New Year's Resolutions: Do They Work?

I looked up what resolution meant:

1. A firm decision to do or not to do something.

2. the quality of being determined or resolute.

I have made numerous New Year’s Resolutions over the years but I think I have only really kept one. When I was 18 years old, I resolved to become a vegetarian. And I did. And I still am at age 53. So, 35 years and still going, it seems like that resolution took. Why didn’t the others? Maybe because they weren’t specific; become fit and, well I think that is the one I have most years but that hasn’t ever worked. Still overweight (he says while writing at 12.32 am and eating some chocolate). I wonder why? So, it must have been because I really believed in that one (I’d like to become vegan but I’m not that strong). Do I want to lose weight? Well, yes but I don’t seem to have the same willingness to make it happen as I did about becoming vegetarian. Was it because I told people that that was my New Year’s resolution so to prove that I could stick to it I did? Maybe. I don’t proclaim “I will lose weight this year!” I just think to myself “That’s what I’m going to do,” Don’t tell anyone and then let it slide until it’s the 31st of December again and I’m watching the fireworks and think “What shall the New Year’s Resolution be this time? Oh, I know…” and the cycle starts again.

So, this year let’s make a slew of resolutions and see which ones stick and let’s tell people, lots of people so I know people will be watching and (maybe) judging whether I stick to them or not. It is basically Do More! But let’s be more specific. OK, so here goes;

1. Go see more live music; I do go see live bands and my loss of hearing proves I have in the past. But recently I have been talking myself out of various gigs to find out that people I know were at those gigs so I could have met up with them and had some fun. But I didn’t. So, I should

2. Go to more plays/theatre. I have always loved the theatre but leave it too late to organise a ticket and then I miss it and it doesn’t happen. Not this year!

3. Read more. This is difficult as I am a slow reader but have an overflowing bookshelf or two of unread books to read. I need to put the phone down and stop scrolling, pick up a book and start reading!

4. Write more. Next to my PC, I have stuck on the wall “8 Rules for Writing Books”. Number 1 is Write 50 words. That’s a paragraph. Number 2 is Write 400 words. That’s a page. So, my goal is to sit down once a day and write at least 400 words. That would be (gets calculator) 146,000 words a year. Rule 3 says a manuscript is 120,000 words so that would be a book a year if I concentrated on one thing. Now I know that when I sit down and start to write I don’t stop at 400 words, I go on until I’m too tired because it’s 4.30 am and I need to get up in 2 hours or I have finished writing the idea that’s been going around my head and I needed to get it out. So, it is all about the ’sitting down to write’ bit. I can’t wait until I have watched ‘XYZ’ on TV before I write. I can’t have a phone next to me so I don’t start watching pandas rolling around on their heads. I need to just sit down to write 400 words of the many story ideas I have. Or carry on writing the stories I have started. Or finish a story. Now that is the hardest, I have found. Which is why the Vocal.media challenges are so good. They give you a prompt, a maximum number of words to use and away you go. Juices flowing. Also, I have decided to just write my thoughts on things and put them up on the Vocal website. People might agree with what I think. They might disagree. There might be a discussion. All good. And I need to start going back to the local creative writing group. Interaction with other writers cannot harm.

5. Exercise more (Well, just exercise). I like to cycle. I’m not a gym person. I’m not a jogger. We have a treadmill (I had to look up what it was called instead of a ‘walking machine’) which we use to store things on so it has to be cycling. But then it’s time. When do I do it? During the day when I’m not working and should be doing home chores (which I’m not doing either (see below)). I can’t do it after school pick-up due to various extracurricular pursuits of my young children (Swimming, martial arts, ballet, tennis, etc). So, to break through the various excuses, I’ve come up with a plan. On days when I’m not working, I will take my bicycle with me to school drop-off. Leave the car in the car park and cycle home and then cycle back to school in time for school pick-up. That’s 16 km (10 miles) a day. Not much as I used to cycle marathons for charity but I’m older and have kids, so it’s a start.

6. Do more chores. I hate doing chores. Who doesn’t right? Well, I think some people are programmed to do them better than others. I am not. Doing chores is a chore. I have made myself a checklist of things that need to be done on a daily, weekly, monthly, 3 monthly and yearly basis. I’ve kept it secret so when I don’t achieve those targets, no one knows. That needs to change. I need to put it out there and my kids will be happy to pick out what I haven’t done when I ask them to empty the dishwasher.

7. Help more. Help those who need help. Be it personally as I am going about my day or signing a petition and sharing it so others know something they may not have known. I sign a lot of petitions. But I don’t want to ‘bother’ other people with them. But I will. They can find it interesting, scroll by or start a conversation about it. There’s no harm. Also, donate more to good causes when I can.

So those are my New Year’s Resolutions. Basically “DO MORE” but cut down into reviewable chunks. On the 31st of December 2024 let’s see if I have a stack of new tour t-shirts and theatre programmes, a read section on the bookshelf, have written a book or lots of short stories, am healthier, have a clean house and garden and helped the world be a bit better than it was. Here’s hoping!