It’s already March first and that means that most of us made some resolutions two months ago. I know that I did my best to create some fresh ones and this year I wanted to truly follow them, whether it meant only some or all. In the past I’ve been guilty of creating these high expectations for myself before falling flat. This time though, I’ve already made moves to ensure my success. Let’s start with the list I originally had made:
- Learn More Jquery: It’s honestly an amazing language and although I know some, I don’t know enough at all. This year I will become a professional at it.
- Learn CodeIgniter: I started looking into the PHP framework CodeIgniter a little while back after my friend Jordan suggested I try it. I want to learn more to help simplify my development online.
- Advertise Sackett Solutions: I do this some but not enough at all. This year I hope to spread the word about who I am and what I do here.
- Blog More Frequently: I have been getting better but I plan on doing even more soon. I’m aiming at anywhere between two and three posts a week on technology and coding. Mostly these will have to do with my learning of the above languages.
- Eat Healthier: I have a tendency to eat a lot of things I know I don’t need, especially when I’m at school. This year I plan on getting on a healthy diet to help my next resolution.
- Get in Shape for Ultimate Frisbee: I want to make the Main Campus Ultimate Frisbee team and to do so I will need to be in the best shape I’ve been in for some time. This means running and lifting which are two things I’ve wanted to do for some time. I’ll surely keep this up.
- Read More Books: I want to really pick up my reading this year and get through some more authors that I’ve been recommended but never read.
The first one on the list unfortunately hasn’t been accomplished. I love jQuery and all it is capable of but I still haven’t had the time to truly sit down and dig into the source code. I have my basics down but this one will come later in the year, most likely over summer, when I’m done classes and able to breathe some. As well, Codeigniter sits in the same boat as jQuery. I love the idea of it and want to really start using it to streamline projects but my time is so limited that learning a new way of coding is out of the question. This summer will be a great time to polish my design skills so I can improve how I work on my projects.
Thankfully, I have followed through on the promotion of Sackett Solutions. The first thing that I’ve done is resubmitted the website to the major search engines so it can recognize it once again. It’s working out well considering the spike in traffic I’ve had. Another huge step I made was linking my Twitter to this page and Last.fm. I’ve had a lot of new followers and they’ve noticed what I do and where I’m located through those two websites. The last thing I’ve done, the most prosperous solution, has been creating a Facebook fan page. They’re getting big with all the celebrities using them and now I have one of my own. You can view it here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sackett-Solutions/463353830646?ref=ts The one thing that it’s done best is alert my friends and family that I’m available on their website of choice. Almost everyone I know uses a Facebook and creating this outlet gives me that much more accessibility. As a side note, I have found three new projects from simply creating the page itself. Great investment of time. For the rest of this year I plan on expanding on the above methods. I want to advertise on Facebook and use this blog as a real platform for new clients.
Blogging more frequently has somewhat come true. When I originally made this plan I wanted to write at least two posts a week and get things rolling. I’m not quite there yet however. I’m not happy with what I’ve done in terms of quantity, but I am happy that I’m still going. Although it is slow, it’s more than I have in the past and I’m truly keeping up with myself. Again, this may pick up with the summer as I find more time to write.
My next two both have to do with my health in general. It’s a typical vow to eat better and get fit but this year was a big one for me. I truly wanted to stick to this plan and get myself prepared for a summer of Ultimate Frisbee as well as the State College team next semester. So far, my eating hasn’t changed much. I do eat somewhat better than I did but living in this apartment hasn’t had the best impact on it. We rarely get food due to the cost. That said, I do try and keep my portions controlled rather than eating the amount I used to. Exercising is a different story. I’ve been running, even though I slowed due to the large mounds of snow, and I’ve been doing my crunches and lifting. Granted, I’m not a large dude or one who truly needs to lose weight, but I’ve wanted to bulk up for some time. Between running around campus, abdominal workouts, and lifting, I’ve been able to create a steady system of development that I’m happy with. I’m not ready for the Ultimate season just yet, but I’m getting there. I know that the real moment of glory will be when I finish a game feeling like I could play another one on top of it.
My final idea was to read more books. Yes, I did receive some good ones for Christmas, but I haven’t had a chance to read them yet. This goes back to the little time I actually have in my day. This summer I plan on finishing what’s on my shelf so I can be ready for a new shipment on the next holiday.
With all of that said, I’m quite happy with how I’ve done. Yes, a lot of a stuff seems to be pushed aside but I am doing my goals in short bursts. In the past, I’ve found that cramming all my resolutions into a small segment of time only makes things complicated. Breaking them into sections and focusing on the tougher ones to start has helped me realize that I can finish all of this before 2011 comes around. How are you doing with your resolutions? What were they and have you started them? What’s some good advice for those having trouble keeping up with them?