December 2014 - Resolution

The Benjamin Franklin Experiment Part 4 (December): RESOLUTION

Resolution: Resolve to perform what you ought. Perform without fail what you resolve.

2/12/14

This will be an interesting one! I can see this is a value I work at anyway, and sometimes don't achieve what I hope. Let's see what the month will bring.

I'm sort of pleased about this with regard to giving my children a quality Christmas. We have a little wooden advent calendar with drawers for each day. I'm not content to put sweets or chocolates in each.... I want something more meaningful. So I'm putting in little prompts to do activities... bake cookies, hang ornaments, shop for presents..... all the things we're doing anyway, but by organising a little, the preparation for Christmas will really feel very different! Will be a job to figure out doing this while we're on a little holiday, but overall I think this is a good excuse to step back and examine what is really important. No.... what is REALLY important.

I'm also inspired by my image for this month.... I want to prioritise relationships -- to resolve any lingering conflicts or hot emotions.

It would seem that Resolution would better fit January.... However, I'm please that the two aren't in reverse order as Frugality in December would be rather cruel!


26/12/14
Well this has been a month which has taught me a great deal so far. It seems nearly every aspect of my life is telling me two things:
1. I need to reconnect and engage with the present moment and learn to more fully enjoy it.
2. I need to set very clear boundaries over my time and commitments in order that I don't squeeze myself and my relationships out of my own life.

To that end, I am first committing myself to daily meditation time of 30 minutes (which may include some reading/journalling) in order to connect better to my own thoughts, the present moment, and the joy/happiness/peace of mind that I crave.

Secondly I am setting a schedule for myself which I intend to follow rigorously, knowing that there will be things that slip through the net... my business may well suffer for it.... I am prepared to accept this cost in order to be happier and a more pleasant person to live with.

I want to somehow measure my successes at this each day, but have yet to work out quite how.

2/1/14
To sum up, December has been a time of discovering and examining what my resolutions needed to be. A time to step back and look at my life a bit more and take stock about what is really important. I require more practice at 'Performing without fail' but I'm well on my way.

The main goal or underlying target in all this is Ease Of Being. This sums up what I'm trying to do -- enjoy life, create calm and centred awareness, and live within my zone of happiness/contentment. 2015 -- let's make you one characterised by less stress than the past couple!