New Year's Resolutions

When it comes to New Year's resolutions, I (Brent) normally set one or two, if any. Also, I normally forget about them some time around January 2nd or 3rd. This year I have several goals and resolution and I'm committed to working on them throughout the year. Some of them are pretty aggressive, so I've got my work cut out for me. Here is the list:

• Qualify for the Boston Marathon. This isn't a new goal. I've had it since August of 2010. The qualifying times are more strict this year, so I realize it's a bit of a long shot. It is going to take a ton of work and a lot of luck to even come close. I'm excited that my brother Steve has the same goal. He and I are both signed up to run the Utah Valley Marathon. Wouldn't it be fun if we both qualified together?
• Create and follow a set of value statements. This might be one of the cheesiest goals I've ever set. It seems too much like one of those hokey company mission statements. But, this won't be imposed from above like it is in a company. These will be personal to me and I can customize them to my beliefs and needs. I actually got the idea during Elders' Quorom instruction on New Year's Day. The lesson explained how George Albert Smith had written what he called his "personal creed." The statements were so specific, profound and well-written that I thought it'd be a good idea to try to come up with something similar for myself. Unlike a company mission statement, I won't show my value statements on a PowerPoint slide at a company meeting or anything like that. I'll read them from time-to-time as a reminder of my own personal creed.
• Keep a daily tracker. If you're forgetful and unorganized like I am, you need this. My tracker is just a sheet of paper that lists all the items I should do each day. It's got things like weighing myself, feeding my fish, flossing, and getting to bed on time. You'd think I would have mastered that level of simple organization back when I was a teenager, but I still struggle with it.
• Read 12 books. I like to read. Or, at least I wish I liked to read. I don't do it nearly as much as I think I should. I only read two books in all of 2011, so I'll need to put in a lot more time than I have been.
• Post to my blog 26 times in the year. I blogged a lot more last year than I ever have and enjoyed it. I did it every day for a month, so every other week shouldn't be too hard. The difficulty will be remembering. The posts will be spaced far enough apart that I could easily forget.
• Be more patient with my kids. Of the times I've lost my temper in the last five years, about 99% of them have been directed at my children. It's so obvious that yelling and screaming is counter-productive, but in the heat of the moment it seems so logical. I'm committed to not letting myself get to that point this year.
• Pay off our home equity loan. Last year was a difficult year financially for Rita and me. This year promises to be much better. If things continue to go well and we are disciplined, we can pay back the money we've borrowed recently. I have a lofty goal to never borrow money again. I'm not sure that is a possibility, but paying this off would go a long way to making it a reality.
• Earn a promotion at work. I'm not ambitious at work and have no desire to be a manager, but seeing multiple coworker friends receive multiple advancements has spurred me to try a bit of self-promotion. I'm trying to toot my own horn more often and be more assertive. At my last performance review I announced my intention to complete the steps necessary for advancement on the technical track, so now I'm officially bucking for a promotion.

What are some of your resolutions and goals for the new year? Please post a comment if you have one or two that you are willing to share.