Aspirations vs. Resolutions

Aspiration #1: Maintain the daily goal setting.

Too often, we establish resolutions at the start of a New Year only to have them fall by the wayside by the end of the month. While we might still resolve to lose weight or save more money, I like the idea of simply aspiring to be a better me than I was yesterday.

These daily aspirations are not necessarily things I don't do now, but things I've chosen to concentrate on for each particular day of the year. I won't promise "no duplicates" as I might decide a certain trait needs to be worked on more than one day or perhaps revisited during the year. Also, these aspirations may be worded as commands to do something or they might be what psychologists call "affirmations" -- statements that affirm certain beliefs thereby encouraging positive thinking.

This is not my denial of resolutions. I've become quite good, actually, at setting goals and achieving them. Therefore, here are some tidbits of advice for setting resolutions: 1. pick one or two resolutions each year; 2. make sure they are attainable; 3. make sure there is a measurable outcome; 4. design short-term goals or the roadmap to achieve the desired goal.

For instance, in 2008, I set the following resolutions and achieved both: 1. Cook at least three meals from scratch each week. I surpassed this goal and averaged five meals each week. I would not consider myself a gourmet chef, but I definitely learned a lot about cooking by following recipes found in purchased cookbooks and recipes in our local paper or from family. I've actually started being adventurous and mixing ingredients or adjusting recipes to create my own dishes.; 2. Attend the Northern Virginia Writing Project. This one seems easy on the surface, but overcoming the fact that I would spend five of the eight weeks of summer vacation in a classroom from 9 to 4 was quite a hurdle. Once I'd set the deadline for applying as my deadline for making the decision, I was committed. It was a sacrifice of time, but well worth it in the end since I returned to my classroom with many new lesson plans and a refreshed attitude about teaching writing.

One resolution from a previous year that is now a habit: Exercise daily. Several years ago my husband and I looked at each other during an episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and said, "Why are we just sitting here? We say we can't find time for exercise. This is the perfect time." No excuses. We DVR the The Daily Show and The Colbert Report and each hop on the treadmill for 22 minutes Monday - Thursday. We've now selected back-up shows for when these satires don't air, including holidays and the other days of the week. Between this and our commitment to healthy, homemade eating, we spend few days a year feeling sick.

I need to credit my cousin for the change in mindset between resolutions versus aspirations. She decided to try aspirations last year and I liked the semantic difference.

Well, folks, nows the time to start aspiring for 2009. Feel free to post your own adventures with these aspirations or e-mail me suggestions for the coming days, weeks, and months. I'll be sure to give you credit for the aspiration!