Hello Indie Authors! I'm Valerie Ihsan, and Episode 31 of the podcast and it's Feb 5, 2020 as I record this. Main Topic: Focus and Productivity without Burnout (Not my round-up of the 20BKs Vegas conference) But first the personal update segment:  This podcast is sponsored by my patrons at Patreon.com/valerieihsan. Their support pays for the hosting of this podcast, BUT because of my Audacity/Mac challenges--which I've let get the better of me--I have a new PUSH GOAL of raising my Patreon support up another $29/mo. This will pay for the podcasting service, Alitu, that will help me to create the kind of professional podcast product that I want to continue providing for you.  Garage Band is not cutting it. So, tell your friends about the podcast and check out my Patreon page and consider becoming a Patron of the Arts (and this podcast) TODAY, or consider upping your pledge if you are already a supporter. Thanks so much. I really really appreciate your support. I'm planning a launch an April launch for FOCUS and FINISH, my brand-new author strategy program. It's a 1:1 six-month coaching and accountability program that includes a customized author action plan in workbook format. If you are interested in joining the program before the launch, as a Founding Member, you'll get a substantial discount and a really ROCKIN' bonus. Please let me know by email at valerie@valerieihsan.com and I'll send you an invitation and discount code.  Ihsan is IHSAN. I'M READING: In fiction,  Twenty-One Truths About Love by Matthew Dicks;  Non-fiction: Make Noise: A creator's guide to podcasting and great audio storytelling. Next podcast episode will be a round-up of my notes from the 20Bksto50K Vegas conference.   PATREON: I'd like to thank all my patrons for the podcast. I really appreciate your support. I'd like to hear from you, too. Feel free to comment on any of my posts in Patreon. Or, download the free Patreon app to make it even easier to send me a message. Shoot me a question or comment and I'll read it out on the podcast.  I'd like to remind everybody else that this podcast is sponsored by my supporters at Patreon. For as low as a $1/mo, you can get a shout out on the podcast, a monthly connections video where I'm just myself and share something more personal  (today's was about aging parents and injured pets) than I put out on the podcast, and at other tiers, the benefits increase--free books, free editing, and free coaching. Become a patron of the arts, and of me! Find me at Patreon.com/valerieihsan.    Resources: The Plot Dot by Derek Murphy, a free book on Amazon about plotting. And now: Focus and Productivity Here's what I learned about accountability groups years ago.  They're awesome. And here's why: I have some mutated Wonder Woman glitch in my brain that makes me volunteer for jobs or writing projects or helping friends out at a rate that would stagger a cheetah. And it ends badly. I'm either stressed out so much that I start eating my weight in potato chips and chocolate bars (sometimes candy by the bag), crying, or I abandon everything. Jump ship and sleep. My sign that depression is looming. Overwhelm = Depression in my body and mind and spirit, so I need to be on guard. Which is difficult when my default setting is, "How hard could it be?" So, accountability groups. The biggest take-away from my group was this: If you have too much on your list, none of it gets done. Bam. I remember hearing, Three things. That's all you can do. If you get those three things done and you have time and energy left, great. Do more. But you can only pick three things to focus on this week. And I'd cry. In Barnes and Noble's Starbucks cafe. Cry because I could only choose three things to focus on when I KNEW in my cells I had 84 things to do. I remember hearing, I think you should not put anything else on your plate unless your house sells. And crying in Springfield's Public House because I couldn't bear the thought of not working forward on my