Saturday, January 1, 2011

2011: Time For Resolutions!


Well, here we are facing another new year on the calendar. Marking time to show us just how old we are getting or how far in the past our hopes and dreams are. But, it doesn't have to be that way. Instead of locking in to the same old resolutions that everyone else does (ie, lose weight, watch less TV, etc), why not create some resolutions that you really can keep and that are specific to you?

I believe that coming up with self specific ideas will help you stay interested in making changes or subtle differences in your day to day life. Plus, you don't have to feel all the shame and worthlessness of not following through on a promise you have made to yourself. It's not sane to set yourself up for failure, chisel another chunk out of your self worth, and to stress yourself.

I'm going to share mine and maybe it will help someone else out in making some changes in themselves that they would like to see, but don't want to make a chore of.

Freddy's Resolutions for 2011

1) drink less soda's and/or high sugared drinks
2) eat less candy and snack foods
3) finish the script I'm working on (with a couple of friends)
4) engage each family member daily, finding out about their day specifically or what they have on their mind, as opposed to letting them come to me if they want to talk (most people do not spend that much time in actual discussion with their family, sad ain't it?)
5) write more jokes, blogs, stories....or whatever....just write a little more

See how non-specific those were to tangible results? I want to eat less candy and drink less soda, but I'm not (thanks Jere') setting a weight goal or anything like that, as I'd be setting myself up for failure. If I happen to eat too much candy, I'm not going to beat myself up, I'm going to move forward with the same goal. And I know that sometimes, I'm going to slip up. If through eating less sugar, I lose weight and feel better.....great!

It's all a matter of changing your lifestyle in a manner that you can. If you put some sort of huge expectation on yourself, you are setting yourself up to fail, unless you really have great will power (I do not). Instead of making major changes in a life that is now 42 years old, I want to make little changes that will hopefully make an impact on me.

Enjoy your 2011........hell, enjoy every day. None of us know how many we have left.