Tuesday, January 12, 2010

New Year's Resolutions: Get Real!

Last year I remembered my goals all year because of the nmeomonic device ABC. Attention, Behavior, and ?? I am not sure. I have to find the piece of paper. I know I should have given it to S at the BI women's support group but I think I was still a little too paranoid at that time. Plus I wasn't finished (Am I ever?) writing it. I wanted it to be better.

So yesterday, we met again. A new year. New resolutions. A is for Attention - better. Oh I suddenly remembered what C stood for and I am pleased to say it is better too. Consideration. Behavior - much better thanks to Y, J, and T at the STEPS program. B is for Behavior, a part of the emotional cycle we worked on and understanding it in that context helped me feel much more in control. C is for Consideration - better. Attention helps with that. It's amazing what you hear when you actually listen to people. Still working on Attention - maybe too much on the wrong stuff.

New resolutions. Building, repairing, restoring my relationships at work, with family, with friends. Realizing my potential as an educator - graduate school? developing individualized math programs? not basing my self-esteem on the approval of others. Attention - still on there, I have to be on time, write things down, be aware of my physical needs and emotional state, Maximizing the use of my time, efficiency, minimizing my use of space, letting go of trash and shopping, setting limits for myself and sticking to them.

My new acronym:

REAL = relationships, education, attention, limits.