I don't do "resolutions"

I don't do resolutions.  I just don't.  I have nothing against resolutions, per se, but I don't believe in holding myself to an impossible ... um, okay, well that's not totally true. 

I do believe in holding myself to an impossible standard, and that's probably why I refuse to craft resolutions for the new year that are well-intentioned but likely to create anxiety and more self-deprecation than normal.  It's not that I don't believe in Change -- I fully support the concept of continual self-improvement and wholeheartedly wish to make some Worthwhile Changes in my own life -- but I don't think that we should try to write resolutions when most of us are at an extremely vulnerable point in the year.  I mean, there's pressure to buy the right gift for each member of the family, send holiday cards to your entire social circle, spend money you don't have on coworkers, and of course find the right party to attend on NYE (see a previous post for my thoughts on this one).  It's tough enough to get through the holidays with your sanity intact -- do I really need to start writing down thoughts on how to improve/change/alter/fix my life when I'm at the bottom of the proverbial fish barrel?

No.  Let me tell you ...  It's a bad idea.

With that said, I would like to offer one item for the Resolution Roundtable that I believe can be accomplished this year.  It is related to something I began late in 2006 and something that I hope to continue working on through the next 12 months ... 

I offer to the Table my commitment to write.

Yep, that's it.  That, right there, is my commitment for 2007.  I crafted the original commitment last year, when I first considered writing as a possible career/distraction-for-extra-money option, and so far I've been pretty good about it.  I started posting here on Vox, I started writing for a sports website (http://www.fantasymoneyball.com/), and I completed the first 6 chapters of the Travel Writers correspondence course from AWAI.  

(I got stuck on Chapter 7 because I actually had to submit an article with its details -- potential magazines for publication, target audience, etc. -- for criticism, and I just couldn't do it.)

My goal now is to get that article out there ...  get some feedback ... write more articles ...  and maybe, just MAYBE, earn some money for all of the writing I do.  Plus, I applied for another writing position today with a nationally recognized group that gathers thoughts, ideas, conversations, and self-proclaimed experts on a number of topics (including two of my favorites:  food and travel).  With any luck, they'll like my writing too, and I can start building that portfolio I need.

So, there you have it.  I commit to write.

It's not a "Resolution," but it is a pledge to myself for this new year.  And as a dear�friend articulated in his own post, there is only one measure of progress for this promise.

Wish me luck! 

Oh, and "Happy New Year."