2008 is coming to a close, and I’m making big plans for 2009.
Looking back, there were plenty of goals I failed to achieve this year. I didn’t lose as much weight as I wanted to, for example. But that’s okay. I like having grand plans. I think I need my plans to be grand. I might not accomplish everything I set out to do, to the degree that I wanted to, but as long I can keep coming back to the starting line, I figure I still have a chance to win the race, or at the very least to complete it.
Going back to the weight thing, for a minute. I had planned to lose about 90 lbs. in 2008. I didn’t. I lost only 20 lbs. because I failed to eat healthy as often as I should have. I failed to cut back on sugar and sodas as much as I should have. I failed to exercise as much as I should have. I failed at so many things that prevented me from losing that 90 lbs.
In spite of all that, I still succeeded in losing 20 lbs. and have kept it off. If I failed at the same rate in 2009, by the end of next year, I’ll weigh 20 lbs. less than I do now. That’s really not so much failure, as it is slow success, right? Of course, I would like to lose 70 lbs. in 2009, but I couldn’t really complain if I fail so badly that I still wound up being 20 lbs lighter, you know.
The biggest thing I’m working on for 2009 is how I think about achieving my goals. I need to focus on what I get right, acknowledge the mistakes, and let them go. The worry, the stress, the fear of all the imagined possibilities of everything that could go wrong is too much. It’s paralyzing. (When you have big plans, it helps if you break them down into simple, small steps so they don’t become immediately overwhelming.)
So, I’ve got my plans for 2009, and if I fail, I’m going to take Samuel Beckett’s advice, and fail better.
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Stop using the word failed! Look at all the things you succeeded in accomplishing. I’m proud of you. Twenty pounds is a big deal and you are less likely to put that weight back on because you lost in a healthy way (no crash diet).
Well, that’s my point. Failure isn’t failure, as long as you keep trying and making progress.
20 pounds is a great loss. I’d stick out my chest for you, but we all know where that leads. Good Job.