Hasta La Ideas

In 2011, I am becoming the queen of self-micromanagement. I have tried lofty, big-picture, annual resolutions and obtained them with some success. I have tried practical, quarterly goals and seen greater success. However, I am ready for a year of 100 percent success, and monthly resolutions with daily schedules will be my plan of action to make that happen.

For 2011, I chose 24 new year’s resolutions. Twelve of these resolutions are organizing, uncluttering, and/or cleaning related, which I will share with you. The other twelve are personal and won’t be shared on the website. In January, I have taken on two resolutions — one public and one private. In February, there will be two more, and there will be two more each month for the remainder of the year.

Additionally, I have vowed to plan out every single day, hour-by-hour, to help me achieve these resolutions. Each evening before bed, I will plan out the next day and make sure that I schedule time for all of my resolutions. After waking up the next morning, I will review the schedule, print it out, and follow it to the best of my abilities.

I acknowledge that some days my schedule will be dissolved because of an unforseen event — but that is totally fine. Assuming not every day’s schedule is disrupted, I will likely be able to achieve my resolutions within the month timeframe. At least, that is my hope.

My first public resolution for 2011 is to plan healthier meals for myself and my family, and to stick to the meal plans I create. My family is pretty good about making meal plans, but lately the plans have been filled with comfort food with an extra helping of comfort food (this is a common trend for us during Nesting Season).

In December, I read the Harvard Medical School’s guide to healthy eating Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy and took copious notes. The book made me realize that my family doesn’t eat as many servings of vegetables per day as we should (we were getting just three, and we need to bump it up to five), and that two servings of whole grains a day is at least one serving too few. Starting tonight, I’m sitting down with the notes I took from the book and creating a more healthy meal plan.

Based on the plan I create, I’ll go grocery shopping before work Tuesday morning (when my grocery store is quiet as a mouse) and pick up the ingredients I need. Then, I’ll try my hardest to stick to the plan throughout the week.

I’ve given myself an hour to create the meal plan — between 8:00 and 9:00 tonight. Already having it on my schedule, and giving myself a limited amount of time to complete it, is part of my self-micromanagement plan. All snacks, meal preparations, dining, and cleanup activities are also planned on my schedule. I’m serious about improving the quality of my family’s meals, and so I’m hoping my increased organizing efforts will make it a reality.

What about you? What are you doing today to achieve your 2011 resolutions? Do you like the idea of monthly resolutions? Would an hour-by-hour schedule help you to move forward with your action items? I’ll admit, 24 resolutions for 2011 feels like a lot to accomplish — but I am willing to tackle two at a time using my self-micromanagement plan. I’ll keep you updated each month as new resolutions come onto the schedule. I’m genuinely excited to see how my 2011 resolutions fare in comparison to previous years.

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