New Beginnings

¡feliz año nuevo!

I am retired and beginning a whole new life in the year 2010. Some of the things I plan to do this year, I started before retirement, just so I could get "my feet wet" and have a sense of direction. It is exciting to be looking out over a brand new landscape.

Since I am not required to do anything I don't want to do, except die and pay taxes, I made a list of objectives for myself. I no longer plan on having goals. In my mind, the difference is that goals require plans of action, they require systematic progression toward completion, they require success or failure. Goals must be specific, they must be achievable and they must be measurable. Objectives on the other hand, are just things I want to do.

If I do a little or a lot of something I have succeeded in pursuing that objective, and I can continue that pursuit as long as I wish.

One objective includes studying Spanish. If it were a goal, I would be required to learn to speak Spanish with some predetermined degree of fluency. As an objective, I may continue to study the language and may or may not become fluent. No pressure.

Another objective is to work on Joe's memoirs. If it were a goal, I would be required to finish and publish Letters to Ethan. Even if that never happens I will still leave my grandson memories of his granddad.

Other objectives include clearing some of the clutter from my life, travel to places near and far, and now that I have more time enjoy more physical exercise.

For sixty-plus years I have been goal oriented. I have worked to accomplish specific goals by a specific time using a well thought out plan. And I always measured by my success or failure. I have divested myself of all that pressure and compulsion.

Chris Dunbar on her website Creativity Portal explains "When people say, 'I have no idea what I want to do,' I smile and think, yes you do. Just sit quietly with yourself and listen. You'll feel it. Whatever it is that excites you when you think about it, that thing that brings you joy and creative fulfillment when you act on it, that's what you want to do. And sometimes, you'll make remarkable, puzzling decisions in order to do it."

This is what I have done and is what I am pursuing.

Live Long & Prosper!