Failure?

Dear Lord! I just went through the last 9 years of New Year’s Resolutions and I am SHOCKED… SHOCKED that it seems every year I make the EXACT same Resolutions!

It’s all about getting my life in order. Stop being so messy. Exercise more. Push away from the computer and live. Stop procrastinating. Travel more.

What’s wrong with me? Perhaps I am just convinced these are things that I need to do but I am simply uninterested in making them happen? In 2002 I made a resolution to find a man to marry. It’s 2012 and I AM STILL SINGLE! And I struggle to KEEP MY BEDROOM CLEAN!

Okay. This has been a wake up call for me. I need to start working on ME!

Donna’s Resolutions for 2002

1. My first resolution for the New Year is to stay home next New Year’s Eve.
**BROKEN** I went out to a bar.

2. My second resolution is to stop obsessing over emails from Heiko (or rather the lack thereof).
I kept this resolution but mainly because Heiko dumped me.

3. The third resolution is to stop spending so much freaking money!
I guess I have kept this resolution because I don’t shop nearly as much.

4. Keep my room cleaned
**BROKEN** I am a slob

5. Try to get my life in order
Yeah, I am in a better place today than I was last year.

6. Find a man to marry
**BROKEN** I couldn’t even get a second date with any of the bastards I went out with but this resolution was mostly tongue in cheek.

7. Shave my legs on a more regular basis.
**BROKEN** My legs are hairier than Helena Bonham Carter’s in Planet of the Apes. 😉

Donna’s Resolutions for 2004

1. Stop being so gosh darn messy! This is going to become even more important now that I am about to own a condo.
PARTIAL SUCCESS! Yes, my bedroom gets messy but the Donna villa is almost always sparkling.

2. Join a Health Club. I didn’t do it last year; maybe I will do it this year. I should think it is a great place to meet people and it is about time I get myself into some physical shape.
FAILURE! I have done nothing to get myself fit. NOTHING AT ALL. Unless you count lifting the chocolate bar to my mouth a workout.

3. Get away from the computer– Go out, meet people, have fun, be active.
FAILURE I sit in front of the computer far too much. Although I briefly ventured out with the aid of eHarmony, I am still alone.

4. Look at other companies and investigate different job positions. Maybe even interview. If I am not going to get married and have little babies, I might as well try to make as much money as I can.
FAILURE I did not do a darn thing in terms of getting a new job outside my company although I did get a much better job within my company. If anything, I have more experience and am now better situated to get another job somewhere else.

5. Stop crossing legs AND when lying in bed– lie on BACK. Usually I lie on my side and the skin on my face is all stretched and I drool and it is really gross.
PARTIAL SUCCESS I don’t cross my legs to the same extent although I still wake up on my side and my face is all scrunched up.

Donna’s Resolutions for 2005

1. Get a new job. Stop traveling 90% of time.
PARTIAL SUCCESS, MOSTLY FAILURE I rarely travel which is good but I have the same job

2. Spend more time with friends and MAKE NEW FRIENDS!
PARTIAL SUCCESS I made friends with John Beck, but he’s the only one.

3. Dive head first into the Dating Pool and FISH! Date many men. Don’t settle on one. Not just yet. Go out and have fun and see what is out there.
FAILURE

4. Join a Fitness Club. Exercise. Move. Get strong.
FAILURE Although I have shed the weight I gained while I was traveling and I do try to take walks, I just never joined a fitness club

5. Keep bedroom and bathroom CLEAN! Do laundry in a timely manner.
SUCCESS Although I could do a better job on the laundry situation

6. Wear Wonder Woman and Supergirl underoos as often as possible.
SUCCESS I wear Supergirl or Wonder Woman underwear about 95% of the time

Donna’s Resolutions for 2006

1. Get a new job. Earn more money. Claw way to the top.
ACHIEVEMENT!!! I finally got a new job! I am earning more money! I am in a much better place, career-wise.

2. Keep the house, specifically the kitchen, bedroom and bathroom, SPARKLING!
TOUCH AND GO. Sometimes I am good, most of the time I fall into my old rut of slovenliness.

3. Get away from the computer. Go out. Have fun. Dance. Sing. De-stress.
PARTIAL ACHIEVEMENT!! I am spending a lot less time online– I can’t say that I am out having fun, dancing and singing or destressing but at least I am away from the computer.

4. Buy a big girl bed (It’s true, I sleep on a twin). Fix the outside patio. Get hardwood flooring in dining room.
100% SUCCESS!!! I bought a queen bed and love it! SEMI-FAILURE ON OTHER TWO RESOLUTIONS. I did not fix the outside patio but I did buy patio furniture. The hardwood floor in the dining room will happen this year.

5. Take more walks. Do Go-Go Aerobics and Belly Dancing to Fitness DVDs more often. MOVE.
TOUCH AND GO. Sometimes I am very active, sometimes not so much.

6. Continue to strive to Emma Peel Excellence.

Donna’s Resolutions for 2007

1. Work hard, make money.
Success to a point. I worked very hard and I made more money although I have come to the conclusion that working hard isn’t the key to making more money.

2. Buy a new car. The old Chevy Caprice Classic is at the end of its life. It’s time to get a new mode of transport.
100% success! I got rid of the Caprice and I bought a Monte Carlo.

3. If it can be easily swung, get hardwood flooring. The carpets are old and full of Bobo piss.
100% failure. I can easily swing hardwood floors yet I don’t do it. I don’t know why. I want them. I really want them. Yet I can’t seem to pull the trigger on it.

4. Go on vacation. It’s been years since I’ve done any traveling– visit Ireland or Italy or Greece or any place that seems interesting.
100% failure. Rob and I went to Baltimore but that’s it.

5. Private Resolution dealing in family matters I would prefer not to share.
This seems to have resolved itself.

6. Get active. Walk. Move. Dance. No matter if it is cold outside. No matter if I am tired from work.
Semi-success. I think I’m a little more active but I am not where I should be in activity level.

7. Restart Morita Therapy. Stop cutting edges on simple actions. Follow through. Give 100%, always. Keep bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, closet, & office NEAT.
Semi-success. I am doing better but I am still not where I need to be.

Donna’s Resolutions for 2008
1. Simplify my home/life. Declutter. Love what I own and respect it. Live simply, stop over-consuming.

2. Get my finances in order. Get a true portfolio together. Invest!

3. Stop taking my job so seriously. Live. Enjoy. Spend time with friends and family.

4. Figure out my goal – what am I aiming for? Why am I here and am I accomplishing it?

Donna’s Resolutions for 2010
1. Independent Business Success – 2009 saw me start my own business. 2010 will be the year that I become totally independent. My business will be enough to support me. I will make enough money from it to live comfortably and save for the future. I will work with people and businesses I like. I will work on projects that I believe in. I will be comfortable with my decisions. I will love what I do.
SUCCESS! I hit a couple stumbling blocks where I took jobs with people that I don’t like/trust/believe in and I now regret it but I will do better next time.

2. Stay Calm, Have Fun, Enjoy Life – No need to get worked up over silly things. Stay calm and enjoy your life. Get out. Push away from the computer. Have fun! Spend time with friends and family. Pet Bo.
Semi-Success. I was doing better with this toward the beginning of the year. Sometime in mid-summer all hell broke lose and I became a raging workaholic and everything I strove for in terms of staying calm, having fun and enjoying life went out the window.

3. Travel More – I will explore. I will go places I haven’t been. I will see different places and meet new people.
Success. I traveled a bit. Pookie and I went biking in Jim Thorpe, we toured Quebec City, we visited Myrtle Beach and roamed Charlestown. We hit NYC and Pittsburgh.

4. eBook – I will write an eBook. I have a subject in mind, just gotta sit down and do it.
Success! I wrote my eBook and have actually sold copies of it!

5. Course on Graphic Design/Website Design – I will take a class or two and really solidify my knowledge on these subjects.
Epic Fail. Didn’t do it at all. Didn’t even attempt it.

6. Artistic Endeavors – I will draw, sketch and paint more. I will sing. I will write. I will go to concerts. I will express myself creatively.
Semi-Success. I sketch a bit. I rarely paint. I can’t remember the last time I turned the radio on and unabashedly sung along while wiggling my ass. I went to some concerts– The Red Elvises… was that it?!?! No way! Okay, turns out this resolution was an Epic Fail.

7. Invest – Keep aware of my money and invest wisely.
Epic Fail. I don’t wish to discuss.

8. Exercise, Be Fit, Feel Good – Last year I began exercising and it did me a world of good. I will continue to exercise and eat right.
Success that turned into an Epic Fail. I was doing well. I was exercising 3 – 4 nights a week and loving it. Then my Zumba instructor quit and work became overbearing and I no longer was looking forward to going to the gym without Zumba to tempt me and so I didn’t go and next thing I know, I haven’t been to La Fitness in over 3 months. Dang-it.

9. Law of Attraction – I’ve decided to really use the Law of Attraction. I will wallow in positivity. I will attract my dreams. I will vibrate at a high, healthy frequency.
I feel like I have done a pretty good job with this… but I could do better. It’s true I was cornered the other day and told that it’s clear I am in the midst of a depression. And I am sad that certain things haven’t gone the way I intended. But, on a whole, I have attracted A LOT OF GOOD! I am proud of what I have been able to achieve.

Donna’s Resolutions for 2011

Donna’s Resolutions for 2011 Revisited

1. Continued Independent Business Success My business will continue to support me. I will make more money than I need. I will work with people I like, respect and believe in. Clients will seek me out. I love what I do.
Success! I survived another year relying on no one but me.

2. Paid Public Speaker and Join Toastmasters I will continue my public speaking, the main difference is I will get paid for my engagements. I will also join Toastmasters to improve my speaking.
Semi-success! Although I am often unpaid, I do get paid to speak with more and more frequency. I have booked some amazing (PAID!) engagements for next year! Unfortunately, I did not join Toastmasters.

3. Published Author I wrote the eBook, now it’s time to get it published for real. Plus, this is what will get me paid speaking engagements. DEADLINE: FEBRUARY.
Success! I wrote and published my first book. I dedicated it to my father who ordered it from Amazon and saw the dedication just weeks before he died. I am so glad he pushed me to get the book written and published.

4. Course on Graphic Design/Website Design Just do it. Figure it out and do it.
Failure. I am beginning to think I should just get information on how to outsource this work.

5. Stay Calm, Have Fun, Enjoy Life, Paint, Sketch, Sing, Dance, Walk, Breath, Smile, Love I will push away from the computer. I will emit a Buddhist-like serenity and calmness. I will smile and be happy and enjoy myself. I will say yes to opportunities and have fun.
Failure. I need to work harder on these items. I feel like I am constantly hustling for a dime. If I am not hustling, I worry that money isn’t coming in and I panic. I somehow have myself convinced that as long as I am sitting by my computer I am being productive… which is a joke. I need to claim my life. I need to live. I need to breath. I need to work and I need to play.

6. SIMPLIFY! DIVEST! GET RID OF THE GARBAGE! Stop collecting. Stop hanging on to things I don’t need. Release items back into the world for others to enjoy. Clear out clutter and distraction. It’s time to make my world easier to render, kill old tasks, free up computing resources for newer, better, richer experiences. (Thank you Steve Pavlina)
Success. Pookie Bear is gone.

7. Do things quickly, despite initial discomfort Yeah, I am talking about this insane procrastination. End it.
Failure. I put this one off.

8. Exercise, Be Fit, Feel Good, Move, Stretch, Eat right Good things happen when you move– so do it.
Failure. Big time.

9. Determine exactly what I want– and make it happen Know the answer to What would I do if I won a million dollars? And then rather than wait until I have a million dollars– just do it now.
Failure. I need to make time and really think this through. I know I want business success. I want freedom. I want to travel. I want a partner. But this is just so hazy. Do I want children? Do I really want to travel or do I just like the way it sounds? What does business success look like to me? I need to get more focused on the answers.