Wednesday, January 12, 2011

How Are Those New Years' Resolutions Working for Ya?

Well, we're almost half-way through the first month of the new year. With millions of people around the globe having made resolutions at the end of 2010 (well, at least in the western world -- the Chinese year 4708 doesn't begin until February 3) now, almost two weeks later, is a good time to reflect on how those resolutions are working out for us. Have they inspired yet more resolutions? Are they easy to maintain? Were they left behind on January 2?

A couple years back, I decided that I am a work in progress, and as such, I no longer make resolutions at the end of each calendar year. I've found it far more productive and beneficial to make new resolutions for myself throughout the year each year. When something's not working in my life, I change it. There are times when I drag my feet a little bit, not making the change as quickly as I could, but I'm not waiting until December 31 to do it.

If you make annual resolutions, stick to them and improve your life as a result, more power to you. I just can't put that much pressure on myself at the end of the year to seek to remedy everything in my life that I deem still needs work. It may seem a more daunting task to take it on a day-by-day approach like I do now, but you get used to it. Once you get in the habit of making changes on an ongoing basis, making each change actually gets easier. Wherever you're at in your journey in 2011, I hope it is joyful.