I don’t generally do New Year’s resolutions. I have a hard enough time finishing my daily To Do list. I can’t imagine doing something on such a grand scale. Plus, I find that a calendar year never coincides nicely with my life phases, so it’s easier to do things on a seasonal (weather- or sports-based) basis.
But I do Try to Think About Approaching Some Things Differently at the New Year. My approach to 2003 is comprised of some primary things that I expect to be accomplished by this time next year, and some secondary things that would be nice to have accomplished. If the primary things (which were completely unexpected at this time last year) weren’t so ginormous right now, these secondary things would likely be my primary goals for the year.
My primary goals are to find a job and move to the east or west coast. Two separate goals, really, but I’d prefer they were accomplished together. The west coast would be preferable, but given the market, I’m not trying to be super picky about location. And I wouldn’t mind living on the east coast if I find a job I like. Liking your job is as important to your well-being as, well, most other things in your life. That’s one of the lessons I learned last year. I expect that accomplishing these primary goals and subsequently acclimating myself to my new environments will take up most of my time and effort this year.
I have three secondary goals. The first is to develop a financial plan (budget, savings, debt reduction) with concrete goals and to stick to those goals through the end of the year. I don’t expect to be debt-free, or even bad-debt-free by the end of the year, but I think I can make good progress if I buckle down. The second is to get off my arse and get some exercise. I’m not planning to turn myself into a fitness guru or hardbody or anything, but if I can get moving enough to get myself some more energy and maybe firm up a little, that’d be cool. The third is to meet some gay people. We don’t just appear and abound, so I must seek them out. If I want to have any kind of social life, I need to work at it.
That’s my plan for the year. All other smaller scale self-improvement and behavior modification projects and more fun-oriented items are on hold until I get employed and moved and on my way with the other things.
