• BLOG
  • ABOUT
    • Privacy Policy
  • GENEALOGY GUIDES
    • Orderly Roots guides
      • 10 Secrets to Organizing Your Genealogy Research
      • 10 Things I Wish I’d Known When I Started Doing Genealogy
      • Organizing Your Genealogy Right From the Start
    • The Paperless Genealogy Guide
  • SERVICES
  • MAILING LIST
  • CONTACT

Organize Your Family History

Stay focused and happy while exploring your roots

My 2015 genealogy goals

December 28, 2014 By Janine Adams 4 Comments

In my last blog post I wrote that I don’t usually create genealogy goals and that this year would be different. I’m starting to really question my memory, because a search on my blog revealed the genealogy goals I set for 2013 and 2014. So I guess I what I really mean is that I need to set genealogy goals and keep them top of mind.

A year ago I created a quarterly research scheme for 2014 that actually worked quite well for me. (I described and evaluated it in this post.) I decided that I would divide the year into quarters and focus on one line of my family (that is, the ancestors of one grandparent) per quarter. At that time I outlined all the things that I would endeavor to do in that quarter. The list was lengthy and I think I knew at the time I was writing it that I’d never get it all done.

I’ve learned that when I create unrealistic goals I tend to ignore them. So I decided that for 2015 I need to structure my genealogy goals in such a way that I set myself up for success.

I created a list not dissimilar to last year’s, but instead of expecting myself to do everything on the list, I am striving to do four of the eight things on the list for each family line.Ā  I’m sticking with the quarterly plan, but I’ll be jumping for joy if I accomplish four of the things per quarter. And I imagine the four things I do accomplish will vary by the family line.

Most of the items on my list are things within my control, which I think is important because so much of genealogy research feels outside my control. For example, one of the goals is to spend an average of two hours a week researching. The goal isn’t to solve a particular mystery or achieve a milestone, which I may or may not be able to do, but rather to put in the effort. (I did include one milestone among the goals, because it will feel so good to achieve it.)

The menu of eight items vary in level of effort, so if I have a quarter where I’m not able to spend as much time as I’d like researching, I can probably still get a few Xs. (For example, I’m sure I can find photos on my hard drive and add them to Reunion or add ten pins to my genealogy map.)

So here’s the little table I made in Pages on my Mac.

2015gengoalsscreenshot

I’m sure there’s plenty of room for improvement here, but I’m feeling good that these goals are achievable and something that I can keep top of mind. I’m going to print out the table and pin it to my bulletin board so I know I won’t forget them this year!

Filed Under: Challenges, Organizing Tagged With: goals, organizing aids, planning, research, time management

Comments

  1. Marion Turnbull says

    December 28, 2014 at 4:00 pm

    I love reading your blog! I wish I was motivated with my own tree at the moment, concentrating on my One Name Study (ONS) instead which is one of my family lines! I should try to work for part of the time on my own tree instead of always on my ONS!

    I love making to do lists and the pleasure of ticking off the tasks as I get them done!

    Reply
    • Janine Adams says

      December 28, 2014 at 5:21 pm

      Thank you so much, Marion! Your comment prompted me to learn a little about One Name Studies and that sounds like a very worthwhile endeavor! My advice is to follow your heart and work on whatever research you feel the most passionate about.

      Enjoy ticking off your tasks this new year!

      Reply
  2. Eva Goodwin says

    December 28, 2014 at 7:46 pm

    What a GREAT idea. I will have to do this too. Thanks for the inspiration!

    Reply
    • Janine Adams says

      December 29, 2014 at 7:56 am

      Thanks, Eva! I hope you lots of success with it!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

about me

I'm Janine Adams, a professional organizer and a genealogy enthusiast. I love doing family history research, but I find it's very easy for me to get overwhelmed and not know where to turn next. So I'm working hard to stay organized and feel in control as I grow my family tree.

In this blog, I share my discoveries and explorations, along with my organizing challenges (and solutions). I hope by sharing what I learn along the way I'll be able to help you stay focused and have fun while you do your research, too.

tags

Adams amy johnson crow anniversary Brown cemetery Civil War conferences connections dna electronic files Evernote excitement Family Curator family photos genealogy tools genetic genealogy getting started goals How They Do It Igleheart Jeffries keepsakes learning opportunities maps newspapers NGS organizing aids overwhelm paper files planning podcasts quick tips rasco record keeping research research log research trip resources RootsTech social history source documentation technology Thomas MacEntee time management vital records
Speaker Badge: Rootstech 2017

join the facebook community!

join the facebook community!

My organizing business

Learn more about my organizing business, Peace of Mind OrganizingĀ®.

Subscribe by RSS

  • RSS - Posts
  • RSS - Comments

Subscribe by email

Enter your email address to receive notifications of new posts by email.

© 2021 Janine Adams