I finally admitted to myself a few months ago that the family history goals I’d set for myself at the end of last year were simply delusional but didn’t have the time or capacity for properly assessing and re-setting those goals in an achievable way.

Thankfully, as the chaos of growing season shifts into a gentler Autumn, I was able to create enough space in my head to brainstorm what went wrong and how I might shift some internal expectations and some physical spaces to better set myself up for success.

That’s the idea, anyway ;-)

Last year’s goals were lofty, for sure. Especially for a hobby genealogist who also has a homeschooled daughter, a very busy wife, and a home and farm to care for through every season.

But then, I dove even deeper into silliness with goals on my list like:

• Find obituaries for everyone forever.

Instead of something like:

• Search for obituaries based on closest generations first, then work generation by generation upward.

I mean, really. Which might be an easier task to check off and feel positive about as I move forward?

And so I spent some time assessing my previous goals through a more realistic lens and here’s what I’ve come up with as goals for the last quarter of 2024:

1. Establish a system for more convenient scanning sessions. First priority = shift my desk set-up for easier set up and break down of my scanner.

2. Break larger projects into bite sized pieces. For example, the obituaries above, as well as working through my physical and digital photos one person at a time, including labelling, scanning, digitizing, and printing.

3. Identify the three SHSMO requests I’d like to make for the year. I’ve paid for an annual membership to get a deal on requests and haven’t made nearly enough requests to make it worthwhile on my Missouri lines.

4. Ask my maternal cousins to share any parent birth and death certificates they may already have in their personal files. Any that don’t exist will be properly requested and purchased in 2025.

5. Save all blogs on this site and micro-blogs on Insta to my Family History files on my computer. Then, establish a process forward for saving each as they are published.

6. REMEMBER: Every step/document/photo is a WIN! Have fun and enjoy the journey. (Yes, that’s written as an actual goal, as it should be, no?)

Since assessing and re-setting my goals I have completed #1 and #3 with #2 well on it’s way and #6 quickly becoming my mantra as I walk through each day completing all the other tasks and responsibilities that I get to spend my time doing in the present when I’m not focused on researching and documenting the past.

And guess what else has already happened! With just a few small tweaks to my desk area, in just a few days time, I’ve already gotten out of my own way and scanned 60 pages of my grandma Eve’s accounts of our family history! For the first time in a long time I feel confident about getting it backed up and shareable with that branch of the family and preserved for future generations.

What a difference a few small shifts in language and physical space can make!

Do tell, how do you establish and assess your family history goals? Are you feeling confident about them right now or are feeling like it’s time to assess and re-set a few to set yourself up for better success?

Onward,

Melis