Goals are important. We all may believe we have goals or is it just wishful thinking? Goals are the ultimate destination, objectives are the actions we take to get there. Are you taking the necessary steps to get where you want or are you just managing what’s coming at you? Are you determining your destination or are you letting life and circumstances control you?
Goals have a roadmap. Here is your reminder of the steps that truly constitute a goal. Are you ready? Here we go.
- A goal must be demanding. Give yourself motivation to stretch yourself, to reach out of your comfort zone.
- A goal must be achievable. This is the other end of the spectrum. Be realistic in your quest. There is nothing more frustrating than a goal that causes you frustration and crushes your confidence. Each goal achieved can set you up for that unattainable goal or “pie in the sky.” I’m a personal believer in “reach for the stars, shoot for the moon.”
- A goal should be specific and measurable. This is where you don’t speak in vague generalizations. Elaborate with specifics that include the action it would take to achieve that goal. For example, “I will get at least a 3.8 GPA at the end of this semester” is general. Stating, “Spend at least one hour a night studying, join and participate in a study group, sit at the front of the class, and take notes in class” gives specific details and gives you guidance to your success.
- A goal must have a deadline. Establishing a deadline creates the sense of urgency and a method of tracking your progress.
- A goal should be agreed to by those who must achieve it. You want everyone “on board.” Everyone should feel a sense of ownership in the progress and ultimate success of the goal. Reaching for a goal can be frustrating when dealing with a “weak link.”
- A goal should be written down. Writing it down makes it real and permanent. If it is not written down, the statement and intention of the goal may morph. Have you ever had a conversation with someone who participated in the same event as you, but remembers it differently? Sometimes our mind has a way of remembering something a little altered over time. Write it down.
- A goal should be flexible. There are some things that are completely out of our control. Be flexible and don’t be so crazy hard on yourself. Some adjustments may be required along the way. On the one hand, to hold onto something that is no longer possible or may no longer apply to the overall scheme of what you are trying to achieve. On the other hand, don’t necessarily be too quick to lower your goal when negative circumstances seem to arise. You may need to make some adjustments, but there is always another way to get to the other side of a wall – not just through it. You may need to go at it from a different angle. When you are faced with a challenge, evaluate or re-evaluate to determine your next course of action, whether to continue to pursue, go at it differently, or it no longer applies.
As much as I love the “dreamer,” I have great respect for the dreamer who does things that move him in the direction of his dream. I may think “a little crazy,” but definitely worthy of respect.
I hope this inspires you to make a special goal today and wish you great success.
Also, please leave your comments if you find this helpful or would like to share that helps others who stumble upon this posting, and thank you so much for stopping by.
In these economic times, it appears that tightening your belt is in order. However, it is probably more important now more than ever to get yourself out there and socialize and get to know people. Get involved. When times turn around, and they always do, and opportunities start pushing through like crocus after a long winter to signal spring, you are going to want to be positioned and visible.
First, be open to all possibilities. Accept every invitation you get and angle for invitations you’re not presently getting. I recently received an email for a Dale Carnegie training class for FREE. I requested an invitation to a Sunday wine & cheese professional gathering. Do you thinking I’m going? YES! I’m getting to know my local community professionals and getting training from a highly known training organization all for FREE.
- Make it a habit to say “Yes” to invitations.
- Accept all invitations with pleasure.
- Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone.
- Find events that attract people you would like to get to know.
- Read the free weeklies that publish their calendars. In Sacramento, California, we have the SacBee, the local newspaper; the News & Review, a weekly free publication in locations all over town; and the Sacramento Magazine.
- Read the journals in your industry.
- Your local Chamber of Commerce has events you can attend AND you don’t have to be a member to attend these AND they are FREE.
- Get involved in professional and/or social clubs.
- Surf the net for local events.
If you are committed to your career, it’s time you start keeping a social calendar.
There are some really fabulous techniques that will simplify selecting text, files, and documents in a flash.
Ctrl+A
In a document, it will select everything on every page. If you are in a directory, it will select all files and all directories within that directory. If you are on a webpage, it will select everything on that webpage. This is pretty cool.
Single Click
In a paragraph. Single click the left button of your mouse anywhere within a document or webpage and that is where your cursor will be placed.
Left of a paragraph. Single click the left button of your mouse to the left side of a paragraph and you will have highlighted and selected that entire line. You will know you are to the left of the paragraph when you pointer icon turns from a the “I” symbol to an arrow. If you are working in a table, single click the left button of your mouse at the top of a column (make sure your pointer icon looks like an arrow above that column) and it will select the entire column. It works the same way with the rows.
In a directory. Single click the left button of your mouse will select the directory or file you click on.
Ctrl-Click
In a paragraph. Holding down the Ctrl button and single clicking the left mouse button will select an entire sentence, including the period.
Left of a paragraph. Holding down the Ctrl button and single clicking the left mouse button is the same as Ctrl-A. It will select the entire document.
In a directory. Select your first directory or file. While holding down the Ctrl, select another directory and file that is not next to the first directory or file you have already selected (so you can see the affect). This technique allows you to select multiple files and directory that are random throughout the directory. By Ctrl-Clicking on an already selected file or directory will unselect it.
Shift-Click
In a paragraph. This one is a little bit interesting. Click your cursor to where you want it in the document, then Shift-Click somewhere else in the document and you will have only selected from the first location, where you placed the cursor, to the second location, the location you clicked on with the Shift-Click.
Left of a paragraph. Place the cursor once again where you want it. I would suggest somewhere in the middle of a line so you can see the affect. Shift-Click to the left a paragraph in another section of that paragraph or document. What you should see is either, 1. If you Shift-Clicked the side of the paragraph above where you placed the cursor, you will have selected all the lines up to the location where your cursor was located; or 2. If you Shift-Clicked the side of the paragraph below where you placed the cursor, you will have selected from the starting point of your cursor to the end of the line you Shift-Clicked on.
In a directory. Holding down the shift key, click on any file or directory. While still holding down the shift key select another directory or file that is not next to the first directory you selected. You will have selected multiple files in that sequence.
Double-Click
In a paragraph. Double-Click within a paragraph will select the word.
Left of a paragraph. Double-Click to the left of the paragraph will select the entire paragraph.
Triple-Click
In a paragraph. Triple-Click within a paragraph will select the entire paragraph.
Left of a paragraph. Triple-Click to the left of the paragraph will select the entire document. Same as Ctrl-A.
Wrapping It Up
Let’s take this a step further and give you choices with the selections you have made.
In a document. Right mouse click will open a panel of choices. Your selection within that panel will only be applied to the selected and highlighted text. The hot-keys that I referred to in previous posts will work here too.
In a directory. Right click within a directory, a panel will appear with its own choices. The copy, cut, paste hot-keys will work here too. Only what you selected will be copied, cut, pasted, or deleted. Here is the cool thing in the directory, if you select “Open,” all the documents you selected will start opening simultaneously. Now you don’t have to go back each time to open each document separately when you need to work on multiple files.
Once again, I may have chosen a topic where I bit off more than I can chew. I’m hoping that I presented it in a way that is easy to understand and formatted it so that it is easy to quickly view the function of that technique.
This post I want to say “Thank You” to my daughter, Mo, who inspired me.
Proofreading
1. Repeated words. Your spellchecker will usually flag these.
2. Substitutions and omissions. Missing words reduce the flow of your sentence or change the meaning of your statement. Pay attention that your “auto correction” does not transpose or change the intended word. Also, for example, you typed “word,” but meant to type “work.” Working with numbers and figures, you typed “$1250,” but meant “$12.50.” In legal documents, this can have serious ramifications.
3. Key data errors. Incorrect digits in phone numbers, zip codes, acronyms, and misspelling of names, cities, and addresses.
4. Transposing letters, numbers, and words. Such as “Kelly,” when the person’s correct spelling is “Kelley.” I always have to tell people how to spell my name because it is unusual, “Layne” instead of “Lane.” An example of a transposed word that means something else entirely, such as “trial” instead of “trail.”
5. Errors in spacing and inconsistency in formatting. If you indent one paragraph, indent them all. I prefer the double-space between sentences. You don’t have to with computers, but it still gives that bit of definition between sentence/thoughts. It also creates that little bit of white space so the paragraphs don’t “look” crammed. Also, make sure that you don’t have a double-space between words within a paragraph. When on full justification, that is when you will see it become distinctly noticeable. Which reminds me, check your justification that all paragraphs conform to the same style (full, left, right, and center), as well as tab settings (left, center, right, decimal bar) along with their leader style.
Editing
1. Spelling. You will be looking for compound words (hyphenated), plural and possessive endings. If you allow word division in your document, where part of a word runs to the next line with a hyphen breaking it, check the accuracy of the break.
2. Check for accuracy, omission, or extra punctuation marks. Should a question mark have been used instead of a period? Are commas being used consistently in all sentences that list a series (e.g., “period, comma, and colon” or “period, comma and colon”). Did you mean to use a colon instead of a semi-colon? Is a period missing before another complete sentence?
3. Check for errors in capitalization, number, and abbreviation style. Remember one through ten are spelled out. Unless your document relays a lot of numeric data, consistency take precedence. It is all about a consistent look and feel. If the month precedes the day, do not use “th,” “rd,” and “st.” If the day comes first, then you can apply those. Pay attention to the rules that apply to numbers.
4. Grammar and usage. Examples are “have” or “has” and “who” or “whom.” Did you mean “everyone” or “every one?” Brush up on these, sometimes they can be confusing.
5. Inconsistencies in wording. An example would be, “Mary and Fred had a great time at the seminar. We will have to let Jeff know so she should attend the next one.” The inconsistency would be if you recall Jeff having attended. Bring that to attention when making the edits. Also, pay attention to wording that translates a meaning that you did not intend (e.g., “The food was great at Rio City Café except Sunday.” Does that mean the food isn’t good on Sunday? or are they just closed?).
6. Inconsistencies in format. Look for consistency in titles, text, headings, displayed extracts, and numbered and bulleted lists. This includes font, font size, placement, etc.
7. Organization and writing style. The material may be correct in grammar, style, and usage, but it could still be unclear, repetitive wording, clumsy sentence structure, weak organization, or the tone is not appropriate for the purpose of the material.
8. Finally, look at the document through the intended recipient’s perspective. Does it accomplish its objective? Does it answer the four questions, who, what, when, where, and why? Is it meant to be persuasive or informational? Determine the objective and see if it fills that, or does it leave questions. NOTE: You may need someone else to look at it with fresh eyes as an objective, third party to determine this if you have spent a lot of time with it.
I would have preferred to separate these so it is not way too much information to digest, but proofing and editing seem to go together. I hope you find this information helpful. It will definitely help in making you the “go to” person when it comes to reviewing documentation. It is also nice to have a sort of “cheat sheet” of reminders of the various things to look out for proofing and editing documents.
This information was researched using the assistant’s “bible,” The Gregg Reference Manual, 10th Edition.
Please be kind if you find yourself proofing and editing this post. I look forward to your comments and suggestions.
It’s been a really busy couple of days. I have been working non-stop on my website to include the professional blog you see here, Administrative Sparkle, from blogger to www.mykta.com. As the blog continued to develop and expand its readership and participation, I decided to move sooner than later. Redesigning the entire website was definitely a challenge. Love a challenge. There is still much to do and I would much rather be focusing on the content that I share, but understanding the many facets of creating a venue that is pleasing for my guests to navigate and chock full of information are my primary goals.
I do appreciate your patience and let me know what you think.
Smiles,
Layne
Part of my job is proofreading documents for grammar, punctuation, and style for signature and final execution. Using a standard format and layout for internal and external memos and correspondence not only creates a consistent look and feel to the presentation of the company or department, but is easier to scan through because you know what to look for.
With technology, it is easy to let the computer do the work for us with its grammar and spellchecker, or just get lazy. A reminder when cash registers evolved to displaying to the cashier how much money to give to the customer. It’s still good idea to know the math. Some types of errors only become obvious when in print.
Take a look at the overall document layout for spacing, font, font size, justification, margins, etc. Then proceed through the text for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and clarity of the message. Does this make sense? Are there some sentences that just seem to keep going on and on?
When returning edits to the originator, it’s easier to use the standard proofreader’s marks so you don’t find yourself explaining various markups each time. As with any written material, proofreaders’ marks are a form of communication.
When I used to work at a law firm in St. Paul, Minnesota, we called the little black binder clips “bull dogs” and the expanding reddish-brown folders “red ropes.” When I went to work in other offices, if I had to make an office supply request to the person in charge of that task, they had absolutely no idea what I was talking about when I referenced these items with my terminology.
Once edits to content are complete, take a final look for headers, footers, attachments, cc’s, the signature line, and pagination (eliminating widow/orphans and making sure at least two lines of text to a paragraph accompany the signature line).
Here is a great online Proofreaders’ Marks PDF resource link by McGraw-Hill that you can save and print.
The proofreading process can be different and more complex depending on the industry or documentation that includes technical, medical, legal, and research. This pretty basic information is a great starting off point. If you have any suggestions or tips for what helps you in your proofing and editing tasks, please share your technique. Learning a process that can simplify a job is always worth its weight in gold.
