Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Resolutions - Not me

Was lying in bed last night trying to fall asleep because I knew I had to get this morning for work.  Yesterday had the day off so having a three day weekend and also a short week, my schedule is off and it is time to get back to it.
So there I am trying to fall asleep and it comes to me that it was Jan 3 and I had a revelation.  I had not once thought about creating a resolution for new years.
Part of me felt a ton of relief that I had not even considered it and a tiny part said, well I should have at least thought about it and decided that this year again I was boycotting it.
Last year I resolved to not make any.  Maybe that actually worked.  I feel I am old enough to know that it isn't going to work and why can't we make these decisions any other time of the year? 
I know we can and we often do.  I certainly have as I have decided to be more physically active for example.  But that was a decision I made months ago.  I am sticking to it to pretty good.  I don't beat myself up if I miss a day (I don't have a specific schedule  so no worries there actually).  I just decide I have the time now and I do it.  I do my own thing like dance around for half an hour and I do some things I have seen in fitness shows or classes.  When it was warmer, I also would go for a walk in our local park and often that included my husband.
Some might consider this next topic I decided to work on a resolution simply because I did decide I was going to work on this area beginning in Jan, however, I am not focused on day one but on the month as a whole.  I want to change my attitude about it.  I need to stop doing this so I can set aside some for later.
Spending.
Ok, there I said it, I need to work on my spending habits.  This is one of those things I have struggled with for years, so I need to realize that it isn't something I developed overnight so it is going to take me a long time to change this as well. 
Although it is the first week of Jan and it is possible to call it a resolution for New Year's, I am just not going to label it as such.  I am going to recognize for what it needs to be for me.  I need to change my attitude about spending and saving. 
Taking small steps to change my life is not about making a resolution that I will feel guilty about later when I mess up. 
I am not one of these driven people that must reach a goal by a specific point in time.  I am satisified with progress.  I do pat myself on the back so to speak when I do what I set out to do.  But I don't beat myself up either when I slide back into old habits.

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