New Year’s Resolutions

Maybe if I publish my resolutions on the internet, I’ll actually stick to them.

New Year’s resolutions don’t kick in until the first Monday of the year, according to my friend Sarah. I’m just under the wire.

1. Blog more. Look!  I’m already keeping this resolution!  Woo hoo!  Perhaps I’m celebrating a bit too soon.  I resolve to post at least once a week, which is totally doable.  I also resolve to use my new HTML and CSS skills to spiff up the site.
2. Set goals. I tend to meander.  Setting yearly, monthly, weekly, and daily goals will give me direction and help me focus.  So what are this year’s goals?  To be debt free by the end of the year.  To get a line in a movie, TV show or commercial, or to get a full time job in a career that I find exciting, such as web development.  To run a 5k without stopping to walk.  To write a novel or screenplay.
3. Work every weekday. January is typically a slow month in my freelance actor existence.  I am facing the likelihood of a lot of unstructured time in the month ahead, time I usually waste. But no more.  If I am not scheduled to work on a weekday, I resolve to get up at a reasonable hour and be “at work” by 10:00 a.m. I resolve to use this time to do actual work, like combing websites for auditions, mailing to casting directors, looking for a full-time job.  Progress on a writing project or a blog post also counts.  I resolve to waste less time on facebook and gossip websites, and do more work.
4. Exercise! I am lucky to be on the slender side, but that doesn’t mean I’m fit.  If I’m going to run a 5k this year, I have to get out of this desk chair and move. I resolve to exercise for at least 30 minutes, three times a week. I can jog or work out at the free recreation center in my neighborhood.  Note to self: rec center opens at 7:00 a.m.
5. Cut the crap. “The person who really wants to something finds a way; the other finds an excuse.”  This quote hangs in the real-life gym in The Fighter. I would love to say that I am the person who finds a way, but really I am the queen of excuses.   Ask me about acting, and I’ll give you a litany of reasons why I’ll never make it.   You know what?   That’s a bunch of bull.  I’m going to take some inspiration from The Fighter and go after what I want, full throttle.  No excuses.

Internet, help me keep these resolutions.

What are your resolutions?  Or do you choose not to make them?   Feel free to leave thoughts in the comments.