I Resolve To . . . Create A Lifetime Resolution List!

If you could craft your own 'Life Story' what would you write?  On January 1, each one of us is given a gift, a clean slate, a new page on which we can begin to write the next chapter in our lives. So, what will it be?  Will life in 2009 be dominated by the personal and professional 'In Box'?  Will our days be driven by all the 'stuff', all the many things that the universe throws at us each day, the things over which we can exert minimal control, but are important responsibilities nonetheless.

A better, more proactive alternative is to make a firm decision today to pursue a positive dream, resolution and daily goals that bring joy, fulfillment and reward.  The 'In Box' will continue to overflow and tasks will be tackled one by one, but we also can work to shape and mold our dreams, resolutions and daily goals, if we so choose.

Why not pursue a dream, resolution and daily goals with passion, patience and persistence in the New Year?  Why not be courageous, strong and committed?  The start of a new year is a wonderful opportunity - one of 365 opportunities - to seize the day and put an end to the 'Someday, Someday, Someday Syndrome'.  It is time to 'go for it'!   If you are hungry for positive change and achievement in your life, but uncertain how to begin, or on which resolution to focus - start by doing a bit of daydreaming.  Put on your thinking cap and mull your options.  One of my favorite creative exercises is to hit my favorite coffee house with my journal in hand, and these questions:

1. What are the 100 things that I would love to do, be, see, feel, experience, create, achieve, learn, try, change, or have in my life . . . more than anything in this world?  What 100 things would enable me to write a rewarding, joyful life story full of happiness and achievement?  Every New Year I ponder this question, and I periodically review and update my list throughout the the year.  The list becomes a living document that changes over time, as I learn and grow, experience highs and lows, victories and defeats.  Crossing things off the list and adding others is part of the growth process - oart of life and all the changes that it brings day-to-day.  So, don't worry if your list gets messy.  What is important is that you start today.  Create your own Lifetime Resolution List.  You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.  Even if you only partially achieve your cherished dreams - your resolutions - you will be a lot farther along in your life story, than if you didn't try at all. 
2. As you create your list, ponder this question as well:  If I had all the time, skills, knowledge, money, opportunity, and support in the world, what would I do?  No holds barred.  List everything large and small, significant and insignificant, realistic, or seemingly unrealistic.  This is an exercise in dreaming large, daring to dream the impossible dream, and opening one's mind to all the wonderful possibilities.  Below, I provide a snapshot, in no particular order, of things that I strive to incorporate into my daily life, things that I want to do (or in many cases already do, as Lifetime Resolutions) and things that I want to be, see, feel, experience, create, achieve, learn, try, change, or have  in days, months and years to come . . . It isn't exhaustive and doesn't include a complete listing of accomplishments (though I strongly urge folks to periodically review accomplishments, as a method of inspiring future successes).

When I put pen to paper and draft, or update, my 'Lifetime Resolution List' - my top resolutions, dreams and daily goals have always jumped from the paper.  Every year I have far more resolutions than I can realistically tackle.  I am careful not to bite off more than I can chew.  To do otherwise is a recipe for disaster.  I focus on just one major dream or theme, along with the other Lifetime Resolutions that are part of my daily life.  In 2008, for instance, my resolution was to show my gratitude for all that I have and all that I am by giving back in four areas of my life: 1) Walk 60 miles for the Washington, DC Breast Cancer 3-Day and raise $3000. 2) Volunteer at a Virginia Horse Rescue Farm. 3) Learn more about how to combat Global Warming and take action! 4) Engage in PreMeditated Acts Of Kindness.  I achieved 90% of my goals and plan to work to complete the rest in the coming year, along with a brand new list of dreams, resolutions and daily goals. 

I don't presume to suggest what you should do in the coming year.  No one knows better than you what dreams simmer like hot embers in your heart and mind.  If you want to quit smoking, I can't tell you to do it, or if it is time.  You have to make that decision.  If you want to get a new job, it is up to you to build a strategy.  If you want to go back to school, write a novel, get fit, cultivate healthy eating habits . . . it is up to you to 'resolve' to make those dreams a reality.

Bottom Line:  When it comes to dreams, resolutions and daily goals, each one of us typically possesses pretty good emotional, intellectual and 'gut' instincts about what is right, and what we truly want to 'do and achieve' (a personal compass that guides us in the right direction if we are willing to observe where it is pointing).  What is important is to choose something about which we have enormous desire, interest and passion - something that offers challenge and excitement..

If a particular goal or dream is on your mind all the time;  or if a resolution lingers on your 'To Do List' year-after-year - it is possible that you have been afraid to pursue the dream, or because you simply can't give up on it.  That dream, resolution, or goal, is on your your list for a reason.  And I am not talking about that 'tired' list of 20 resolutions that revelers draft out of obligation each New Year because they feel obligated.  I am talking about a dream about which your have great passion, enthusiasm and desire, but perhaps lack the courage to make the time, and show the conviction and determination that is necessary to make it a reality!

As a 'serial goal-setter', I many years ago created a 'Lifetime Resolution List' - a list of dreams, resolutions, and goals, large and small - that I would love to achieve/fulfill in my lifetime.  I am realistic about my list.  Some dreams may never happen.  My time is finite on this earth.  A person can only do so much in one lifetime.  Some dreams drop off my list and are replaced by others as I grow, learn, age, and change. That said, success does breed success. If you want to achieve daily goals of all shapes and sizes, it is useful to know 'what they are, why you want to achieve them, when you are going to achieve them, and how you are going to achieve them'. 

My Lifetime Resolution List - A Wonderful Work In Progress:

1. Write best-selling non-fiction books.
2. Write best-selling E-Books and Audio Books.
3. Help others to achieve their dreams, resolutions and daily goals.
4. Maintain my physical fitness through daily 30/60-minute work outs.
5. Get into the best physical shape of my life.
6. Maintain a healthy diet.
7. Maintain a life based on honesty, generosity, kindness, hard work, creativeness, passion, determination, organization, discipline, faith, hope, and integrity.
8. Enjoy the journey - today - instead of looking to the future, the destination.
9. Make more time for rest, reading, relaxation, and hobbies.
10. Pay off all debt including my house and save money.
11. Grow old with my soulmate.
12. Write a best-selling novel.
13. Play tennis several times each week.
14. Learn to play golf.
15. Spice up my wardrobe.
16. Clean and organize my house and keep it that way.
17. Simplify my life.
18. Stop buying 'stuff' - I have enough.
19. Meet new friends who share my interests in writing, the arts, music, animals, books, sports, gardening, and politics.
20. Give back to the community, both time and money.
21. Travel to Italy and Greece - learn to speak Italian.
22. Travel to London and Spain.
23. Travel to Paris in the Spring.
24. Travel to Egypt
25. Run or walk marathon(s).
26. Learn more advanced Yoga.
27. Read more books - at least two each month.
28. Adopt a dog.
29. Travel to the Grand Canyon as part of a cross-country roadtrip
30. Visit all 50 U.S. States.
31. Publish best-selling books of my photographs.
32. Publish best-selling calendars of my photos, and I Resolve To . . .  strategies.
33. Have my photos hanging in museums while I am still alive.
34. Master Adobe Photoshop.
35. Lighten up, have more fun and laugh more.
36. Work less hard.
37. Take more vacations.
38. Syndicate a newspaper column.
39. Write a wildly popular blog.
40. Swim daily.
41. Meditate daily.
42. Own a summer home.
43. Financially help disadvantaged and abused children.
44. Help save animals and improve their lives.
45. Grow Roses.
46. Learn to make Creme Brulee.
47. Lunch at the Russian Tea Room.
48. Visit the top of the Empire State Building.
49. Walk the length of the Brooklyn Bridge a second, third, fourth time!
50. Make my mark on the world.
51. Stop to 'smell the roses' and 'make each day count'.
52. Read or re-read all of Ernest Hemingway's books.
53. Visit the Taj Mahal.
54. Take more frequent trips with my friends.
55. Take more frequent regional weekend trips - explore and enjoy new adventures!
56. Create a Foundation to help children, animals and the elderly.
57. Take more breaks during the workday.
58. Try something new each day.
59. Perform daily Pre-Meditated Acts Of Kindness.
60. Take daily walks as part of my training for annual Breast Cancer 3-Day Walks.
61. Be open-minded, less stubborn and more flexible.
62. Bake a cake from scratch and make a turkey with all the fixings.
63. Recycle, Reuse, Reduce - Give The Boot To My Carbon Footprint!
64. Travel to Great Britain for Wimbledon.
65. Travel to New York for the U.S. Open Tennis Championships.
66. Appreciate more sunsets and sunrises.
67. Count my blessings each and every day.
68. Stop complaining.
69. Photograph the Maine coast.
70. Visit Santa Fe, New Mexico
71. Write and photograph daily!
72. Eat more fruit and vegetables.
73. Drink more water.
74. Worry less, it all works out.
75. Help my Mother turn her spare bedroom into her own special space!
76. Build an Erector Set city that I can photograph in black and white - do a show!
77. Smile more often.
78. Think before I speak and listen more.
79. Break out of my routines, try new things and dare to be different.
80. Maintain a fabulous garden.
81. Enjoy each new day as if it is my last.
82. Show up every day, do my best, and know that it was good enough.
83. Visit Toronto.
84. Visit Ireland and do a walking tour in the countryside.
85. Bike more frequently outdoors.
86. Make family photo scrapbooks for my family members.
87. Make things right when I have been wrong, apologize.
88. Admit when I'm wrong.
89. Practice what I preach, lead by example, talk can be cheap.
90. Take a two week cruise in Europe, including Italy and Greece with my sisters and Mom.
91. Read more of the classics.
92. Read newspapers before they are several days old.
93. Be bold, be nice, do good - Volunteer!
94. Get more sleep.
95. Learn to bake pies.
96. Cook a couple days each week.
97. Learn the names of the different kinds of birds that inhabit my six acres.
98. Learn the names of the plants, shrubs and trees that inhabit my six acres.
99. Be a Resolutionista:  Make resolutions.  Keep resolutions.  Enjoy the journey!
100. Achieve my LifeTime Dreams List!

That is my list of the moment!  And "yes", I have achieved many of the resolutions (and dozens that are not listed here - I do keep track, as I mentioned above, because success inspires and breeds more success).  Now it is your turn to put pen to paper and draft a 'Lifetime Resolution List' of your own. It is an interesting, informative and inspirational exercise, as it helps dreamers like you and me to focus attention around the things that are truly important.  Just think, if each one of us pursues one dream each year, that amounts to dozens of achievements in a lifetime . . . a lifetime of doing what you love and loving what you do!

Remember:  I Resolve To . . . Achieve My New Year Resolutions, One Resolution, One Day At A Time For One Year.  It's your choice.  Do it today. Turn your resolution into reality in five simple, common sense steps:  Dare To Dream, Decide, Define, Develop A Plan, and Do It Daily. Make your resolution a permanent Lifetime Resolution, something that's with you for good!  Above all, Be A Resolutionista, someone who makes resolutions, keeps resolutions, and enjoys the journey!  Let's Go For It!

Kim Simpson, a former journalist, provides communications, fundraising services and strategic planning, for Members of Congress, non-profit organizations, corporations, and associations in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area. A self-employed entrepreneur, with more than 30 years of experience, she launched IResolveTo.Com in 2005 in an effort to help others to achieve their New Year Resolutions, Dreams and Goals. Her motto is: I Resolve To . . . Achieve My New Year Resolutions, One Resolution, One Day At A Time For One Year." Let's 'Go For It'.

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