New Year! New Resolutions!

First off – HAPPY NEW YEAR! Here’s to the optimistic side of me saying that 2011 will be the best yet!

So...New Year – obvious topic – RESOLUTIONS!

Every year millions of people join in on the tradition of making a New Year’s Resolution. I am included in this group and I must say that I’ve become one of those people that hate doing them, but I think that’s mostly because, as most of us do, I have put a negative connotation onto this tradition.  

I’ve decided this year. I will make whatever resolutions I come up with ones that I will not punish myself for failing at, because we need to have a positive association if we expect positive outcomes.

So to start here are the top 10 BROKEN resolutions (you are not alone!) according to TIME Magazine:

1.    Lose Weight/Get Fit

2.    Quit Smoking

3.    Learn Something New

4.    Eat Healthier/Diet

5.    Get Out of Debt/Save Money

6.    Spend More Time with Family

7.    Travel to New Places

8.    Be Less Stressed

9.    Volunteer

10.  Drink Less

Now, I must say that these are all too familiar to me. I must also say that I have broken these resolutions (Except  2 &10 – they were never resolutions of mine). Now, even though I haven’t made all 10 a resolution before, this list should still speak volumes, because we as a collective whole can pretty much say that at some point we have made one of these resolutions, only to end up FAILING!

Well, that’s why this year, I’ve decided it is going to be different for me. I have 2 very distinct resolutions. Yes. 2. I’ve decided that with these resolutions I needed some extra time to think of what they were going to be, because I refuse to fail at these resolutions, which is why they are being posted on the 4^th of January, not the 1^st! So, first up, easy: I vow to walk my puppy Madison at least 5 times a week. Now, most of you probably think that is silly, but to me it’s a big deal and most importantly it’s doable. This brings me to resolution #2- this is the difficult resolution: I vow to accomplish #1,3,4,5,6,7,8, & 9 on the list you read above. Why? Why would anyone go after the list of the most commonly broken resolutions? I don’t know why, but I do know this. I’m probably not going to be as mad at myself if I do 1 of the 9 resolutions because to me that’s better than I’ve done in the past and that’s all any of us can really hope for, accomplish a goal.  So below are the resolutions and my modified version on the resolution:

Resolution/My Specifics:

1.    Lose Weight/Get Fit – Walking my Puppy 5 days a week

2.    Learn Something New – Start my MEd. at ASU

3.    Eat Healthier/Diet – South Beach Diet (started Jan. 3, 2011)

4.    Get out of Debt/Save Money – Save an Extra $15/Month

5.    Spend More Time with Family – Modified Keep Up Correspondence w/ Family (FB, Twitter, Email, Blogging)

6.    Travel to New Places – NYC & San Diego (All on the Agenda this year!)

7.    Be Less Stressed – Required Bubble Bath at least 1 time a month with a Lush Bath Bomb!

8.    Volunteer – watch a niece/nephew for my brothers or sisters (obviously modified)

I think this is possible. What do you think? What are your resolutions?

GOOD LUCK to ALL PARTICIPANTS!