Documenting Your New Year's Resolutions

It's that time of year. A new year full of promise and fresh starts. time to wipe the slate clean so to speak and set new goals for yourself. Sometimes the act of putting the goal or resolution down in writing helps you to keep focus on it. According to newyearsresolutions.com these are the top 10 most popular resolutions. See any of yours on the list?

1) Spend More Time with Family & Friends
2) Fit in Fitness
3) Tame the Bulge
4) Quit Smoking
5) Enjoy Life More
6) Quit Drinking
7) Get Out of Debt
8) Learn Something
9) Help Others

Did you know that making resolutions isn't a modern fad either. According to 43things.com, "Revelry and resolutions have been essential to ringing in the New Year since 2000 B.C. when Babylonians held semi-annual festivals around the spring and autumn equinoxes. Back then, people marked the beginning of a New Year by paying off debts and returning borrowed goods. The practice carried over into Roman times with worshippers offering resolutions of good conduct to a double-faced deity named Janus, the god of beginnings and endings. When the Roman calendar was reformed, the first month of the year was renamed January in honor of Janus, establishing January 1 as the day of new beginnings."

So if you are thinking of how to document your New Years' Resolution, have a look at these two very different examples from designer Rachel Hall.

In this example from 2008, Rachel created a canvas using lots of different techniques. A visual reminder might be just the thing you need if you find yourself falling short of your goal.


Here's an example from 2009. I love the picture here. At the bottom, Rachel typed out a bunch of words that would inspire her in the new year and some areas of her life she wanted to be sure she kept focused on.

So what resolutions or goals did you set for yourself in this new year? We'd love to read them and maybe inspire one another, so leave a comment here and share.