Resolute?

To resolve, or not to resolve. That is the question facing me today, January 2nd, 2009.

There are several goals I have in mind that make for decent resolutions, including washing my hands for the full 30-seconds required to maximize the benefits of soap, getting my mile time down to 8:30, cooking dinner 5 days a week, keeping a positive attitude about going to work or doing yoga once a week. But then I read articles like this one in the New York Times, and I get discouraged and dissuaded from making the effort.

I’ve been reflecting quite a bit on the changes I’ve gone through over the past year, and there is one behavior modification that I’ve been particularly proud of: cooking dinner at home. This was a goal of mine last January 1st, and I’m happy to report that we’re averaging about four dinners a week, prepared in our very tiny but serviceable kitchen.

Here are the reasons I think I’ve succeeded with this goal:

1. The act of eating at home (particularly food grown and purchased locally) reflects some of my core values. It is a lifestyle that I want to live, one that’s environmentally, socially and economically responsible. Crazy as I sound, eating at home is a political act to me and I believe it in.
   
2. Structural changes have occurred that make it easier to cook at home. When I was in school, I had to take a lot of classes in the evening, so I regularly got home around 8 or 9 at night. Now that I get home around 7, there’s time to make a meal.
   
3. Michael encourages me. He always praises our dinner, says thank you, and enjoys the meal. Often he asks to have dinner in, rather than finding Chipotle, Subway or some other fast alternative.

So the question for me now is: do any of my potential resolutions link with something I believe in, have the structural support in my day-to-day to support their success, and will I receive positive reinforcement for accomplishing them?