Lofty goals are the ones you never intend to reach. You know it so well, you won’t even have to try. It’s just not going to happen. “I’m going to be the best poet/musician/dancer/sidewalk chalk artist ever.” “I’ll lose 300 pounds in the next 20 days.” “I’ll drive to work without losing my temper even once.” Dude. It’s not happening.

Writing goals are the same way. I’ve seen a lot of writers posting goals that seem unattainable to me. “I’m going to write 100,000 words per month.” “I’ll publish 6 -12 novels per year.” “I’ll write full time and live indoors like a human.” I don’t think it can be done.

A few weeks ago, I started something different. I decided to write at least 1,000 words a day, 5 days a week. I know. You’re thinking, “That’s pathetic. I write that much before waking up every day.” Well, I’m not you.

I’ll wait for you to finish celebrating.

Anyway, the interesting thing is how I felt after doing this for a few weeks. Not only am I making consistent progress on my latest novel, but I’m enjoying writing. Prior to trying this approach, writing sometimes felt overwhelming to the point where I would do anything else instead. The lofty goal of “I’ll write a great novel” became increasingly unlikely as my inner critics assured me I was incapable.

I would read stories I had written earlier and think, “I miss being good at this.” The sense that I could never live up to my own expectations stole the joy that I used to experience while writing. Days and weeks would go by with nothing written. I would look at my progress and calculate that it would take me 4 years to finish a novel. To say the thought was depressing would be an understatement.

That changed when I set this small goal. It didn’t have to be great. It wasn’t required to be a complete scene or chapter. It was only 1,000 words. I would write that much in about 2 hours and feel like I had accomplished something. As I did this each day, I started looking forward to writing. I wanted to see what was going to happen next. In late December, my novel was only about 14,000 words and I was concerned I’d finish the plot and have no more than a short novella to show for it. At this time, about a month later, the book is 46,000 words and will easily top out around 80,000. I’m enjoying the process of writing again. I like my characters. The story is developing and taking turns I didn’t see coming. I love that.

Instead of feeling drained due to my inability to meet the lofty goal, I feel energized and excited about writing by meeting my small goals. For anyone who feels defeated by majestic goals, I suggest trying the little ones. Let me know how that works for you.