2010 Resolutions

What would the new year be without some personal resolutions? While they may mean absolutely nothing to the readership of this blog, getting them down in a written (and reference-able format) will hopefully keep my feet to the fire.

Here we go:

• Lose 20 Pounds (and keep it off) - I was actually making some pretty good progress on this until the holidays hit. With an impending vacation in the Bahamas later in February, I really need to knock this out quickly. It is bad enough being pasty-white, but fat and pasty-white really is a really off-putting combination.
• Minimum of 1 Hour of Physical Activity Daily - Again, I have a good head start on this with my activity to this point, and despite the weight, I'm physically in OK shape. I just need that little bit of dedication to make this happen every day and take my conditioning to a new level.
• Minimum of 10 Minutes of "Centering" Daily - As part of our new initiative at work, I've been introduced to a "sitting practice" that has me meditating for a 10 minute stretch. I find it does wonders for my stress level and in keeping me on a more even emotional keel, and I've also witnessed how Eastern practices have helped my sister (in her case, yoga). Again, I need some dedication to ensure this is done daily so that I can take things to the next plateau.
• Get My Professional Life on More Firm Footing - I have a number of initiatives that I'm leveraging to shore up my professional standing. I need to get back to driving my career, as opposed to having it drive me.
• Making Dedicated Contact - Over the past 15 years my world has gotten smaller. Back when we were first married I was much more social and had a lot more friends. I know that this is something that happens to all of us as we hit middle age, but I feel that's a bit of an excuse and that my world is just too damn small. With resources like Facebook, LinkedIn, and others, there is absolutely no reason why I can't be more overt in reaching out to friends, family and colleagues alike in a more structured fashion. I feel stupid when the only time I see some people that mean a lot to me is when somebody dies.
• Smiling and Laughing More - I think the lack of many things listed above have contributed to a more melancholy me. Hopefully the natural result of taking care of some of these things results in me getting back to who I once was.

Wish me luck, and good luck to you as well on your areas for improvement.

Here's to good things in 2010.