A few years ago, some friends were talking about New Year Resolutions and I thought about what they were about. Basically, it is a list of things that you'd like to achieve and I started thinking about what it was about me that has stopped or would stop me doing such things in the usual course of life. And that lead me to think about what I would need to change to be somebody who just goes about doing the things I want to do when I want to do them.

So I started a list of observations and thoughts about what characteristics I needed or what things I should keep in mind. It was a list of behaviours I should aim for and behaviours I should alter. It was a list of things to keep in mind and consider.

It ended up as a sort of charter for myself - a way that I wished to live my life. As time went on, the list changed as things dropped off or were added as occasion dictated. It was a living list. Some things are on it as reminders and some as goals.

The version below is from 2008 and I am thinking of revisiting it and producing a list would suit who I am today.

  
 
 
  • A little bit of flirting is good for you  
  • Accept that it's "just their nature"  
  • Accept with the same grace that you give with  
  • Aim for further than you wish to go  
  • Always thank people  
  • Always trust your instincts  
  • Answer the question that you know is being asked  
  • Appreciate what you have rather than worry about what you don't have  
  • Ask yourself what the reasoning is behind what you are doing  
  • Be honest  
  • Be more impulsive  
  • Be open to criticism  
  • Be spontaneous every now and then  
  • Concentrating on the positives helps their impact to grow  
  • Counteract routine dictating your actions  
  • Don't accept your weaknesses - address them  
  • Don't dwell too long on failure  
  • Don't let annoyances fester - understand and address them instead  
  • Don't believe all that you hear  
  • Don't expect more from others than you give of yourself  
  • Don't fear making yourself vulnerable  
  • Don't manipulate through words or actions  
  • Don't mock the dreams of others  
  • Don't put others down to further yourself  
  • Don't stay in attitudes or places that aren't positive  
  • Encourage people  
  • Even if you don't get your own way, be gracious  
  • Everyone is worth meeting at least once - and it's great when once isn't enough  
  • If people don't appreciate you or what you do, then walk away from them  
  • If people don't respect you, it may be because you have done nothing to earn their respect  
  • If somebody chooses who to be nice to, then they are not nice  
  • If somebody doesn't like you, it may be their issue  
  • If you are doing things to impress others, then you are doing them for the wrong reason  
  • If you don't like somebody, you don't have to mention it  
  • If you don't know where you are going, at least enjoy the journey until you find out  
  • If you find something annoying in somebody, look at yourself for the same characteristics  
  • If you have a task that you don't like, then get it out of the way  
  • If you lose your temper, then you also lose your focus  
  • Intolerance comes from arrogance  
  • Invite experience and embrace adventure  
  • It doesn't matter if you fail, as long as you tried  
  • Judge on merits - not against your own laws  
  • Just because you expect something, doesn't mean that it should happen  
  • Just because you want something, doesn't mean that you deserve it  
  • Justice is not your responsibility  
  • Keep confidences  
  • Keep your head up and look around  
  • Know where fact ends and fiction begins  
  • Life always starts from now  
  • Look at what you are being criticised for before putting too much value into it  
  • Look into people's eyes  
  • Make extra time to do the things that make you happy  
  • Many things are none of your business - recognise them  
  • Motive is more important than the outcome  
  • Patience, patience, patience  
  • Pay attention to your surroundings  
  • Pretending to be something doesn't make it so  
  • Remember names  
  • Respect yourself and others  
  • Revenge doesn't address the issue  
  • Saving something for a special occasion limits the potential of now  
  • Say what you mean  
  • Share your enthusiasm  
  • Show what you are feeling  
  • Smile and enjoy the reaction that it returns  
  • Stay 5 minutes longer than you want to  
  • The world moves at it's own pace, so don't get frustrated because it's pace is different to yours  
  • There are many injustices in the world - minimise their impact  
  • Try not to react whilst emotional  
  • We decide whether something is good or bad. Make it good  
  • What is happening to you is only happening to you  
  • You are only number one on your own list of priorities  
  • You aren't reacting to others - you are reacting to how others react to you  
  • You can listen without giving an opinion, answer or resolution  
  • You can't fight every battle, so choose them wisely  
  • You can't always control what happens to you, but you can control how you react to it  
  • You don't have answers - you have opinions based upon what you know up to this time  
  • You have no idea what somebody else is going through  
  • Your value to others is their calculation