DO have good days where you could get to some of your tasks.) Yes, some of your excuses are valid some days, but for the most part you are not exercising any willpower.To resolve this, you need to start small. You can’t go to the gym and start pumping 500lb dumbbells – you have to give yourself time to build up to the big leagues. When I say small, I mean really small. “I will wipe the counters every night for a month!” Yes – a month. It will take that long for you to actually achieve this, because there will be many nights when you don’t do it. After a month, you can up the ante to “I will wash dishes and wipe the counters every night for a month.” And so on. You can do it – you just have to want to.
Won’t power.
There are some tasks that you don’t want to do. Sometimes these are Sisyphean tasks that burn you out. Like making the bed or washing dishes. Clearing emails or tidying up the stock room. No matter how many times you do it, you still have to do it again. Sometimes these are tasks that you resent, because somebody else should be doing it, but it’s dumped on you. Sometimes they are things that you know you’re going to be in trouble for. E.g. you know you’re going to get a huge tax penalty for not doing your taxes on time, and your spouse is going to be mad at you. So you don’t do your taxes because you don’t want to deal with the fallout.These are tasks you just won’t do. You either ignore them until they explode hot air and spit over everyone. Or you hide them, or shuffle them around. They hang over you and cloud your day and your thoughts, and haunt your dreams at night.
These tasks are often combined with the other more common reasons. You don’t do them because you don’t have the tools, the time, the knowledge. Or, as mentioned, you’re afraid. These are also some of the hardest tasks to identify, as they’re the most camouflaged with excuses!
So what can you do? Well, the first step is to identify them. The next step is to figure out why. Why are they STILL on your list? And the last step is to figure out what to do with them. Eat the frog and get it over with? Cross them off the list, let’s be honest, you’ll never do them? Seek professional help/go to your boss to discuss/quit and get a new job?
Want to Want to
The final category is the one where you don’t actually want to do the item on your list. These are the items where society/norms/parents/management/environment say that something is normal, or desired. For example, it’s good to go for a walk every day. It’s healthy, it promotes cardiovascular fitness, it clears the mind. So you put Walk Every Day on your TDL. But you HATE walking! So you don’t actually WANT to walk every day. You “want to” want to walk every day. Geddit?To deal with these issues you have two options:
1.) find an alternative. If you don’t like walking, can you dance? Play pickleball. Do some hula hooping? In the Lose It! diet app, there is a huge section with exercise options you can log. It includes things like housework, gardening, and even sex. If you don’t like the “normal” mode of a to-do item, figure out what you wanted to get out of it, and find an alternative that fits.Or (2.) delete it. If the only reason something is on your list is to fit in with other-dictated outcomes, perhaps you shouldn’t have it on your list at all?
Final recap: there is a huge amount of stuff from your brain dump. This week you have to go through all of it and decide:
– why it’s there;
– what you have to do or need to get to be able to do it; and
– how you’re going to make it happen this year when you didn’t do it last year.Next week is the first day of the first week of the first month of the perfect year. And it’s a Sunday. I will post your Challenge for the year, and we will begin.
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Well done, JB, on another Honorable Mention. Looks like we’re going to have to work to beat you next year! However, Christine took the win! Based on your numbers lately, you could be another favorite for next year’s winner! LOL. Congrats on your win this week.
Happy birthday, VT. Hope you had a good one.
Lacy, you and me both! My list spans PAGES! What to do, what to do? Well, firstly, go over the two long posts I’ve put up about reasons for not getting them done. I’ve experimented with marking mine as Fast & Easy, Easy but not fast, Fast but not easy, and neither fast nor easy. It seemed like a great idea, but it’s not actually feasible for most of my TDLs. However, when I started looking at them using the reasons I’ve mentioned, it made more sense. Some things are items I just hate doing, others are because I’ve been pushed into a corner by other commitments. Some things are because I don’t have the right tools (cough… camera… .cough cough) and others are because I just don’t exercise enough willpower. It HURTS to be honest, but it sure helps!
Fingers crossed the Challenge next week will be what we need to get things moving!
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Just a couple days left until the end of the year and I’m working on creating the new spreadsheet.
Here are your averages for 2022. Based on these numbers, and your expected listing abilities (time/other commitments/family issues/work/etc.) what would you like me to put in for your goals next year?
Amatino 2.2
ChristineR 12.9
Julie B 28.2
Junque Redux 1.0
Sharyn 23.4
UtahBill 8.0
Vintage Lacy 17.3
Vintage Treasures 20.7 -
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Happy New Years!
@Amatino – Are you going to start a new post for 2023? -
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I had zero as well for similar reasons. We visited my sister and her family, and my parents came out as well. My mom flew out two days late because she got stuck in the whole Southwest debacle.
@Amatino – Thanks! I didn’t want to post and mess anything up. -
20 new listings for me. I was doing great with listing until I realized I was ill again and went back to the doctor for my third course of antibiotics for the same recurring problem. I don’t have lofty listing goals for this week since I’m not feeling top notch.
Thanks for the birthday wishes, it was a lovely day!
Wishing everyone a happy and healthy 2023!
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Apologies for not posting yesterday, I had the worst attack of Cedar Fever and felt like I’d lost a fight with a Mack truck!
Final week of the year, and VT took the win! Julie had Honorable Mention again!
Our winner this year is Sharyn! Woot woot! \o/ \o/ \o/ \o/
Sharyn cannot win next year, but Julie and Vintage Lacy both return to the field, so the competition is going to be hot!
Well done all of you on a great year!
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THIS THREAD IS CLOSED!
Please go to the 2023 thread here to post.
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