Birth of Resolutions - "Action" 2018

Crafting out new year resolutions has never had a place on my bucket list of to-dos.

But having decided to make 2018 a personal year of "action", the following resolutions were listed, for the first time in my life, just before the start of 2018.

The purpose of sharing it here is mainly for selfish reasons, for me to ink them and not find excuses to not action them. And I shall do a review here at the end of this year (if this blog still exists!), on how much I have achieved on these 3 new year resolutions set out below:

1. Running Jogging a Total of 500 km in 2018 

Now this is one of the things in life which I truly hate doing.

Even when I was serving the army, running was more of a chore than an enjoyment.

But with the recent realization that I am lacking in mental perseverance, I have found that running is a great way to build mental toughness. (Maybe not running, but jogging instead, as I run at a grandmother's pace). And I can't complain the by-product of being physically fitter.

Decided to not blow the top with an un-achievable goal, and decided to set small weekly goals of 15 km, with 3 sessions of 5 km each to achieve my target of 500 km (taking into account of periods of the year where I may be out of town and unable to clock the kms).

I must admit that I got the idea of setting an achievable total distance for the year, from my friend, YQ, who managed to clock 1,000 km in 2017!!! So thank you, YQ!

2. Maintain a Blog and Posting at least Once a Week

Starting a platform to share personal stories and inspiring ideas or videos which I have come across, has been something which I have been contemplating for a while. 

But this blog primarily serves as a platform to pen my thoughts and save all the interesting stories which have been shared with me. And I see my "action" year of 2018 the perfect opportunity to put this blog in motion.

Also, I realized that I don't write very well. So this blog serves as a test bed to hone my skills to be a more believable story-teller.

One of my main inspirations to start a blog is Rebecca Toh. She is just so f**king awesome!

3. Read at least 1 Book every Month

Investing in myself is something which I lacked over the years. Spending a large proportion of my day gaming on my mobile phone has been the theme for many of my waking hours prior 2018. Have decided to swap gaming for reading after encountering Rebecca Toh's website.

Her introduction to my first book of 2018: <What I Talk About When I Talk About Running> by Haruki Murakami was also one of the motivating factors behind me setting running as a new year resolution.

And I'll share a secret here with all of you who have access to the National Library Board Singapore: There is a very large library of ebooks which you can read for FREE! There is no need to spend your hard earned dollar on good books which are also available in the public library. Details on how to set this up on your computer or mobile phone can be found here.

I personally prefer to read eBooks from my mobile phone as I can read them anywhere whenever I have time to spare e.g. on the train, waiting for buses, in a queue, etc.

But of course, if you prefer the smell and feel of a physical book, the public libraries in Singapore are a great source!