My husband and I have alot of things in common but every once in awhile something will pop up wherein we differ. Resolutions are one of those things. A typical end-of-December finds me spouting off the 50 things I'd like to do in the coming year. When I pause to ask, "What's your resolution?" he has to think about it for a good ten minutes and then only has one: to handily win a softball tournament.
When I looked over what my last year's resolutions were and how close I did - or didn't - get to accomplishing them, I started to think that maybe he's got the right idea. So I've narrowed my 50 down to 3, with baby steps to help me succeed.
Plan Ahead/Be Prepared: I'm afraid we've become the family that everyone expects to be late for events and I'm always behind on about 3 deadlines at once. So 2011 is going to be my year to set this straight. With these baby steps:
- Use a calendar: Google calendars is great and so are smart phones, but having something tangible that I walk past multiple times a day will help cement all the things we're doing into my brain - hopefully leading to being more on the ball.
- Buy 2 Extra Food Items each Week: With a pantry full of food if things get too busy or something unexpected happens we'll always have something delicious to whip together - without an extra trip to the store.
- Weekly Budget Updates: Budgeting is a time taker but so important for when little surprises happen (like needing to replace a windshield that a rock so kindly cracked or when you want to send a little package to someone who could use a smile). So I'll be taking a look at our budget every Tuesday night to help cut that time commitment into little bits while keeping us up to date on what we're spending.
Take 3 Classes: I love taking classes. I want to take them all. But I'm focusing in on three classes this year - probably art classes - to be something fun I can look forward to.
Do Yoga: I've never done this consistently, but every time I do I love it. So, although, it's not the most strenuous activity I'm resolving to do it 4 days a week...and maybe it'll lead to more healthy decisions. And a sense of calm to help me tackle any chaos that finds its way into my day.
I've learned from past experience that the way to accomplish goals is to be realistic and very specific. Bigger goals are best accomplished by starting with smaller ones. Here's to hoping 2011's goals meet the criteria! What are your resolutions for this year? How do you keep yourself on track?
{images via here, here and here}
