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Great week, everyone! VT rocketed to another win, almost double the rest of us! Go Rocketeer VT!
Spreadsheet updated. Nice to see almost everyone on board with the challenge!
Discussion:
Sharyn, I can’t figure how to automate eBay listings, unless you have one of those software programs like SixBit where it does end/relist and stuff. I’d love to know if you figure something out, though!
Topic #2:
“The brain can be reprogrammed. You just have to be deliberate about it. Replacement habits only become durable behaviors when they are accompanied by belief. A community creates belief. When people join groups where change seems possible, the potential for that change to occur becomes more real.
For habits to permanently change, people must believe that change is feasible. Belief is easier when it occurs in a community.
If you want to change a habit, you must first find an alternative routine. And your odds of success go up dramatically when you commit to changing as part of a group. Belief is essential, and it grows out of a communal experience, even if that community is only as large as two people!”
Serendipity or coincidence? Not sure, but I found myself laughing as I wrote this because I have experienced this very power just this last week – and commented about it yesterday when I posted my numbers! Maybe the universe wanted me to be able to affirm this week’s topic, or perhaps it was just coincidence, but it was due to having someone behind me, reinforcing my decision to improve my listing habits, that got me to have such a high listing number for the week.
Having a group of two seems to work for me, but I think part of the benefit is that my partner is very positive. She believes that we can do it, and she’s never rude, but she’s quietly insistent that I make it work. This belief factor is as important as the accountability, and the accountability is what makes it so effective.
When I first started this group, I called it Trash Elf Twins and each one of us paired off against a partner who listed very similar numbers. I noticed that the second year, when I dropped the Twins factor, my “twin” from that first round dropped out. I’ve sputtered along for a couple years, but in the last year when I got together with my eBay Bestie, I’ve gotten better at running my eBay store. I can quite honestly say, from experience, that it works!
LOL. JR, that sounds like a brilliant idea! Only… I guess it will be 10% of the previous week, right? So this week, you have to list 4 or 5, depending on if you’re rounding up! Love it!
I had a humdinger week, with my Bestie and I spurring each other on to get stuff listed! Listed 21 items with 3 meeting the challenge. Wow! I’m really lucky to have my own personal, pitchfork-wielding, butt-prodding bestie to make it happen. I guarantee I wouldn’t have listed so much if she hadn’t been challenging me, and vice versa! LOL
JR, perhaps you need to find someone for accountability?
JB, whichever you need. This is a personal issue. Do you NOT have a listing cue at the moment? Then you need to create one. If you DO have a listing cue, but you’re using the cue to go down the rabbit hole of research, or end reading Facebook, you need to change it.
Well done, VT, for another great win this week!
Spreadsheet updated!
I want to introduce a Discussion Topic. Julie B mentioned that she was having a problem with getting distracted. This is an issue that I, too, struggle with, and I’ve been doing a lot of introspection and research. I stumbled across a book; The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, and have been working through it. Some of the information translates well to eBay and I thought for the month of September, before the true rush of the year begins, I would give you nuggets each week to chew on and discuss. I’ve love to get us really talking about these topics, because the input of the group leads to some true treasures!
Week 1
Habits are a 3-step loop:
1. a cue
2. a routine
3. a rewardYou can never truly extinguish bad habits…. Rather, to change a habit, you must keep the old cue and deliver the old reward, but insert a new routine. … This is the Golden Rule of habit change.
Describing what triggers habitual behaviour is called Awareness Training. It seems ridiculously simple, but once you’re aware of how your habit works, once you recognize the cues and rewards, you’re halfway to changing it.
An example of the habit loop was given as smoking. A cue can be whatever makes you reach for a smoke; a stressful event, a fight with your boss, a phone call that made you angry. The routine would be to dig out your pack of cigarettes. The reward would be the rush of nicotine.
I’ve never smoked, but I understand the principle of it. Going to my bad habits (eep, getting personal here!) when I was married to my abusive ex-husband, I turned to comfort eating. It’s an incredibly hard habit to break! Anything that makes me feel down, lonely, bored, angry – and I want something to eat. I’ve been rid of that man for nearly 2 decades, but I still fight with comfort eating. Would that I could have divorced the habit with the husband!
This is both a horrible example, because there are so many cues that trigger it! And a good example, because life is never as simple as a scientific theory! LOL
So, pick a cue: I’m bored. Please note, being busy is not a cure for being bored! I’m ALWAYS busy, but sometimes I’m bored with what I’m doing. I go find a snack. I eat it and have the temporary serotonin flood (my reward.) An alternate routine that would have the same reward would be to go for a walk. It’s a fact that exercise releases endorphins, so I would have the same result (feel good hormones) without the downside of guilt and self-criticism, and hating my weight.
Now, the above is about changing a habit, but the same principle can be used to create a habit. A habit of listing, for example! What cue, and routine can you implement that would give you the reward of completed listings?
Happy Labor Day, y’all!
Wow, I managed 15 listing this week! O.O! How exciting. None met the challenge.
And yes, clothing is included! Which updates to hats and purses and totes and shoes as well.
Thanks for posting the updated stats. Very interesting! I’ll be following for as long as you keep updating.
See Thread #3
I put in there as this thread is closed and I didn’t want folks to be confused coming back here.
September Challenge: TEXTILES!
Sheets, towels, curtains, doilies, rugs, blankets, quilts, throws, comforters, table cloths, kitchen towels, bathroom rugs, table runners, placemats, napkins (not paper napkins!), Christmas tree skirts, Christmas stockings, fabric (by the yard or pieces), fabric bolts, upholstery fabric, pillow cases, cushion covers, throw rugs, hall runners.
Did we include clothing into this category? Somebody remind me!
September ends on a Thursday this year, so numbers must post on FRIDAY OCTOBER 1st.
This thread is closed.
For listings for the balance of 2021, please go here.
August Challenge winner, with so many listed there’s no way we could possibly catch up, VT!!!
Wow, you really knocked this one out of the park!
JB clocks in 2nd, Sharyn takes 3rd, and I tag along with a participation point. Well done everyone!
Wow, JB, what a great week! Congrats! And, as a reward, you won the week!
Spreadsheet updated.
Today is the last day for the August Challenge. Please post your numbers tomorrow.
ADMIN ANNOUNCEMENT!
Due to J&R deciding to discontinue the podcast and not having decided the future of the forum, we will be continuing with the TELC here, but I will be actively searching for alternatives so that we have something set up if we need it. I have considered Facebook private group, Slack, GroupMe, and email. I’ve also considered creating a blog, just for us. Reddit is out because of trolls and it’s way too public. Suggestions welcome. Input on whether you’d like to continue or commentary on how best to proceed is also welcome.
My bad! Just got out to the cabin, looked at the weekly planner where I log my listings, and I actually did TEN this week! I felt so sick I completely forgot about one whole day! LOL
Good morning! Whooo-eeee, did I do great this week! I managed to list HALF of what VT did. Seeing as she’s been on a roll the past few weeks, I’m feelin’ right proud o’ meself! 😀
6 for me, none met the challenge. It’s been a bit of a rough week and I’ve not been feeling well. I think it’s the EBV putting in another peek to piss me off! Himself and I spent Saturday ripping the garage apart so that we could organize the graveyard. He decided that the skeletons would be dismantled down to the most usable parts, and the carcasses will go to scrap metal, and all the machines that can be refurbished went into climate-controlled storage in my poor, overburdened shed. With over two dozen in each of those categories, almost another dozen in the “maybe” pile (he has to check if they are ‘refurbish’ or ‘parts’), we ended up with 109 machines in the graveyard. Yikes! Each of the graveyard machines has been tagged with a number, and a spreadsheet created with tag #, make, model, and location, for easy search in future. We cleared a huge amount of space, he spent all of yesterday stripping the carcasses, and it looks very organized now!
This is one half of our 400sqft garage, with work in progress.
Thank you for posting this! It’s very helpful.
Now, I know there’s a chance I will get shot down as “conspiracy theory” but I’ve seen a few people post about an increase in views when they logged promoted listings. eBay pushed it really hard in their videos in the open. Basically, we’re being charged by eBay to have our listings viewed and, if you don’t want to pay, you don’t get to play. I believe that we’re being hit for not promoting our listings. I would have loved to have seen what happened if you did the end/relist without the promoted listings!
But, holy smokes, Batman! Did the end/relist ever work for you! Nice one!
