Resolutions!

Happy New Year to all!    On the first day of 2019, when all are making resolutions,  or making resolutions not to make resolutions,  I've decided that resolutions are okay!   Because what are resolutions but a 'goal'  you're working toward!  It's sort of like a maker project, and in this case the maker project is YOU!

You start to IMAGINE a version of you that is slightly different than the current version of you.
And then you take the first step towards what you are imagining!

Imagining a slightly different version of you does not mean the current version is bad or good.  It's just that you are thinking of something different!  Perhaps you want to change the view you wake up to every morning, so you move your bed... or maybe even change apartments.  It does not mean the old view was bad- you've just resolved to take some steps towards having a different view.

So what if you take steps towards a new version of you, and the results are not what you expected!
Some people call that a failed attempt - and that makes them uncomfortable! Which leads many to avoid resolutions!

But wait!  in the maker world we encourage you to look at a failed attempt as your FIRST ATTEMPT AT LEARNING!   Some even say, if you don't fail, you're not pushing your yourself hard enough!

And if you take steps towards your  new goal and the results are not what you expected you have two choices

1) Revise until you meet the goal as you imagined it.  Take a different approach to getting those results.  Use what you learned in the first attempt to figure out what didn't work, and consider what might work better.

or

2) Reimagine something different that is guided by what you've learned so far.  My projects usually end up very different than how I first imagined them.  And usually for the better.

So here it is New Year's Day, and now that I've decided that Resolutions are OKAY - the next question is 'What's mine?"  How can I take the maker project that is ME  and imagine a slightly different version of me.   It's tempting to go back to some old standby resolution of being more organized,  or getting rid of extra weight, and getting more exercise!    But this year,  I've decided that I would follow the ONE Word Resolution trend and pick one word to focus on as I continue to work on the maker project that is ME!   And after much thought, I've picked my one word!

My 2019 word is  LISTEN.

There is a lot of reasons I picked that word... but I think I'll keep those inside of me for now... and just focus on my word!  LISTEN!