Happy Do-Over

I love New Year's and Resolutions.  I usually have several pages worth under a variety of headings including Art & Writing, Spirituality, Relationships, Completing Incompletions, Health, Wealth....among others.  I don't always hit the mark and complete every single resolution under those topics, but I do almost always make progress in each area.

Not every hit is a bullseye.  Practice gets the mark.  

What I really love about Resolutions is that once I have missed the mark, I am given cart blanche to a "do over."  It is a chance to renew my commitments to activities or behaviors that I've found helpful in the past.  It is a chance to renew my vigor and energy around specific areas of my life.  It is a way to reconnect when I think or feel I've somehow lost my connection.

I know that New Year's is a very arbitrary "setting" for beginning resolutions--and in fact, I tend to renew my resolutions at least quarterly and definitely review my progress at the end of each month so I can keep on track with creating the life I want and also the person I am and want to continue to improve upon.

Regular attention WILL result in improvements and change.  Love the change.

I've always been a "lister" so resolution making is fun.  And I love imagining not only the outcomes of my goals but the road to getting there...like learning to golf and getting back to working out regularly.  Or completing several art gallery shows in a year accompanied by magazine articles.

Or writing my blog three times a week.  Honestly, sometimes I wonder at those who do it every day.  But then I realize a lot of them only write one or two sentences or paragraphs and add links or photos.  Perhaps I shall strive to take a page from their books and just keep things light more often.

With that in mind, if you haven't been or are not a resolutions or goal setter...here is a terrific link for goal setting with some suggestions.  If it all seems like too much...try just doing a short list of the major three things you want to improve in your life. And then work on each a little every day.  If you want to keep track of your goals and resolutions by phone, here are some suggestions for apps.

And just for those of you who might not be sure, you can find the definition of resolution here.  Besides actually following through every day, the most important things to do when creating your resolutions are:
1.  Write them in a positive way i.e., not "quit smoking" but "be smoke free!" and
2.  Write them down and view them regularly.

Happy Do-Over to you.

Resolutions

"Beautiful Monster" most recently on display at the Oxford Community Art Center
May 2012 solo show (c) Stephanie Zing 2012 Used with permission.  All rights reserved.

Traditionally, New Resolutions are made on either New Year's Eve or New Year's Day.  I missed that opportunity this year and with the many changes 2012 have wrought in my artistic life, it feels like now is the right time to consider what I want to do to reinvent my artistic world. I've moved away from my studio at the Pendleton Art Center in Middletown Ohio and am getting ready to embark on my exploration of the Gainesville/Ocala Florida artistic corridor.

I'm sad to say that for the third time in as many years, my art studio is in boxes waiting to be unpacked.  That fun begins June 1--and although I LOVED my studio in Oxford and I LOVED my studio in Middletown, I'm hoping that this third time really IS the charm and I can create my studio to be a permanent haven that reflects the look and feel I want it to--even if it takes me a while to get it there. 

I plan to document this process of recreating my studio, but in the meantime, I decided I need some public commitments to keep me on track.  I resolve:

1.  to blog at least three times a week.  Please follow my post and send me your comments and thoughts on my topics.  Feedback will help keep me motivated.

2.  to work on developing new venues to sell my current inventory before beginning new works.  With this in mind, I'll be revising and adding items to my Etsy http://www.etsy.com/shop/BohemianArtCafe  and Ebay http://myworld.ebay.com/bohemianartcafe stores (actually, I haven't had anything on either of them for a very long time--but that is going to change within the next 60 days.) I'll also be revising my website http://www.bohemianartcafe.com/.


3.  to develop a strong, new art community both virtually and here in my new homeland of Florida.  This includes finding a co-op where I can be a member, to find some venues for group or solo gallery shows, and to join the area art leagues.  I'm very excited to meet new friends, colleagues and see what people here are working on.

These feel like important resolutions.  Perhaps, since resolutions don't often get kept, setting them in the middle of the year will help me to keep them.  Blogging will also help.

Have you thought of setting new resolutions mid-year?  How do you keep your resolutions? I'm happy to hear any one's tips on keeping resolutions.