Let’s Get it Over With: Breaking my New Year’s Resolution

My 2015 New Year’s Resolution is to be more funny.

There. I’ve gotten it over with; I’ve already broken my resolution.

Because I am not funny.

(It’s true. I’m more about drama and struggle. If I have a sense of humor at all, it’s a bit dry and sarcastic.)

So now I’m free to make another resolution, and that is to be true to myself. I have to make this resolution every year. Because sometimes it’s hard to be myself. Maybe you feel the same way sometimes!

Take being an independent author. It’s mind-boggling how much there is to manage when you’re on your own, especially the way the publishing market is now. Most days I feel there’s no possible way that I can do it all. Some days I despair that I spend more time trying to get the word out about my books/novellas than I spend actually writing them. Sometimes I think I should be writing a different genre, one that’s more popular, instead of the stories my heart is moved to share. So I resolve to keep writing what I love.

Take being a business owner. The last couple years have been extremely challenging; there are days I wonder if the market still wants what we make. It would be easy to stray from our commitment to manufacture our products in the U.S. Again, I find myself making a resolution: I will stay the course. Hopefully the market comes around and supports us, but if not, I will know that I was true to my beliefs.

Take being a mom – perhaps the hardest ‘job’ of all. I’ve learned to live with a constant low level of guilt. I feel guilty if I don’t spend time with my children. I feel guilty if I spend time with my children and they drive me up a wall and I wish I could get away from them! So making a resolution to have a good balance of work and family is the best I can do.

So what are my New Year’s Resolutions? To be true to myself, to set goals that are achievable and realistic. To not beat myself up for what I didn’t get done, but to celebrate what I did accomplish. Really, it all comes down to this, doesn’t it? New Year’s Day or any other day of the year. Sometimes we just need the reminder.