motivational speaking

i used to think that new year's resolutions were stupid. oh, wait...i still do. but anyway, why wait until january first to make an attempt at some personal improvement that you've been putting off for jim knows how long? a personal improvement that you'll probably stick with for, what, a week and a half? technically speaking, you can do that at any time of the year!

i suppose it's the beginning of a new year that makes the resolution so appealing. it's scraping off the old, dusty and smelly remnants of 2005, revealing the shiny new promise of 2006 and thinking about the many ways you can screw it up. so, stupidly, here's how i am going to make my life miserable this year (unless i actually succeed at making these things enjoyable habits...quit laughing):

1. i will start up my exercise program again [gym 1x this week, 2x next week, 3x/week after that]
2. i will read the entire Bible in a year, using "Bible gateway" as my guide
3. i will say a prayer, no matter how brief, every day
4. i will go back into therapy by the end of january

i think that's enough for now. as i tell my clients, falling short of your goals is not a reason to give up. if you give up, that's failing. if you reassess your plan, figure out where you went wrong, and start again, then that's persistence. failure and persistence generally cannot go together.

i need to go back to my van down by the river now.