It’s that time of year again, the end of a chapter, and the beginning of a new one.  It’s that time when people stop putting off the changes they’ve been dreading to make, and finally find the courage to reinvent themselves. It’s the time of year that makes you think of sparkly, sequin dresses, men in tuxedos, fancy dinners, confetti, champagne toasts and romance.  It’s all about bringing in the new year with friends and lovers for most people.  For me, New Year’s eve has always been a hit or miss.  It’s either been full of fireworks and excitement, or just simply depressing. None the less, it’s the time of year that gives you something to look forward to… That being a fresh start and a clean slate.  

Resolutions! Resolutions! Resolutions!  Exciting for some, making others sick to their stomach.  The beginning of the year is often associated with goals & resolutions that we all write down, or announce to the world via fb, or twitter or whatever other social media outlet (like blogging)  that we use to communicate to the outside world what we’ll be doing differently in the new year.  It’s sad though, because most people never keep them.   I just read an article that said, 92 percent of all people do not keep their  New Year’s resolutions; that’s not the shocker here.  The shocker is that 92 percent of all people fail at keeping their resolutions by January 20th.  Can you believe that?  That means that only 8 percent of people are actually successful at keeping their resolutions.  Why is that?  Are we really that weak?  Do we lack the self-control a motivation to see our goals through?   Now to be completely honest here, I’m not quite sure how reliable my source was; however the truth of the matter is that year after year people all around the world are making resolutions that end up unkept.  

Now I’m not knocking anyone for it, heck i’ve been guilty of it myself.   But this year I have a fail proof method.  I’m not going for HUGE, unattainable, unrealistic goals.  I’m starting small, and i’m starting with myself and the things I can control. I’m focusing on the things that i’ve already made great progress with over the years and will continue my focus to make those things better, sharper & stronger.  There is no such thing as perfection, but there is such thing as perfecting your craft day after day, night after night, and the only way you can do that is to envision the end result.  The Vision Board. To those who have never heard of this term, let me educate you on a tool that I find to be quite necessary in achieving your goals. 

How on earth do you plan on achieving your goals if you’ve lost sight of what you’ve set your mind to?   Don’t worry, i’ll share with you but first here’s what I plan to do: On December 31, 2011 I will spend my evening making my 2012 vision board.  Please don’t misunderstand me, my advice to you isn’t to skip on your New Year’s eve extravaganza’s and sit at home arts & crafting with me, that’s simply the choice i’ve made as I prefer not to start 2012, the beginning of the rest of my life with a hangover.  The point of avision board is to simply put your goals, dreams, aspirations on paper but in a fun and creative way.  You can do this with pictures, words, symbols, cutting out from a magazine, photographs—anything that will symbolize your visions.   Look at your vision board every single day, look at it before you go to bed each night, close your eyes and see those goals being reached, feel it, think about how you’re going to feel when you’ve achieved them.  Look at your vision board when you wake up every morning, just like positive affirmations, repeat your goals to yourself each day.  Even when you’re having a crappy day, remind yourself of the bigger picture.  It’s okay to have a “Negative Nancy” kind of day (sorry to all my Nancy’s out there!), we all do—some every day; but eventually those goals, those dreams, those things you aspire for…  They’ll be real, they’ll be your reality; they’ll be your life.  And those often “Negative Nancy” days will turn to the occasional “Negative Nancy” day, cause let’s face it—we’re human.  I know this seems very elementary, and most of you are probably even familiar with this method of goal visioning, but those who aren’t I hope this sparked a fire in you to not be that 92 percent this coming year, be a part of the 8 percent.  

And now my resolutions for the new year: 

-Delete FB: C’mon people, there’s a real world out there.  Most of us don’t realize the hours we’ve wasted away, and the true connections we’ve lost because we’ve been tricked into thinking we’re actually keeping in touch with our friends.  When in reality, it’s alienating us from the outside world and having a healthy real-life social life.  

-Health: I’m already pretty healthy, however my diet could be better.  Eat less sugar, more veggies.  Just working on what I already have a decent amount of control over.  

-And the rest are personal…. But stay tuned, 2012 is going to be a great year for me, for you, but unfortunately not for that 92 percent so much, right?  Stay with me as I continue on my journey, maybe backtrack here and there so you understand that topics I choose to discuss, and the things that make me tick, the moments that make me happy and things that me cry.  I want to know about you too, and your ideas, and hopefully knowing that you’ve held onto your goals and haven’t lost sight of the bigger picture.  Good luck to ya! And i’ll see you next year!