It’s the new year! :: 2012 Resolutions

Yes yes, I know, I know. I’ve sort of missed the exciting “declare your new year’s resolution!” boat but better late than never!

This morning, I came across what I wrote down and it brought back a much needed, refreshing *sense of purpose*. So read on, folks, and keep me accountable if you ever see me falling off the tracks!!

***

Spending time at home with family and long time friends, sharing meals and stiff drinks over long conversations is food for da soul — time for rejuvenation and clearing of the mind, a chance to check back into my priorities and commitments.

At home, I don’t have to worry about much. My mother cooks amazing meals, does my laundry, makes my bed and calls me downstairs for dessert. My father fixes my car, updates my laptop, and buys me new power tools. My brothers and I lounge around, shoot the shit, and play with the dog. My friends remind me of how much I have grown and what I have accomplished in the year I spent away from home. Similarly, their growth and accomplishments throughout the year inspires me to push on.

Being surrounded by those who love me unconditionally and truly believe I am capable of doing anything happily stirs up all flavors of possibilities. After swapping the unnecessary anxiety with courage, honesty and encouragement, I was able to reflect on what kind of person I want to be and what steps will get me there.

• Eat less processed and simple sugars, drink less alcohol, eat more intentionally, exercise regularly: “The physical state of our bodies can either serve or subvert the quest to create genius. But because life seems to value output over the humanity of the process and the ability to sustain genius, attention to health, fitness, and exercise almost always take a back seat. Choosing art over health rather than art fueled by health kills you faster. It also makes the process so much more miserable and leads to poorer, slower, less innovative, and shallower creative output. (Exercise) affects not only your ability to think, create, and solve, but your mood and ability to lean into uncertainty, risk, judgment, and anxiety in a substantial, measurable way, even though until very recently it’s been consistently cast out as the therapeutic bastard child in lists of commonly accepted treatments for anxiety and depression.”

• Similarly, mentally eat less processed and simple sugars. Read more, educate myself, be intentional about what I feed my noggin: What I feed my mind is as important as what I feed I body. Be mindful of what I subject my mind to. Introduce new music, podcasts and films to my mind. Think about what type of person I want to be.

• Run my business as a business: Manage my career as if I were my own business. Be entrepreneurial about my career every single day. Make a niche and be the go-to expert.

• Manage my accounting: ”The one who dies with the most toys doesn’t win. The one who lives life to the fullest wins.”

• Be this person → inspirational, motivational, brazen, relentless

• Sleep early, rise early, kick some ass

• Don’t worry about what others think…they really don’t give a *bLeeP*

• Plan ahead, be methodical…grow up! You’re kind of old.

• Go balls out: ”If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always got.”

• If I feel drawn to someone, go to them: Put yourself in the right place at the right time (ie: Horse Brass with Duane Sorenson)

• Practice empathy: Think CARL

• Make goals, make actions: Have a friggin’ purpose! Jeez. Once a decision is made to move forward, put an action plan in place. Put down dates by which tasks will be accomplished and move! Be specific and all-encompassing. Include a budget based on projected income and expenses — know that I can survive and thrive financially.

• Have integrity! Be accountable for my actions! Put the booty on the line. DO WHAT YOU SAY YOU ARE GOING TO DO. SERIOUSLY.

• Embrace failure. “Lean into discomfort”: Every time I fail, I get closer to the solution, right? It isn’t about succeeding right now, it’s about working toward it, bit by bit, day by day. Start. Persist. Make mistakes. Be true to myself.

• Close down all open tabs and shut computer down every night: Finish reading, processing or saving all tabs opened during the day. Complete things!

Phew! That’s it! How are your new year’s resolutions coming along? Share, share!