This is the New Year

Tired of always making the same ol' New Years Resolutions? Listen in how I weigh resolutions, finding out if they are effective or not. In addition, I took a different route last year and did not make resolutions but instead made My Impossible List. How did it turn out? Listen up! Includes "Les métamorphoses du vide" 613 Album by Chapelier Fou Also, requesting quotables! Please send in favorite quotes, sayings, or taglines and I will read them at the start of each episode going forward. You may find me on Facebook, Cece Denno, or email sincerelyyours@writeme.com

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Show Transcripts:

Cece Denno:

“Even though I am full, there is always room for dessert, because dessert doesn’t go to your stomach - it goes to your heart.” This is Sincerely Yours, and I am your host - Cece Denno

Intro Music:

Hello and welcome back to Sincerely Yours, if you noticed I started this episode with a quotable something that I requested last time on part three the love love love episode. It is something that I am trying to implement. The first quotable is actually from Sidra - I had the idea back when we were visiting her in Paris and I did ask for one. Of course we sitting at this amazing little cafe in the 8th arrondissement. She had this suggestion for a good one “Even though I’m full there is always room for dessert because dessert doesn’t go to your stomach - it goes to your heart”. Of course I completely agree. I’m very excited I got to complete the three parts that I put together. I focused on career - money and love. Now, I am looking forward to it being 2016, and the new year, and I thought it would be a good idea to put together an episode on resolutions. I asked for some feedback and thoughts on resolutions to see if they work - and I got some mixed responses. One thing that I got as a huge response is that it does seem like putting a date before any sort of change - doesn’t do that trick. Sometimes they work sometimes they don’t work. If you really want to make a change you don’t need a specific date. January 1st comes around the resolution being I’m going to go to the gym all the time, I’m going to eat healthier - I’m going to make this change and that change; but there doesn’t seem to be any follow through there doesn’t seem to be any work to go along with that change. How are you going to make this change - what are you going to do differently to make this change; what is going to be the end result in making that change. One suggestion I did receive - this was from Carrie - she had the idea that in order to make the resolution it takes 28 to make or break a habit. She gave herself 30 days before a goal or resolution and knew that it would work - so it would stick forever rather than just making it temporary. I really liked that, and it ties into if you miss one day at the gym you don’t have to beat yourself up, you don’t have to be so negative about it. If you do miss this or not follow through with the plan - you have to look at the positive look at what you have changed so far in your life, and you can move forward in your life and what you would like to accomplish.

I would agree that they are important to have. Wanting to make changes for the better wanting to better yourself. Those are all good things, but I have another suggestion. Creating an impossible list. I came across the idea last New Year - New Year 2015 and I got the idea from Thomas Frank from Listen Money Matters and rather than of having a specific date you have a running list of things that are constantly changing. In 2014 I was very highly motivated, I felt compelled to start a personal finance blog, it did not go anywhere but I did include my impossible list back not that old blog. Let me go ahead and share it with you. My impossible list :

“ Following the typical New Year resolution I find myself looking backwards rather than forwards. My enthusiasm for the new year and a fresh beginning became to idyllic and reaching January 1st was a priority in itself. Now that a month has come and gone, I still don’t have a blueprint for the year. I want to do something different. I want 2015 to be a success not just another year on the shuffle, so I have decided to make my impossible list rather than resolutions. Rather than putting down definite objectives I want goals that have the option to change and still feel like I am making progress. Famous college and food geek - Thomas Frank introduced the idea and following his success I took to the idea - the list is set up so that when each item is accomplished you don't just stop there but work to build and improve on the item itself. Thomas’ list is rather impressive and extensive and it only helps but a fire under my tush. Build a profitable website and caring community. Steadily conquer a foreign language. Host a podcast and Youtube channel while devouring a never ending reading list. Thomas seems as though nothing can stand in his way. If he’s not going to look at only the year, neither will I. There are several different focus that I want to have for my impossible list. Lifestyle, professional, health, personal, travel are a few to start with. These areas are broad but I feel they are the most profound in my life. Now I can imagine with time and work it will grow. Now to debut my impossible list - lifestyle - grow this blog, build a community. Podcast - I want to start a podcast. Garden - I want to plant a garden asap. Improve - take an improve class. Professional growth - I want to grow in my career an move up. I want to achieve this by either a promotion or move in the direction of what I want to do. Salary - I want to increase my salary by at least 6% in 2015. License - complete my insurance license, credits by my birthday. Get a head start on the next bunch that will be due by the next expiration date. Health - stay active. Maintained by 5 times a week work out by yoga, running, abs etc - triathlon get into cycling and swimming again. Personal - improve I spent a significant amount of time on my lifestyle and I can only hope that I will find that key part. I refuse to give up and forge to keep going. I want to accomplish this by keeping momentum and never giving up. Travels - France I am dying to get back to France ASAP and I have a few ideas to get me there. The next trip is already in the works. London - on the top of my list. Maybe a France and London combo coming up soon. Detroit! Anyone have a free spot on their couch? 2015 is still fresh, so maybe I should start looking forward. With my impossible I hope it is something different so that 2015 is something different. I’ve learned that I am capable of accomplishing anything when I have the determination and goals. I recently learned a significant amount about approaching life differently. I feel completely inspired. Time to get impossible.”

Now back to 2016 - its funny looking back at this list because at the time that I wrote it I was just thinking anything and everything. What can I do to make 2015 so great, because my 2014 was so un-great. I was thinking so ambitiously and would never have thought to accomplish any of these, maybe some of them. The one that I for sure thought I was going to accomplish was under the health field, by maintaining 5 times a week workouts with yoga running and abs. That is actually one of the things I didn’t accomplish. I actually tore my calf back in May and it was 14 weeks of physical therapy so many short runs a lot of pain through the way but if I just go through - ok the blog maybe not so much - but, I started a podcast, I started a garden somewhat successfully, I had one pepper that grew - several but one that I ate. I put together peppers and squash. Squash wasn’t so successful but it was still a start. Its definitely maybe something to try. I did grow in my career. When I was working in Worcester I was working in claims but I got a job in the city in underwriting which I enjoy so much more. I increased my salary by 6%, specifically. I completed my insurance license every three years I have to complete a certain amount of credits. I managed to get it done - it was a lot of work but I did get it done. I tried to get a heard start but by taking the class I never completed the paper work - I still have to get that done. Then, the personal section, in so many words that is me saying I am looking for a boyfriend - and that was accomplished as well. We did go to France over Thanksgiving we did get that done. I did list FinCon but I actually went to Podcast Movement so obviously this is the beginning of 2015 I thought I was way more into personal finance , but it turns out I actually love podcasting so much more; and this is the end result of that.

Going from not sure if I wanted to look for a new job having so much trouble finding one, the end result is that I had all these things written down. I did find a new job, I did increase my salary, I did end up finding someone, I did go back to France. It is just so strange how writing all these things down actually put a goal into place with action and now I am just looking to move forward to the next step of what else I want to include on my impossible list.

I definitely encourage you if your looking to make a change that simply just writing them down. I heard on the Life Coach School with Brooke Costello she recommends - if you’re looking to make a goal - write it down. The power of just writing it down makes such a difference. There’s accountability - its out there; I also recommend if you want to tell someone - tell anyone you’re going to make this goal. I’m going to go to the gym three times a week. There’s a supporting person there that can help you along the way. Even if you wanted me to be that person for accountability please let me know! I’d love to make it apart of the podcast, and you can fill me in. You can find me on Facebook or at my email address its sincerelyyours@writeme.com. Also I do have the big announcement that I made last time about having the website up ItsSincerelyYours.com - you want to make sure to include the I T S with the itssincerelyyours.com. Any Easter Egg guesses? I haven’t had any so far - they’re apart of every episode although I’ve included one in this episode as well, in a slightly different way. I’d love to hear any suggestion or any guesses so far then we’ll maybe figure out a little prize. So get those together and send them out to me. Also if you have any feedback for the show I’d love to hear from you, and don’t forget to send in those quotables. I’ll start making a list of all of the ones sent in together and I’ll give you a big shout out at the beginning of the show. I hope you're enjoying Sincerely Yours as much as I am enjoying making it - hopefully we have some good things coming up. Thanks for listening.

Outro music.