A Better Me in 2015

20 things I must do to become a better me:

1.  Recognize what is within my sphere of influence and understand focusing on things I cannot influence is a complete waste of my time and my energy.

2.  Time is not flexible. It passes at the same rate for everybody on this planet.  I have plenty of time, but I often prioritize time-waster things. I need to stop doing that.  Don’t think that because I do not have a big chunk of time to get something done, I cannot do a little something towards getting it done.

3.  I need to help myself. I cannot continue to wait to be rescued.  

4.  I won’t let anybody tell me what I can or cannot do ever again, as long as I do the right thing for me and my family, in line with my values.

5.  I will no longer be content to just follow the course of life and see where it leads me. I’ll make a plan. I’ll follow it. Without a plan, I become part of somebody else's plan, not living my own life, and having to wait to begin my own life, as the years pass me by.

6.  I will decide what success looks like to me, making the vision real and specific.  

7.  I’m going to die, eventually. I can’t live as if I’m going to be around forever. I need to make the years have I left on this planet count. It is possible I have more years behind me than I have left in front of me.

8.  I need to be cautious lest somebody else’s wants get prioritized over my needs.

9.  When I want something, I need to ask myself how badly I want it.  Do I want it badly enough to prioritize the resources needed to obtain it (time/money) over other things I also need or already want?

10.  I’ll let people be themselves. I will not try to change others to fit the image of what I think they should be. It is okay to be yourself.  

11.  I need to leave behind my insecurities and ask more for help and favors.  I’m not an expert in everything, even if I know a lot about many aspects of many things. I will never know everything about everything. Nobody will. Asking does not make me appear incompetent and others are often glad to be of help and will not think less of me.  

12.  I was raised to be a ‘nice girl’. Has that worked well for me? Has it led to great success or do people take advantage of me? I will be more purposeful in my actions.  I will be more assertive and authoritative.  I will not simply roll over and let others walk all over me.  I will stop trying so hard especially for other people, and especially those who take advantage of me.  (I will still be pleasant and polite.)

13.  Sometimes, I claim to not care about what other people think of me, but I do. Still, I need to stop trying to impress people who do not care.

14.  The vision of what money can do for me and my family, not money for money’s sake, is a key driving force for me.  

15.  Avoid distractions.  Distractions are not emergencies.  Don’t act on something that “just comes up” immediately.  Jot them down and finish what I was doing before deciding whether or not to follow up on the distraction.

16.  I’ll learn something new that is not required for school or work every day, for a year and apply it to my life. It’s possible to find an excuse to not do almost anything. I’m good at that, but I don’t want to be.

17.  I want to start a blog. How long would that take? Who would read it? What if it’s crap? Guess what-- nobody cares. Just start it already.

18.  I will get over my irrational fear of speaking in public. 

19.  I’ll be kinder to myself. 

20.  I’ll start telling people how I feel, and let them know what I want. 

This should be an interesting year.