I was talking with a friend the other day and when I realized the new year was here, I said something along the lines of, “Dang, that means the gym is gonna be crowded for a few weeks.” He asked, “A few weeks?” before the light bulb went on and he laughed and nodded in understanding.
I would say that 95% of the people who resolve to lose weight (the most common of resolutions, I’d imagine) give up by the end of the first month. Or maybe they forget. The problem, as I see it, is that people aren’t planning their goals well. Actually, it’s not just as I see it. Otherwise this whole concept of S.M.A.R.T. goals that so many people talk about wouldn’t exist.
Normally I don’t make resolutions because I know they won’t hold up. But this year, I’m calling them goals, making them S.M.A.R.T. and keeping people updated on them as a means of accountability. I’ll stop yammering. Here they are:
Write and record a song every other week
The point: Increase creative output so I’m practiced and more familiar with the process.
Other details and rules:
- At least half must have lyrics.
- Each song must be at least two minutes long.
- Remixes and mashups are allowed, but they fall under the “no lyrics” category and they must show a reasonable amount of effort on my part.
- I’ll be posting each song online and asking for feedback from you (whoever you are).
Draw something every other week
The point: Again, to increase creative output. Also, to get back in the habit of drawing like I used to when I was younger.
Other details and rules:
- Drawings will be scanned and posted online so I can get your feedback.
- Each drawing must show a significant amount of effort. Nothing half-assed just to meet the goal.
- Many will probably end up being comic-ish because that tends to be my style. I might take some influence from John Campbell, so it could end up being how well I execute the idea more so than how well I draw it.
Read 15 books
Fifteen was an arbitrary number. It just happened to be the number of books that I already own that remain unread which I have a desire to read.
The list:
- G.K. Chesterton – Orthodoxy
- Mark Ferem – Bathroom Graffiti
- Nic Harcourt – Music Lust
- Stephen Colbert – I Am America (And So Can You!)
- Jeff Fischer – Investing Without A Silver Spoon
- Mark Frauenfelder – Rule the Web
- Paul Harrison – All the Clever Words on Pages
- Tosca Lee – Demon: A Memoir
- Hugh Ross – The Creator and the Cosmos
- Malcolm Gladwell – Blink
- O’Reilly – Programming PHP
- The Art and Writing of WFMU
- Haruki Murakami – The Elephant Vanishes
- Daniel J. Levitin – This Is Your Brain On Music
- Francis A. Schaeffer – Art and the Bible
Create a personal, dynamic website
The point: I’ve become curious about the possibility of doing freelance web development and I come up with more and more reasons why my own website (not just a blog) would be useful for me.
Other details and rules:
- Must be developed with PHP and MySQL (technologies I don’t know but would need to know to increase my value and open up more freelance options for me).
- Must include a blog (which means this one will be moving eventually).
- Set up a permanent email address so I never have to change it again.
Get my passport
The point: I intend to travel someday. (One more reason why freelancing is attractive.) I figure having my passport will lower the barrier and encourage me to look into it.
Refurnish my bedroom
The point: All my furniture has been inherited from several places and there was a reason people were getting rid of it. Plus, I can’t stand sleeping on a twin mattress any more. Oh, and having a multi-purpose bookshelf will help me to stay more organized (see my next goal).
Details:
- New bed and mattress (queen, minimum) by April.
- New desk & office chair by August.
- A CD/DVD/book shelf by December.
Organize, clean and throw away stuff
The point: I hate that I have so much stuff. I don’t want it to rule me. I figure the less stuff I have, the easier it will be to organize and keep clean.
Start investing
The point: Putting money into savings is great, but making wise investments that generate more interest is even better. It’s not that scary once you’ve read a book or two about it(the Motley Fool is awesome).
So those are it. It’s probably too much, but I’ve set up a Remember The Milk account to keep my tasks in order so I know exactly what’s up. I’ll also be trying to make regular updates here so that others can be aware of the status of things.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a drawing to finish by the end of the day and plenty of reading to do.
