Savannah J. Goins's Blog

Understanding Enneagram Eights Through Popular Characters

Nicknamed The Challenger, an Enneagram Eight tends to be characterized by a strong personality. Their passion and drive are admirable, but their intensity can feel like they're bowling you over and stomping you into the mud.

Oftentimes though, Eights don’t realize they come across so strongly, especially to other types that tend to be more sensitive, because Eights only have their own high tolerance for confrontation to measure against.

Eights are highly motivated to protect themselves by being in control of their own life because their greatest fear is being vulnerable to harm or control by others. They’re pros at defending themselves and anyone else who they deem is being treated unjustly, and fighting for a cause is their jam. Sound familiar? See if you recognize these traits in the Enneagram Eight characters from popular TV and books below!

Well-Known Enneagram Eight Characters from Popular TVMax Mayfield from Stranger Things

Max Mayfield takes no crap from anyone. She’s used to being bullied by her significantly older and bigger stepbrother, and she’s developed a strong personality and aptitude to fight for herself. When her stepdad leaves and it’s just herself and her mom (who’s usually either working or passed out drunk), she’s back to fending for herself once again.

We also see her tendency to push people away (i.e. Lucas) rather than let them see her in a vulnerable state.

Eren Yeager from Attack on Titan

Motivated by protecting his friends initially, and later more by justice in the form of punishment for the people responsible for most of the bad things in his and his friends’ lives, he goes to some really intense lengths to bring about retribution.

He also errs on the side of unnecessary harshness, even with his closest friends, as the story progresses and the outlook grows more grim.

Well-Known Enneagram Eight Characters from Popular BooksCelaena Sardothien from Throne of Glass

No one tells her what to do, and no one gets away with working against her. Like most Eights, she had to grow up fast to survive and was responsible for her own and others’ well being very early on.

We also see her fight for justice in multiple circumstances, such as risking her life by turning in fake evidence of the people she was supposed to assassinate after helping those people get to safety.

Quinn from On Wings of Ash and Dust

Forced to grow up fast and compete with many men for her dream job as a high-ranking soldier in her Father’s army, Quinn is crushed when she fails. But like the Eight that she is, she finds another start as the captain of a pirate ship leading her crew to victory after victory.

Later on, during the Ethodine Trials, when both the external and internal protective measures she’s constructed are stripped away, she has to risk being vulnerable not only with new friends, but also with an enemy.

Her struggle with this and results of it are especially interesting and entertaining because her personality type is arguably the one that would have the hardest time in that circumstance. (Go read it now if you haven’t already!)

Selverine from Whisper of Weapons

Selverine is a mean girl princess with a POV in Whisper of Weapons. While she initially uses her Eight strengths selfishly to the detriment of others, there’s more to her than meets the eye.

In the sequel, House of Hybrids, her drive for justice shifts from self-centered ambition to protecting a friend in danger and helping her become emotionally healthy after escaping a lifetime of abuse. Selverine is an example of an unhealthy Eight becoming healthier as her story progresses.

The Challenge for Eights

These characters are highly motivated by justice and fear being vulnerable. They are often accused of being hot-tempered, when in reality, they are a using tough demeanor as a defense mechanism to protect their own vulnerability. They are quick to confront anything or anyone they disagree with, especially if it’s in defense of someone or something they believe in. They are fierce, determined, and intense. Which makes them wonderful allies and formidable enemies.

If you have a loved one who may be an Eight, it can be helpful to rise to the challenge and defend your point of view rather than giving in all the time, which comes across as weak to an Eight and is also probably not a healthy situation. It may also help to communicate with them about how a bit less intensity may make it easier for you to communicate with them.

Appreciate their passion, but hold your own boundaries when necessary. Engaging in a debate with a healthy Eight is a good way to show them you love them. And if an Eight ever lets you see them at their weakest when they’re broken or vulnerable, that’s a pretty big deal.

To watch an unhealthy Eight grow into a healthy, thriving Eight, start Whisper of Weapons for free right now!

Understanding Enneagram Nines Through Popular Characters

Nines are the easiest and the hardest for me to write about because I am one. It took a lot of soul searching and coming to terms with things I don’t like about myself to realize and accept that this is my number. Because, as all nines know, we tend to feel we are the least important and that our feelings are less valid than others, which leads to thinking that our number must also be the lowest.

It isn’t.

Every number represents a set of characteristics, tendencies, and motivations that tend to go together, and every set has upsides and downsides. Every individual has to go through some unpleasant self-discovery to get to the other side and enjoy the benefits of understanding these qualities.

If you think you or someone you know is a Nine, take a look at these popular Enneagram Nine characters to help you determine if your guess is right!

Well-Known Enneagram Nine Characters from Popular TVBilbo Baggins from The Lord of the Rings

Perhaps the quintessential example of a Nine, Bilbo Baggins doesn’t want to go to the trouble of having a big adventure. He wants to relax in his cozy house by himself. He doesn’t want to bother anyone, and he doesn’t want anyone to bother him. Which is why it’s so funny to us to watch his house get invaded by unwelcome guests who get their muddy boots everywhere and make a huge mess of his tidy pantry, not to mention all the inconveniences and conflicts of the adventure itself.

Eleven Hopper from Stranger Things

Shy, quiet, and observant, she didn’t escape from her captors until someone else forced her to. She struggles to use her powers until someone else, Mike, is in danger and needs help. Violence isn’t something she seeks out, but she’ll use it to protect her people.

Aang from The Last Airbender

Another trait of Nines is their ability to understand all sides of an argument and to have difficulty choosing a side, because of the conflicts it would cause with all the other sides. They want to be harmonious with everyone. Aang must stop conflicts and restore peace to the Four Nations through mastering each of the four elements. As a Nine, he has the desires and abilities to be a peacemaker.

Mufasa from The Lion King

Nines don’t usually seek out leadership roles because they come with so much conflict, but because of their peacemaking abilities, they can make excellent leaders. Mufasa is one such leader. He teaches Simba about maintaining harmony and balance in the kingdom, feels tremendous responsibility for his family and his subjects, and ultimately sacrifices himself to save his son.

Well-Known Enneagram Nine Characters from Popular BooksJulian Blackthorn from The Dark Artifices

What better example of repeated self-sacrifice is there than Julian Blackthorn? He sacrificed his childhood to run the institute, keeping his young siblings and mentally unstable uncle safe. While it may look like he didn’t care enough about Emma to confess his feelings, we find out that he cared so much about her and thought so little of himself that he was choosing to let her be happy how she wanted, even if that meant with someone other than himself. It wasn't weakness, it was self-sacrifice.

Albus Dumbledore from Harry Potter

Another Nine in a position of leadership, Albus Dumbledore works behind the scenes against the forces of darkness. He is a mild-seeming person who keeps the peace and runs the school and speaks to everyone politely and respectfully—even inferiors and enemies. He also sacrifices himself to protect someone else.

Willova Calentine from Whisper of Weapons

Ah, Willova. She could be the epitome of an unhealthy Nine—not all Nines are stuck in such abusive situations. But because Nines tend to see other sides of an argument as well as their own and to sacrifice their desires to maintain peace, Nines can be easy to take advantage of. Willova’s brother, Drazdan, is verbally, emotionally, and physically abusive (not on the page) and Willova truly believes it is her fault. Fortunately for her, she finds a friend who gives her the courage and strength to remove herself from that situation and find out what her own dreams are.

The Challenge for Nines

Nines are peacemaking, self-sacrificing, and seekers of harmony. Their root desire is for peace of mind and peace among everyone around them. Their root fear is of separation and loss of relationships. So they struggle with conflict management and err on the side of avoiding all potentially negative interactions in order to feel like they are at peace with everyone. Sometimes this looks like good-hearted self-sacrifice, but ironically, it often results in resentment, bitterness, and withered relationships. And the other person may never pick up on the fact that the Nine was upset because Nines are terribly good at acting like everything is fine when it’s very much not.

If you have a loved one who is probably a Nine, remember that they tend to be more sensitive to stimuli especially in the context of conflict, and what sounds like a slightly raised voice to you is a raging shout to them. Stay calm and work with them to come to a real resolution, not just them agreeing to whatever you want to keep the peace.

Two great ways to show a Nine that you care about and value them are 1) to allow them the time they need to make up their mind on a decision, and 2) to remind them that your relationship is more important than an argument and you’re not going to ditch them if they disagree with you over something.

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How Do You Find Your Dream Job?

It comes down to three things: your personality, your desired lifestyle, and what makes you smile because it’s just so cool.

If you don’t know the answer to one or all of these questions, don’t worry. We’ll talk through each of them here and soon, you’ll have a clearer idea of what your dream job is.

Let’s Start With Your Personality

Has anyone—a manager, friend, or family member, maybe—forced you to take one of those stupid personality tests? While many of the tests are inaccurate and more damaging than helpful, having a real understanding of perso

nality types, particularly your own, is invaluable in life.

Especially when you’re hunting for the illusive dream job’s identity.

Why consider your personality when choosing a dream job? Shouldn’t you just adapt and call it a day?

No! There’s certainly something to be said for contentment and accepting a certain season in life, but that’s not the same thing as forcing yourself into a career incompatible with your personality type.

Choosing a job that isn’t suited to your personality will make you miserable. Sure, you can force yourself to do it. And if it pays well, maybe the misery is worth it (though it’s probably not).

A deeper understanding of your personality—how your body and mind are uniquely wired and why—will help you understand why you hate the job your currently in. And if you’re on the hunt for the dream job, it will eliminate some possible jobs from the list while making others shine.

For example, lets say your dream is to work with animals—like, the badass ones in a zoo, not just cats and dogs—so you get a degree to become a zookeeper. You enjoy your college experience because you get to work with amazing animals and even take a two-week trip to hang out with elephants in Africa.

Then you get the actual job. You get to spend maybe 20% of your time with some cool animals, but the rest of the time goes to participating in meetings with other staff, giving educational tours to visitors, and calling the fish distributor for the umpteenth time because they screwed up the order for dolphins and sealines again.

That’s a lot of time with people. Strangers. And sadly, zookeeper is one of those awesome jobs that pays more in bragging rights than actual cash.

Now, if you’re an extrovert and you enjoy all that human interaction mixed in with your animal care time, great. If you enjoy public speaking

and like taking visitors on tours and being the person who knows things, sweet. If you have a trust or won the lottery and don’t need to make much or any money to live your desired lifestyle, awesome.

Seriously. If all those things are in your favor, then being a zookeeper will likely be a wonderfully fulfilling job for you.

However. If you’re an introvert, like so many others who seek out a job in animal care and want to work with animals to the exclusion of humans as much as possible, the required human interaction for this job will likely exhaust you.

If you would rather be in the background petting cheetahs and feeding giraffes than talking over a crowd of people about how awesome they are in ninety-degree heat, then this job will not make you feel excited to get up in the morning.

Lifestyle Desires and Circumstances

If having your own living space is important to you or you’re a single parent, then you can’t live on $14 bucks an hour and bragging rights alone.

Now don’t get depressed! This doesn’t mean you can’t have your dream job. It just means that maybe your dream job isn’t exactly what you think it is.

There are all kinds of great jobs for introverts out there that pay a livable wage. With some research, you could find a job much more suited to your personality and lifestyle expectations, and then volunteer at the zoo two days a week to fill that cool factor.

Or you could do something even cooler and spend your PTO on trips to Australian deserts, African safaris, and Amazonian Rain Forests to satisfy the desire to see amazing animals up close and personal.

You may not have ever even considered a non-zoo job that could support a life full of cooler-than-zoo experiences if you didn’t think about how your personality, lifestyle expectations, and wow factor will affect your enjoyment of your job.

So let’s dive into more about personalities, lifestyles, and wow factors so you can get clearer on what your dream life really is and what job will support that best.

How to Apply the Art of Asking

And How I Got My Professional Dragon Wrangler Photos Asking is scary because it gives people the opportunity to reject you. But sometimes asking opens up possibilities that you never could have imagined. At first, I considered my experience as an actual dragon wrangler in an exotic animal hospital as a separate part of my life from my writing and entrepreneuring. But it’s hard to stand out in a sea of bajilions of other writers. As I struggled to become a unique part of the community, I wondered if tying in my real-life dragon wrangling with my identity as a writer of dragon stories would be worth trying. I did, and it seemed to fit well. At least I enjoyed talking about that other side of things and the occasional pictures I posted of my reptile buddies got lots of interaction. But I soon discovered a problem with this cool new part of my branding. As I developed my expert positioning statement and submitted various versions for critique, I discovered that the term Dragon Wrangler was more confusing and off-throwing than unique and wonderful. I was reading The Art of Asking by Amanda Palmer at the same time as discovering this confusion, and a fantastic idea popped into my head: What if I had pictures on my website of myself in the business clothes I would wear to speak on stage but with a real lizard perched on my shoulder? Not only would it at least help a little to tie things together, but it would be memorable and help me stand out in a fun, unexpected way. But I didn’t have the kinds of dragons I would need for this in my own home. At the time I only had a small chameleon that I was fostering for an exotic animal rescue. I would need some more models. I thought about who I knew with large pet lizards, and was surprised to realize that I didn’t actually know that many people, despite my fascination and experience working with them. So a crazy idea came to me. What if I reached out to a general pool of reptile people in a Facebook group for local reptile enthusiasts? Immediately part of me shot this idea down. Reach out to people I don’t know? About borrowing their lizard so I could get some cool pictures? Would you rather watch the video? There were some problems to overcome with the idea, like the fact that it was December in Indiana and much too cold to take exotic reptiles outside for a photoshoot, which would mean I would need to go to peoples’ houses. Inside the houses of strangers. Not only is it a bit risky to meet random strangers in their houses, but what random strangers whose houses would be okay to visit would want a random stranger coming inside? I was also worried that people would think that I thought I was all that to want to get this photography of myself done. And that reptile owners would be concerned about spreading germs between different lizards in different households if I didn’t do a complete clothes change in between each house. And I recognized the likelihood that I could get bitten by one or more of these lizards, which could get infected, and could result in losing a limb or death. Ever notice how imaginative Resistance can make your brain be when it wants to talk you out of a good opportunity? (For the scoop on Resistance and kicking its butt, read The War of Art by Stephen Pressfield. Like, right now. Go buy it. Right now.) Because I knew about how Resistance works from reading The War of Art , I knew that the fear and desire to forget about the idea that I felt meant that I should definitely pursue it. So I found ways to address these issues. Fear about spreading germs: I asked each lizard owner if they felt that me changing my shirt and washing my hands between locations would be enough to prevent the spread of any germs between different lizards, and they all agreed that it would. Fear of getting bitten and losing a limb: I packed a first aid kit with bandaids, gauze, bandage wrap, hydrogen peroxide, and neosporin. Fear about going into strangers’ houses: I started with people I knew personally. I didn’t know as many as I would have thought, but I did know several. Then I asked them if they had any friends with pet lizards because a friend of a friend is safer than a total stranger. I had a list of a few great lizards this way, but none of the larger species I was hoping to find. So armed with perhaps a little over confidence from reading The Art of Asking, I posted in several facebook groups about what I was looking for, knowing that most people I heard from would be complete strangers, but giving it a try. I ended up getting ignored by most people (honestly I would ignore some random person wanting to come into my house and take pictures of my pets, too) but a few awesome lizard owners responded and agreed to let my photographer and I come to their house with our equipment and get some pictures. It was an interesting experience and we were a little freaked out when the first location was pretty far out in the country, but we met several amazing people and had a great time. We met Susan, who’s leachianus geckos and crested geckos are in the first two pictures. In the third picture is a white-throated monitor who lives with the Exotic Tails Rescue Center along with the green iguanas in the next photos. Tree Weasel the water dragon, who belongs to my friend Kylie, tried to make a run for it. Emily's Gus Gus the blue-tonged skink refused to show his tongue that matched my book covers, but did pose for a few pictures. And we finished off the day of driving all over Indiana to various lizard locations with a visit to Doom the bearded dragon, who belongs to my friend Kameron. So yes, it was a little weird to drive all over Indiana and borrow stranger’s lizards for photos, but it was fun and they had fun and we got some great pictures out of it. Hopefully they will help make my brand memorable at least, even if they don’t help with the confusion about what the term dragon wrangler means here. So if you haven’t already, tell me in the comments what’s something you’ve been putting off asking for that you can finally take action for now? A mentor you look up to but don’t want to bother? A friend to beta read your book and give you feedback? Whatever it is, I bet it’s no crazier than asking strangers to visit their houses and borrow their lizards, so go for it! And if it is crazier, you really need to tell me about it in the comments!

DEFINE and Conquer Your Fears!

Using Tim Ferris's Fear Setting Method Is there anything you want to do that you’ve been putting off? Something that you would be so proud and/or relieved to accomplish, but that you don’t feel ready for? You need to try out Tim Ferris’s Fear Setting Method. It’s kind of like goal setting inverted plus a pros and cons list. I just used it to accomplish something I’ve been afraid of for over a year and I couldn’t be more elated! Here’s how you can use it, too. Keep in mind that “Conquering fear equals defining fear.” -Tim Ferris The point of the exercise is to get all the accurate facts. To remove all undefined fears, outline ways to fix what could go wrong if it does, and keep in mind all of the potential positive effects of finally doing the thing. Here are the most important questions. What is the actual worst thing that could happen? How could you either prevent or prepare for and fix those things if they did happen? What are some potential positive results of finally doing this thing? Here's a quick walk through of how I used the Fear Setting Method to revamp my newsletter game. For over a year now, I’ve known I needed to change how I do my newsletter. I needed a way to have a list for people who wanted updates about my books for the stories, and a list of people who wanted writing and publishing advice, and a list of people who want entrepreneurial and creativity motivation. I didn’t want to bore the one group with info for the other, but I didn’t think I had a way to segment my list in Mailchimp’s free version. I wanted a way for people to choose from a couple of check box options which category of information they’d want, but I couldn’t figure out how to do it. I also don’t love Wix’s welcome email options, but I couldn't figure out how to make an embedded Mailchimp signup form pretty, so I was stuck using Wix’s all over my website. I ignored the problem for a while, pursuing other projects, and then when I paid a business coach for growth advice, the biggest thing on her list of things I should improve was my mailing list situation. But google searches weren’t helpful and I couldn’t afford to pay someone to do it for me. About a year and a half went by, with me not even trying to get subscribers because I hadn’t figured out a way to organize them and be sure to only send them the right info. But I knew it was something I needed to tackle, and I finally decided to try this exercise. Would you rather watch the video? 1. What is the worst thing that could happen if I start sending out newsletters again without the ability to segment? Wrong info to the wrong people: Fiction readers could see the non-fic information and be annoyed at seeing content they don’t want, and then decide to click out of the email, or unsubscribe Loss of time for other projects: I’d have to be consistent about sending it out every month, which would take time away from other necessary tasks Growth requiring a paid plan: I could get so many subscribers that I’d have to upgrade to a paid plan (No kidding, this was an actual concern) 2. How could I prevent these things or deal with them if they did happen? Wrong info to wrong people: I could choose to set up three different subscription forms that go to different lists (one for entrepreneurial artist info in my footer and other appropriate places, one for fic on my books page, etc.) And send the same newsletter to each of them, just switching what info is at the top in between sending the to one group or the other. (Why haven’t I just been doing this for the past year and a half? If only I’d taken the time to write out my fears, this problem wouldn’t have lasted nearly as long) Loss of valuable time for other projects: If it’s taking up too much time, I could choose to do an every other month or quarterly newsletter instead. Or I could focus on simplicity and value of content rather than prettiness. Give myself a strict time limit to prevent rereading copy a hundred times Growth requiring a paid plan: First of all, this would be a fantastic problem to have! Why am I afraid of having so many subscribers that I’d have to upgrade to a paid plan? Because of the money? I had it in my head that once you passed 2k subscribers and were forced into the paid plan, that it started at $125/month. But guess what? Once you pass 2k, the plan goes to $30. Just $30. I’ve been terrified of $30 this whole time? And even once you get all the way up to 5k, more than double 2k, it’s only $50. And if I’m not making any money from offering my subscribers special value at that point, what am I even doing with my life? Nevertheless, there have been times in my life where a surprise $30 charge would have been devastating. But now, I can easily ensure that I have an extra $30 always sitting my business checking account to cover the horrible graduation past 2k subscribers whenever it happens to me. That will tide me over for a whole month to figure out how to cover the next month (good pressure to sell a product or service) or transfer to a different mail service provider, if I decide I want to by then. A decision I literally can’t make until I spend some time using Mailchimp again. 3. What are some clear benefits from taking action (starting the newsletter back up whether I can segment it or not) despite the potential problems? Wrong info to wrong people: Some people will read it anyway, even if the info they want is further down. And some people will want the info at the top anyway. And if they signed up for one topic, some might discover that they’re interested in the other one, too, and they wouldn’t have known otherwise. Plus I’d have a newsletter going, which would be way better than no newsletter at all. Loss of valuable time for other projects: If I can’t take a couple of hours a month to compile the most valuable content for my audience, then I’ll know wheth I should move to a less frequent newsletter, which I wouldn’t have confirmed without giving it a try. I’d be no worse off than before. Once again, actually better because a newsletter would exist. Growth requiring a paid plan: A high subscriber count is more impressive to agents and publishers. People who like my stuff enough to subscribe will be more likely to buy my paid products and services, increasing my income. It would be validating. And it could make more than enough to pay for itself if I take care to be strategic and organized with it. So obviously the benefits of starting my newsletter up again far outweigh the potential problems that could come with it. And the possible problems aren’t actually bad at all. Nothing like the impossible problems I’d imagined them to be in my head. Here’s another question: What is it costing you to postpone action? If I had kept up with my newsletter, I would be so much farther along than I am now. I could have thousands of subscribers and I could be making enough money from it to pay for it and have extra. And I might have developed a product or service under pressure to support the newsletter that I will either never make now or won’t make until much later. If I keep avoiding it, that will just keep getting worse. I’ll be even further behind in a year from now and regretting it even more. It could be costing me an incredible amount of money. But I’ll never know how much I could have made from it and what other great connections and relationships I could have formed because I never tried. I’m not making that mistake again! Are you? Let me know in the comments what fears you’re going to define and whether your fears turned out to be right or wrong! If you’d like help going through this exercise, book a coaching call right now so I can help you before the fear comes crowding in again! Don’t just think what a nice idea this is and that you’ll get around to it eventually. Take immediate action. If not me, email a friend about this challenge. Send them a link and challenge them to think about it, too, and make plans to discuss your fear setting with each other and keep each other accountable. Don’t let this inspiration evaporate with time! Take action now. Until next time, have fun making things happen!

How to Be Successful in 2020 (Even if You've already Broken Your New Year's Resolutions!)

Goals and to-do lists are all the rage this time of year. And there is an unfortunate stigma around New Year’s resolutions that while they may be full of good intentions, no actual accomplishing happens with them. At least not long-term. Here are two quick tips for goal-setting that I had great success with in 2019 and have very successfully carried over into 2020 with me. 1. No more than two “Mission Criticals” per day This is a great one I learned from Tim Ferris, author of The Four Hour Work Week, in early 2019. He says that instead of writing the endless to-do list and being forever disappointed and ashamed by not getting a large portion of it done on any given day, he chooses two Mission Critical items that must get done and prioritizes them above all other tasks for that day. I implemented this practice in 2019 and found it massively helpful. It forces you to focus. If nothing else gets done today, the completion of which two tasks would more the most important projects forward and make you feel productive and on the right track? It saves you from shiny-object syndrome by preventing you from waffling back and forth between different tasks whenever the current one gets too difficult. If you've only got two tasks, there's at least less to waffle between even if you still struggle to stick to one until completion before starting on the other. It frees you from task-intimidation-paralysis. If you don’t have a majorly intimidating task list squatting in the back of your mind whispering how impossible it all is anyway so why not sit on Instagram a little longer, there’s no excuse to avoid the less imposing mere TWO Mission Criticals. It increases your productivity. By saving you from giant-task-list-intimidation and focusing you on two manageable things, it enables you to actually get things done. And when you get things done, you feel empowered and on a roll and like it would be a great idea to get another thing accomplished. Then you can stare down that giant list, knowing you’ve already conquered all the most important tasks for the day, and get an extra thing or two done. So when you cross off the two Mission Criticals and one extra item, for a total of three, you can appreciate how much you’ve accomplished and encourage positive energy rather than seeing how you only got three of the 14,792 things done for the day. 2. Define the task or portion of task to be done. Quit using “work on” at the beginning of any to-do item! Do you ever write down “work on chapter three” and then stare at chapter three for an hour and cross it off because technically you did “work on it?” Don’t do that! I’ve found that if I define a task, I can more accurately estimate how long it will take and how much more of the whole project will be left. So instead of saying “work on chapter three” I have started defining it as “finish writing chapter three” or “address plot hole in chapter three.” I know that finishing the chapter might take an hour, where addressing a plot hole that has ramifications throughout the rest of the book could take three. This helps me plan my time better so that I can be more efficient and more positive, knowing that I’m not falling behind and feeling cruddy for some undefinable lack of progress. There you go! With these two methods of to-do-listing, I was way more productive in 2019. And not only because it helped me be more organized, but also because I could see more clearly what I was getting done and that I was using my time well, which upped positive energy and a healthy perspective, which made me feel more like doing more things even though I was tired. While to start a successful online business you need to be willing to do the work even when you don’t feel like it, feeling like doing it is really nice when it happens! Bonus Tip! Do you have an unhealthy relationship with the snooze button? I did, too, at the beginning of 2019. But I started plugging my phone into the bathroom to charge at night, so that when the alarm went off I had to go ahead and get out of bed to make it stop. I hate loud noises, so even though I also hate the cold, I pop right out of bed to shut that sucker up every morning. And to help with the cold issue, which is the number one reason I might shut the phone off in the bathroom and then go back across the room and under the covers anyway, I keep warm sweatpants and a sweatshirt and bathrobe and slippers and fuzzy socks in the bathroom so that I can immediately put on more layers and get rid of that excuse. Boom! These aren’t really resolutions, but more like habits to put in place to facilitate your resolutions or goals or whatever you want to call the things you want to do this year. I hope these help you have fun making things happen this year and today! Do you have a fantastic productivity tip? Share it in the comments! I’d love to hear about it and so would others!

Mountains and Mouse Poop: Purposeful Career Decisions

About a year ago I made a weird career choice. Two and a half years prior, I had landed my dream job as a professional dragon wrangler (a vet tech at an exotic animal hospital working with reptiles) at the age of 21, and I loved everything about it. But as time went on, a new dream called to me. I discovered that I not only wanted to write just the one book, I wanted to write a bunch more and find more crazy awesome writer friends. That was more fun even than my first dream, and there were rumors that people could actually support themselves with a dream like that. It became more and more apparent that this new dream was going to be a huge part of my life, and my full time dragon wrangling, while the coolest job ever, got more and more in the way of what I wanted my life to be. So I took a different job...as a mouse wrangler. Neil Gaiman said in his 2012 commencement speech that whenever he needed to make another career decision, he would follow this process. First, he would remember his ultimate goal, which was to be an author of fiction able to support himself through his words. He would imagine that this goal was a distant mountain. He knew that as long as he kept going toward that mountain, he would be alright. So he would look at that career decision and ask himself whether taking that job would be a step toward or away from the mountain. If it would move him closer to the goal, then he would take that step. If it wouldn’t, then he knew it wasn’t for him. Even though moving from my dream job as an exotic animal veterinary technician was not the obvious decision, I chose it on purpose. I chose to sweep floors and clean up after mice instead of caring for dragons and salamanders and tigers because it was a step toward my mountain, toward supporting myself with my words. Looking back over the last year, I’ve had the best one yet. Even though I really miss my dragon wrangling team and I've been cleaning up a lot of mouse poop. This job allows me more control over my time and a decreased amount of mental stress so that I have more time and bandwidth to pursue my dream. As a result, I’ve been able to invest in my education as an entrepreneur in ways I never could have with a more glamorous job, and I am so, so grateful for that. There are bad days where some people treat me poorly because I am in the lowest position in the department. People with bigger degrees leave extra work for me lying around because they are too fancy to do it themselves. When this happens, I always hope it will be a reminder to me to never treat people that way, even when I achieve a notable level of success one day. Even now, looking back over the four years I've been writing and entrepreneuring every spare moment around full time jobs, I can see a little success already. I've found and grown the greatest community of friends I've ever known, which is perhaps my most treasured discovery through the process. I've also written six books, two of which are published. I've learned how much I can push myself on a few hours' sleep and how to get by on less money so I could save for book production and public speaking courses and writing conferences and other things important to my dream and my future. I tried some things that didn't work and enabled me to hone my focus more. And perhaps most importantly to date, I've learned about the immense value of failure and how much having the correct perspective about failure can positively affect my life and business. One day, I'm going to look back and see how far I've come as my own business owner and enjoy knowing that I used to clean up mouse poop and sweep floors for a living, because it's going to be a very high contrast to what I'll be doing then. I'm looking forward to reaching that point. But I'm also looking forward to the journey, during which I will still be trying new things, honing my focus further, and wrangling dragons on the side as much as possible. What’s your dream? Has it changed over the years? What are you doing to chase after it? Tell me about it in the comments, or drop me an email at savannahjgoins@gmail.com. Until next time, have fun making things happen!

Top Three Reasons to get Involved in a Writer Group

“I am not a real writer.” “ I have nothing worth saying.” “What if no one reads anything I write?”Have you ever had words like that fly through your head? If you are a writer, I will bet you have.Me. Too. So many times. Sometimes only once a week. Sometimes as often as six times before breakfast.Who do you call when you have these thoughts of doubt and insecurity? Shooting off a text, “That’s it. I am not a real writer,” I sit and wait for the ping reply. One of my good friends quickly responds, “Hey you are not allowed to say that.” And we are off. The conversation calms me down. But it always does more than that.I am the most highly extroverted person I know, and there is a weekly group I meet with where our entire focus is writing together. We work on our own projects, but always end up laughing together. They fill my bucket. 1. They Erase My DoubtsI have spent many happy hours with these women and they have spent many hours with me. We know each other. If I dare to tell these women—who have witnessed me showing up week after week—that I am not a writer, the sentence would be labeled a lie. I am not a liar.Even though I sometimes still feel like a fraud when I tell people I am a writer, I try to not give the feeling any credit. That confidence is a direct result from the time I spend with my writers group.“We are going to sprint for thirty minutes. Ok—GO!”When I spend time with these women, I know I will always end up with at least an hour of putting words on a page. That is invaluable for someone who keeps track of the time spent practicing a craft.We have friendship in our group, but the core of our meetings is working hard. Writers write. We are writers because we put hours into world-creating. We do these things in solidarity with the other women in our group.We cheer for each other. We enforce a nose-to-the-grindstone mentality with friendly word count competitions.Do you know what number two is yet? 2. They Provide Motivation Teamwork makes the dream work. Being a writer is my dream. While I know that I am the only one who can express my ideas, I also know the value of having these highly motivated teammates. Each of these women take time away from their families to honor this part of their identities, and in the process give me incentive when I feel like giving up.“Hey what are some synonyms for this word?” “Where is the correct place to put the comma here?” “Does this sentence make sense?” During our breaks between writing, our conversations sometimes turn towards writing craft questions. Google can answer many questions, but the fact of the matter is there is nothing like having a real person answer a question. This practice keeps us engaged with each other, helps us give encouragement, and produce our best work.3. They share knowledgeWriters need to have things to write about. Situations, observations, things that puzzle us, or things that hurt us. Interacting with my teammates, asking questions, and making myself vulnerable help strengthen my craft but also my relationship with each of the ladies. From the moment when one member reached out last February and said “We haven’t seen your face lately. Hope you can join us soon.” to a more recent and unexpected act of love from the group when I was stressed, my writing group has become a thriving community. I look forward to being with each of them every week.Writers group. Team. Community. I know not all writing groups work as well as mine. I know that I am one of the lucky ones. But I encourage you to seek out a writers group. Look on Facebook, or the app, MeetUp, or maybe even twitter or instagram. Look for signs in coffee shops—because writers need coffee. Lots of coffee.And if you can’t find a group? What about starting one? Maybe a digital one if you can’t find writers in your area. Remember, writers write. And we write better together.Alicia Grumley works herding cats during her day job. She is a full-time nanny for two high-energy little boys in Indianapolis. This is her first guest post at The Fantasy Scribe, but hopefully not her last! You can find more of her writing at OwnYourOxygen.Wordpress.com, which is her self-care advocacy blog.

Incognito Accountability

One sneaky way to boost your productivityYou may have heard it said that people live up to the expectations others have for them. A kid with successful parents with PhD's will be more likely to get the same level of education, and maybe take on the family business. It's expected of him. If someone has started a habit of going to the gym every day with a group of other people, it will be easier for her to keep it up because she knows everyone expects her to be there. So even if she’s feeling tired and lazy, she’ll go and end up feeling better about herself because she lived up to the expectations.The expectations of others can be annoying at times, even downright unfair, but why not take advantage of them to increase your writing productivity?Sometimes I really struggle with sleepiness. I plan to accomplish all these things when I get home from work, and by the time I walk in the door the couch is calling out to me and the projects I was excited about working on seem much less appealing. In that moment, no one expects me to stick to my agenda for the evening. No one will see me nod off at my computer. No one will see me weakly give in to exhaustion and crawl under my warm fuzzy blanket to snooze the evening away.But it is generally not considered normal to fall asleep in public.Would you agree?Your fellow coffee shop-goers expect the people around them to converse among themselves or type away at their laptops, not fall asleep on the table and start snoring. Because of this expectation, you can sneakily use them all as accountability for as long as you are there. And they will never know!So if you’re struggling with distractions or the need to nap, why not go some place where you are expected to sit at your computer for a while and not take a break for housework, extra snacks or nap time?I especially like locally-owned coffee shops. Building a relationship with local businesses is another perk to spending more time writing in public. I started writing frequently at one in particular a few months before my first book release and they invited me to have the book release party at their shop. I write there frequently and have even done a few events there with fellow local authors. So how do you find these types of places?Well, there’s a Starbucks on almost every corner, so that’s one thing. But if you’re looking for the homier, locally-owned type of place, try googling “coffee shops in [your city]” and see what you get in the area.Other places to write are libraries (great places to build connections), local parks, and sometimes bookstores, if there’s a place to sit, and the books don't distract you too much.Writing in public can help you stay awake and focused, which can lead to increased productivity. That will lead to greater confidence in yourself as a writer, and when you feel like a productive writer, it's even easier to act like one.So while living up to expectations others have for you can be a negative thing in some situations, using them to your advantage can be a great way to get things done incognito-style.Do you have a favorite public writing place? Other ways to increase productivity? Please share in the comments!