{"id":114,"date":"2008-12-30T06:45:10","date_gmt":"2008-12-30T06:45:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/textmessages\/2008\/12\/your-new-years-resolutions-pro.html"},"modified":"2008-12-30T06:45:10","modified_gmt":"2008-12-30T06:45:10","slug":"your-new-years-resolutions-pro","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/textmessages\/2008\/12\/your-new-years-resolutions-pro.html","title":{"rendered":"Your New Year’s Resolutions Problem, and Mine"},"content":{"rendered":"

Surprise–it’s that we won’t keep them. Past performance suggests that at best, we’ll maintain our resolve for a little while at best, and call it success<\/a>. I failed mine last year–I can’t even find the list I know <\/span>I posted to my closet door. I remember that it included taking my wife to Italy (check), paying off a certain debt (nope), running a personal best in the Bolder Boulder (didn’t even enter), and finishing my PhD (not even close; in fact, I had to start my dissertation over).\u00a0<\/p>\n

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For years, I loved New Year’s Resolutions and was quite good at keeping them. I’ve read certain books (e.g., The Brothers Karamazov<\/a><\/span>), done certain prayer disciplines, ran mountain trails, and become a regular flosser and a better budgeter because of New Years Resolutions. So, I’m forgiving my 2008 mishap and getting back to my resolution-keeping better self.\u00a0<\/div>\n
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What are you resolving to do, or do differently, in 2009? How do you plan to keep the resolution? (Writing it down isn’t good enough. If you don’t have a plan for each item, you’re already done.)\u00a0<\/div>\n
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One way I plan to keep mine is by letting you hold me accountable. Feel free to bug me about these in weeks to come. I won’t share all mine, but here are my Safe for Public Consumption Resolutions:\u00a0<\/div>\n
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1. I won’t check email in the morning. <\/span>Julie Morgestern’s advice<\/a> is essential for anyone who really cares about productivity, peace, and any sort of creative, spiritual, or intellectual work.\u00a0I have an 8 a.m.-ish meeting each day whose exact start time is announced by email, but I’m usually up well before then for PhD-purposes. This year, those purposes, along with other writing, won’t be thwarted by my email addiction.\u00a0<\/div>\n
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2. I’ll run 2-3 times\/week, mostly on trails. <\/span>I’m a better man when I run, especially when I force myself to drive the mile or so to a woodsy trail, where I can run with some crunch underfoot. I think more clearly, I’m nicer, I feel more hopeful, I write more, I’m more productive before and after, and so on. I got out of the habit this year, but I’ve been back at it the last couple weeks and my legs, my heart, and my head are all happier.\u00a0<\/div>\n
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3. I’ll finish the PhD.<\/span>\u00a0Yes I will. Seriously. I will, too. Shut up.\u00a0<\/div>\n
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And you?\u00a0<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Surprise–it’s that we won’t keep them. Past performance suggests that at best, we’ll maintain our resolve for a little while at best, and call it success. I failed mine last year–I can’t even find the list I know I posted to my closet door. 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