Welcome 2011!

I stand on the shore at sunrise of a new year, according to the accepted Western calendar. Rather than develop “resolutions” for this year, I’ve set goals. “Semantics!” you say. I say not. A resolution is just a statement. A goal is something that has steps and an end. It is ready for adaptation, as necessary. A resolution is so...resolute. 

For 2011, my goals are as follows:

1. Lose 20 lbs.

2. Study Spanish (equivalent of Spanish I)

3. Complete two courses in my C.A.G.S. program

4. Complete the text book I bought about web design, html, xhtml and css

5. Climb as many 4000’ peaks in the White Mountains as time/weather will allow

6. Attend Artist Trading Card meetups - make art a regular part of my life

7. Complete twelve books, including taking notes, from a feminism studies reading list from Stanford University. 

8. Play games, watch movies, make meals, and hike with my family while keeping my house as clean and organized as I want it to be.

9. DO NOT VOLUNTEER!

O.K., time for some explanations! Let me address my “non” volunteering goal, as it is the one that causes me grief. For some time, I’ve been an uber volunteer. I use the term “uber” as I loathe the term itself and want to express through my use of an annoying and over-used term the extent of volunteering, which has been obnoxious. I will not remove myself from ongoing commitments that continue from last year, but rather I will not take on new commitments. Because I work several part time jobs to make a regular income, I’m completing a graduate certificate and I home school one of my two children, I cannot possibly continue with the volunteer schedule I used to complete and accomplish anything else. For example, should I not do yoga on a night when I’m working two of my jobs that day because I have to come home and perform work related to a volunteer activity? Should I let my husband do all the laundry and housecleaning so I can volunteer my time outside our household when I have spent the day on home schooling activities and one of my jobs? Family has to come first and my health has to come first, too. I need regular sleep to feel energized to exercise, for example. 

Presently, I’ve committed to serving as secretary for the King Philip High School Principal’s Site Council. This role carries through to June of 2011. I also committed to being the contact person for a Providence Bruin’s hockey game for the high school and junior high school. I promised to serve as a speaker on a discussion forum board for my alma mater, Lesley University during their April open house. These activities will continue to their normal expiration dates. After that point, no more hockey games, and when the site council resumes in September, I shall be a member on the council and not the secretary additionally. 

My husband finds my goal list quite daunting. He wonders how I will ever accomplish all of these things. Well, like the monk rumored to have eaten a car one time, I will do these things one small piece and step at a time. To make sure I can accomplish them all, I’ve divided the year into monthly segments. I created index cards for each month, with a tally card for December. Each month, I list the items pertinent to the month and leave the rest off the list. I will tally activity on each index card so I have a record of what I did when. For example, while I take a class for my C.A.G.S. during the spring, I won’t work on the web design text book. And, in January, before my class starts, I aim to read two of the feminist studies texts, so that I’m ahead of the game for February. I placed study materials for Spanish next to my bed so I might start the day reviewing some words or verbs, but also so that before I go to sleep, I can either review again, or “fit it in” to each day. 

What about #1? “Lose twenty pounds” sounds pretty vague. It does. This is my “goal list” not the actual outline of foundation steps. How will I lose 20 pounds? Well, I wrote “exercise” as a tally category on each month of my index card calendar. This way, if I exercise, I will mark a slash on the line of the index card, crossing a normal tally for every five days. This way, I can count the number of days I exercise each month to feel accomplished, even if the scale does not reflect what I hope it will, or what I’ve worked hard to have it reflect. What’s MOST important about this goal is consistent exercise, which I know will lead to better eating habits as I will need the energy to feel good, and will lead to a better mood for my family goals and more energy to complete everything else! I can always read my feminist studies books while running away on the elliptical machine, or I can pop into a Spanish app on my iPod, too.

What are your goals for 2011?

Make a list. You can have one goal or ten. Be reasonable. You can prepare to run a first marathon in a year, but winning your first marathon might take a little longer...

After you’ve made your list, write down a couple of steps or the months during which you plan to work on these goals. For example, my first step in the feminist reading list was to find a reading list! My first step for my mountain climbing goal was to write it into July, August and September as the White Mountains of New Hampshire are known for high water and other obstacles to successful peak-bagging even into June. Considering I’m new to hiking higher elevations, I have no business taking on more than necessary. Plus, I’d prefer to hike in warm, clear weather!

Feel free to share your goals with others, including me!