Jumped off the QuickBooks cliff

I jumped off the QuickBooks cliff, like a Barnacle Goose gosling tumbling over Greenland crags to get some breakfast. And, like most of them, I survived, banged up but triumphant. I solved a problem that’s bungled my reconciliations for months.

How did I manage? Old-fashioned persistence, or, in my case, a persnickety refusal to quit because the challenge was too blasted irritating. Which is much like Ben Dean, Ph.D.’s delineation – “… challenge is a prerequisite to perseverance” – in his article “Persistence Defined” for Authentic Happiness, an online resource maintained by the University of Pennsylvania’s Positive Psychology Center. But he points out perspective is important – some goals really are too far out of reach. Me and perfectly-balanced books…

I’m hiring a bookkeeper, sooner the better. Magnum of champagne awaits.

He also explains that the right rewards make a difference. I’m hoping I’ll have to pay the bookkeeper a little less. And while I’m thinking moola, it turns out intangibles – like simple recognition for a job-well-done – work better. I’ll settle for avoiding mis-billed, justifiably annoyed Casual Uncluttering clients.

A poorly-developed sense of self-esteem can hamper persistence, which I hope means exercising perseverance can empower self-esteem. Read Dr. Dean’s article for some potential persistence-enhancing techniques. Then use them!

About that magnum of champagne – just a bit impossible. Much much more likely to be a split.