2012 Goals: The Beginnings

Given my ambitious personal goals for 2012, it is time I get started, right?

Having thought it over, my January goals are the following:

• Resources/Health: improve my daily energy, so I don't feel quite so tired at the end of every day
• Resources: deal with money issues hanging on from 2011 and re-think spending for 2012
• Creative Closure: submit second mss. to editor by 1.31
• Community: develop one new and one old "group"/community for 2012
• Living Situation: Goodwill, Salvation Army, and eBay by 1.31; insulate front and back doors

Since the spring semester begins on 1.17 and I have three new classes to jump-start, these goals are certainly do-able for the remaining part of the month.

Daily energy: this is the toughest, because it will require long-term changing of habits involving meals, exercise (ugh!), and hormones. You can't buy or find energy--you have to make it, yourself, by doing things differently. Not my strong suit. But... necessary. Changes will include:

• eating every 3-4 hours;
• increasing complex carbos (fruits and vegs, whole grains with B vitamins) to match already present proteins;
• taking vitamins daily;
• taking hormones every day;
• exercising 30-40 minutes at least 4 times weekly;
• getting 7-8 hrs. sleep every night;
• scheduling/organizing all of same, so as not to get behind/stressed.

Money issues include things like studying my monthly bills for where I can cut expenses; getting 2012 taxes completed; continuing to pay my credit cards steadily, while NOT using them (!); making my weekly/monthly grocery bills leaner--again, all long-term planning issues. It wouldn't hurt to get a jump on my 2011 taxes, either; since I've been keping better records, that should be easier than it ever has been.

Submitting the second mss. means writing at least five times weekly, with a weekly page tally of about 25-40 pages. I'm 2/3 of the way through this mss., but need editing time as well. That means one to two hours daily for writing.

Enriching my group work might already be solved: I have an invitation to join a local women's group in my area of expertise, I am working with a local theatre group already on a solid project, and I have a social group that should be meeting again (for the second time) this month. Again, just needs scheduling.

And the work on donations, selling, and the house? One shot deals, each of which require some preparation time but nothing too much. I can get one of these done per week, or over a particularly empty weekend.

What accomplishing these means is that by the end of this month, I'll feel better (although I am considering that the "energy" issues are really a three-month project, considering the need to change old habits for grounded, new ones), my bank account will be leaner and meaner, my house will be cheaper & warmer, more clutter will be gone, I'll have two new group relationships developed, and I'll be moving onto mss. #3... a great kick-start to 2012!