1. Be more responsible with my money.
The last few years, I've been plagued with overdrafts and general mismanagement. I'm not very good with it. Thankfully, I've learned the credit card lesson early in life, and am thrilled by the prospect of simply paying things off. While I can't be completely responsible right now, I can budget things better, keep track of monies spent, and keep working to curb my spending.
2. Work in the studio one hour every day.
Working has me coming home tired or sleeping in. I can go days without stepping foot in my studio or working on anything creative (I'll read or watch a movie, instead). I want to have a life in art, in teaching, in creating, and need to begin to do the movements to make these things happen. The first is to put myself in the studio for an hour – I'll even get a timer. At work, I have great self-discipline; at home, I'm more apt to veg and procrastinate. I need to work on this.
3. Write 500 words a day.
I adore writing. And do a LOT of it in my head. The only way to get it all out is to attack it NaNo-style – give myself an obtainable goal to reach every day and hold myself accountable. The writing can be for a blog entry, fiction, non-fiction, or even fanfic. Whatever it is, I need to work on this. One of the ways I'll get more done is by posting to the blog; readership, even that of a single person, will give me that pressure of oh-my-God-what-if-I-DON'T?
4. Spend less time watching TV!
A very hard habit to break, as I majored in television writing and it remains one of my passions in life. I guess a better way to phrase this is to watch less mindless TV. I'm used to having it on in the background (as over 70% of Americans do) and end up watching the stupidest crap evar. Like Paris Hilton's My New Best Friend. Really. I can be doing other things with my time. Like writing until NCIS comes on (and no resolution's taking away my three hours of that show on USA!!).
5. Work on my spiritual development.
I've started on this, but need to stop reading and start thinking. Writing. Pondering. Processing. Practicing. This is the year of DOING, of ACTING.
6. Grow my business – zines, journals, artwork
If this is what I'm going to do with my life, and I've said it a lot, I need to WORK. Again, action. Like getting out two issues of the 'zine this year (at least!), opening and keeping stocked an etsy shop with journals and supplies, and getting my artwork hanging around town. See? Writing this down is easy, and when I complain, you can all point back to this and say, “But loooook! It's in writing!” And then I will have no argument and go back and make another 'zine.
7. Blog at least four times a week.
I've gotten lazy. Or rather, Lazy (with a capital L). I had an intention when I started, and it's kinda fizzled out as I've become distracted by work (see #2). I want to make more videos and post more. This will help me along with #3 and #6, as well as do the thing I love most – teach, share, and inspire. It gives me the most joy in my life, and, well, we all could use a little more joy.
8. Get healthy!
This really should be #1, but I'm not listing this all in any particular order. I've been using my poor health as a crutch (I would do this, but I'm tired. I would work full time, but it's painful) for too long; this year, I'm focusing on my health above all else. My job will soon afford me health insurance, which will let me go to doctors and such. But I need to do more. Eat healthier. Exercise more. Just let 2009 be the year of getting my strength up and my energy back (see last post's journal page) so I can go out there and tackle everything. My junior year of college, my parents asked me if I wanted to take a year off so I could do just this, and I argued against it, saying I wanted to get everything out of the way first. God, how differently things would have turned out if I had! I now bow to the wisdom of my parents. And you can tell them I said that! Four years after they suggested it, I'm going to do it. No more half-assed attempts. I'm getting better so I can take on the world.
What about you? Have you journaled your resolutions yet? Use images from magazines or photographs to help illustrate your goals. Be specific – if not in your journal, then on your blog. Get it in writing! That will help you stay on track (and let others keep you in line!).