What Is Up With You These Days

{{ video:youtube src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFhjugLfLow" }} The video above serves no other purpose than to get your feet tapping.

The ever elusive Sloane. I know, I hear you, the question burning on peoples' minds - what's next for me? What adventure is next?

Let me tell you this. I am always up for the challenges that life brings. And for me, a bigger challenge is sitting still than it is to keep going. That is why I am spending November is the ever cliched "cabin in the woods."

Now this cabin isn't too remote, I'm not Stephen King holed up in Maine. But my mom does have a place about an hour from Pittsburgh at Hidden Valley (not like the dressing) and it's where I learned to ski as a kid, it's surrounded by trees, it's remote and up until yesterday without internet.

What am I doing here? Partially putting together a personal strategic plan for 2010 which includes putting all my ideas on paper and taping them to the wall and thinking about what avenues I really do want to explore, and what I most realistically don't want to do. It includes working on a redesign for The Causemopolitan, working on a manifesto I've been tinkering with, setting up a few other ventures floating around in my mind. That also includes long hikes, reading a stack of books I brought up, catching up on GOOD, Ode, The Week, Fast Company and the Harvard Business Review - my periodicals of choice. Listening to my favorite business podcasts. Basically being alone and thinking through my thoughts.

One BIG thing I forgot. National Novel Writing Month. #NaNoWriMo. It's 50,000 words in one month. It's letting go of perfection and saying "This doesn't suck." My plan is to write about my past year. I've always felt like I had lots of books inside of me. This is attempt to get at least one of them out there on paper. If nothing else to free my mind to take charge and work on some of the other ones swirling around my mind.

It's HARD. I'll write more about that as the month goes on, but let me say this. Blogging is going to take a backseat this month. It has to. I can get so wrapped up in writing HERE. I'm still writing, but forgive me for not doing my weekly features or being incredibly timely.

Am I super-productive every moment? Nope. Sometimes I sit and stare out the window or work on my 1,000 piece puzzle. I need this for myself. And some people get it. Great. And some people are mad at me because they think it's not fair that I get to do this while they work. To that, what I have to say is that we all create our own reality. When I have a house and a family and all the things we're supposed to want in life, I'll have different priorities. But for now, this is what I need for me.

So there you have it. November in a nutshell. I might be asking some of you for feedback. I might be asking you for support. I might be asking you for connections or introductions. I might just be asking you to send me a virtual hug. Know that I'll come out swinging ready to take life by the horns. You can't build a house in a day, but you can chop wood every day. That's my definition of progress.

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