Resolutions for 2007?

JoeCommodore asks: "It's that time of year where many of us review our last year and look at ourselves in the mirror, checkbook balance, and/or social schedule (EPs, stats, and skills, for those who relate to RPGs) and make resolutions to improve ourselves. One of my resolutions is to stop my increasing diversionary tactics when working on my many projects at home. You know, instead of working on some problem problem I turn to the internet (Slashdot), games, snacks, and so on. Either I need to get better at controlling my diversion habits or turn them them into something positive. So what have you thought of doing for yourself in 2007?"

Comments

My new year's resolution?

[Deacon_Yermouf]

1024x768!

Re:My new year's resolution?

[Eudial]

1024x768!

I'm stuck behind a terminal you insensitive clod.

So... 40x25!

100 dpi.

[Yaztromo]

I resolved many, many years ago to stop making resolutions.

It's the only one I've ever kept.

Yaz.

Re:100 dpi.

[Rakshasa Taisab]

New Year's resolutions are for people who want to procrastinate for a few months.

Re:100 dpi.

[networkBoy]

I make one's I know I can keep. Last year was: be fat and happy.
you know what? I am not too much heavier than last year 243 vs 235 and sure as hell I'm actually happy :-)
This year it's enjoy caffine and my kids, while attempting to smuggle in a handful of Cuban Cigars. If I get caught I'll raise a constitutional discrimination issue out of it. (our congress critters can import up to 100 at a time at-will, without the prerequisite of having traveled to Cuba, mearly leaving the country is sufficent).

See easy to keep resolutions are good for you.
-nB

1280x720

[Junta]

Was last years resolution too (if I would have waited, maybe my 2007 resolution would have been 1920x1080...

The Simple Route

[superdan2k]

This year, rather than make specifics, I went with one thing: be more awesome.

Crazy, right? In the last year, I started doing everything I needed to do to have a great life. This year, I want to keep doing those things and stay consistent. And even try a few new things. No point in making concrete goals -- the goal is to be more awesome in everything that I do.

Not posting on slashdot.

[Spazntwich]

...shit

Re:-1 million "Troll"

[WilliamSChips]

A lot of people don't like the term "comic book" because it implies humor. Quite a few comic books/graphic novels were not meant to be funny.

Less stuff

[mccalli]

Not a resolution as such, but a general aim I've had for a while now. Time to rationalise and purge a lot of kit.

In our household there's currently a bit of an Apple-fest: MacBook Pro, a MacBook, a Mac Mini, a Power Mac G5 tower, a G3 Blueberry iMac and ye olde SE/30. There's also an Atari STe with SM124 monitor, a C64 with 1541, two SNES consoles (one PAL, one NTSC), a Wii, a Gamecube, a Playstation 1, a Playstation 2, two Gameboy Advance SPs, and an ancient P100 laptop that does duty as a disk drive for the C64. Oh, and currently I have three RAQ 4 servers of varying spec as well. A Series 1 Tivo (I'm in the UK) too, and a work-issued laptop rounds off the collection.

It doesn't take a genius to see that this is a bit much...

However, it's easy to say it's a bit much but actually paring it down is much harder. The MacBook Pro is my main machine, the MacBook is my wife's. The G3 has been handed to my 5 year-old daughter and does good service as a learning machine. The Power Mac...well, that can probably go although I do have one last PPC-only app (QuadraSID, a music plugin so Rosette is out). The Mac Mini? Nope - that's getting an expanded role next year as a DNS/svn/postgres/iPhoto/iTunes server. The SNES? No Streetfighter II Turbo on the Wii's virtual console yet so one at least will probably stay. The RaQs can all go now. The SE/30? Undecided - never used but there for nostalgic reasons rather than use. The STe? Llamatron. The C64? Over my dead body will that go - SID music plus all the great games. Emulators can only do so much - sitting in front of a real C64 is still a different experience to using the excellent Power64 emulator. The Playstation 1? Worms - the PS2 doesn't get the resolution quite right and the game looks better on a PS1. The PS2? Revz, Tekken 5, Grand Tourismo...can't emulate that yet. The GBAs? Maybe one - my three year-old son is getting into that a bit at the moment (mainly Spiro). The ancient P100 laptop - probably yes as I've sorted out a Flash-based interface for the C64 now. The Tivo? EyeTV on the Mac isn't good enough yet, so nope - the Tivo stays.

So I'm left in this daft position of having kit coming out of my ears and yet being unable to get rid of most of it since it all still has a purpose. Still feels like I should do some rationalisation though.

Cheers,
Ian

Two resolutions

[cperciva]

I resolved to eat less (than an elephant) and exercise more (than a sloth).

So far I'm succeeding.

my 2006, 2007, and future resolution

[ifnkovhgroghprm]

2 chicks at the same time.

Get your financial house in order!

[antifoidulus]

I cannot stress that enough. While money does not buy happiness, a certain amount does go a long way to giving you independence. 18 months ago I was a recent grad who through circumstance and stupidity(credit card debt SUCKS ASS!) found myself with a new job and $37,500 in debt. This month I will finally have a 0 net worth, and it is the best feeling ever. I have had to work a job I hate in a place I loathe simply because my debt dictated I take the best paying job I could find. I have been miserable, but there is light at the end of the tunnel and *fingers crossed* I will be entering grad school next year with a stipend and a positive net worth. I never, ever want to have to work a job simply because I desperately need the money.

Save like hell, invest wisely, and keep an emergency fund of at least 6 months handy at all time. And stay out of all debt besides a mortgage(and pay that off as soon as you can). It feels so good to be able to say "no" to a boss and not have to worry about whether or not you can make next months rent. Beats the hell out of a new plasma screen or any consumer item for that matter. I loathe Wal-Mart because I have come to despise everything it stands for. To quote Tyler Derden, "We work jobs we hate to buy shit we don't need."

Re:Get your financial house in order!

[stonewolf]

YES!

I was laid off five years ago on my 49th birthday and haven't been able to find a tech job since. My income dropped from over a $100K/year to under $20k (some years under $10k). After we were married (almost 30 years ago now) my wife and I started putting 10% of our gross income into various forms of savings. As we got raises we took part of the raise and put the rest in savings. When I was laid off we were putting nearly 30% of our combined gross into a mixture of pre and post tax savings. Over the last 30 years we have both had extended periods of unemployment and sometimes we did have to stop saving just to cover our locked in expenses. But... we own our cars, own our house, and are able to maintain a comfortable life style while I retrain and start a new career. What little debt we have is due to a decision to keep investments in place so long as the return on those investments is greater than the interest on our debt.

Save, save, save... you never know when you will need the money.

Stonewolf

P.S.

No matter what you may believe, you *can* live on 10% less than you currently make.

Re:Get your financial house in order!

[locokamil]

Man oh man... this is the best post I've come across on Slashdot today. I graduated last June with $100 in my pocket, $8000 in student loans, and (after being unable to find a job for a long while), $7000 in credit card debt. Anyhow-- I managed to get a job in October, and my only aim for the last couple of months has been to pay off my debt. The credit card debt should be gone by the beginning of February, and my "zero net worth" day will come on April 7th, 2007-- the day after I get paid, and the three days before the student loans start charging interest. It shall be awesome. I'm planning on celebrating by depositing the rest of my pay for that fortnight in the 401(K) account that has been lying unused since I started my job.

I got lucky: I found a job that I like, and a boss who understands that I've got more in my life going on than work. Even so, the debt's been a huge burden over the last couple of months, and I never, ever want to have any again. I've started planning to buy a car-- but I'm going to pay for it in cash. Same goes for a house when I decide to get one. Save, and then buy. Debt is simply not the way to go, and I have explained it to the newly acquired fiancee. She seems sceptical, but I'm positive it's for the best.

I've also been logging my expenses in this little spreadsheet I made, and pruning off crap that I don't need. I actually decided to stop getting a soda with lunch for a month to see how much money I would save. $100, would you believe it? I cut out the "morning coffee" stop at starbucks, and saved another $100. The guy who said that you can live on 10% less than you do now wasn't kidding: I've found that I can live on half of what I was spending before logging and monitoring my finances.

So yes, getting out of debt and knowing _exactly_ where you stand with regards to money is one hell of a New Year's resolution. If you're only going to keep one in your life, this is the one I would suggest.

Re:Get your financial house in order!

[bergeron76]

Well said. I have a significantly positive net worth, and I did so by being financially responsible (moreso than making a lot of money).

If you can learn to live on HALF of your income (not easy to do), and invest the rest, you'll be a millionaire in your lifetime.

Most people live up to their means. Even before I had a mortgage, I fell into this trap. With each higher paying job, I'd get a nicer car, bigger apartment, etc. I didn't start making financial inroads, until I started saving for my first house (4 bedroom, 3600 sq. ft with basement in Atlanta). AVOID CREDIT CARDS. You will pay 3x the cost of something just for the privilege of being able to buy it today rather than earn it. CREDIT CARDS are a PENALTY for people that don't have PATIENCE.

So the bottom line: Avoid debt (except for student loans and a home mortgage).

Here's the quiz:
a) Nothing tells a woman you are a savy investor better than spending $2000 on rims/wheels for your Honda Civic.
b) Nothing tells a woman you are a savy investor better than driving a brand-new car every 4 years just off the interest you've earned by investing your money wisely in the stock market (while still having the money that earned you that interest).

Re:Get your financial house in order!

[ethanms]

AVOID CREDIT CARDS. You will pay 3x the cost of something just for the privilege of being able to buy it today rather than earn it. CREDIT CARDS are a PENALTY for people that don't have PATIENCE Another way to look at this--It's not that you want to avoid credit cards... it's that you want to avoid paying interest and fees.

I use my credit cards for everything. As a result I'm able to get the benefit of using different types of "rewards" cards available. In particular I split between an airline card and an amex-cash card. Over the course of last year I "earned" about 10k miles for doing nothing but paying bills I would have paid anyway, and on Jan 1st I received a $210 credit from american express as part of their tiered cash back reward from my spending last year.

I don't pay attention to interest rates because I never carry a balance, so it doesn't phase me that my amex may have a high double digit rate, because it never comes into play.

Similarly having a car that is completely paid off isn't necessarily the most wonderful thing either. I bought a certified used car a couple of years ago and took advantage of the then available 1.9% APR for 48 months, the price was right and the financing was attractive... as a result even though I am making payments on the car, and will be for another year or so, I'm happy and better off because I earn approx. 5% (so that's 3% net to me) on the savings that I might otherwise have used to pay for the car (or pay it off early). /hasn't paid CC interest in several years, but still wears the stripes off the cards ^_^

Some offbeat ones

[BertieBaggio]

Reading through the current comments, I see financial suggestions, 'organise your time' suggestions, 'clear out unwanted stuff' suggestions, and the obligatory 'don't waste time posting to /.' jokes. And in Soviet Russia, resolutions make you!

Well, I have four slightly different resolutions to what has been suggested. They have been on the cards for a while now, but I figured I'd bite the bullet and actually give them a shot in 2007. With no further prelude, here they are:

1. Stop procrastinating / wasting time.
   
   At the moment I do waste *far* too much time on inconsequential diversions (hi, /. !). This is my attempt to curtail such wastes of time. It is tremendously helped by the fact I've nearly stopped playing games (besides the occasional online game with my buddies). I'm not sure quite how I'm going to ensure I stick to it, but I may try filling in a schedule at the start of each day and sticking to that (which I'm loathe to do as I enjoy flexibility). In all honesty this is probably the least important of my resolutions, and as long as I can keep down my 'wasted time' as far as possible I'll be happy.
2. Learn Spanish
   
   I don't need to justify this (I have my own reasons for wanting to learn other languages), but I would strongly recommend taking up a foreign language. Barry Farber has a very good method for teaching yourself (and his words are quite motivating too) in a way that will meet your goals (eg mastery of a single language Vs casual chat in a few).
3. Learn a musical instrument (or two)
   
   Again, I have my own reasons for learning to play music (guitar and keyboard); and I would similarly encourage people to try it - no matter what stage of life you are and no matter what experience you have.

In highlighting these resolutions my point is to suggest you do something that serves two purposes: 1) it should tax you - the brain loves a challenge (admittedly I might be preaching to the choir with that one); and 2) it should be quite different from what you do for a living. For example, if you are a software engineer / codemonkey by trade, I don't think you will gain much by making a resolution 'contribute more code to OSS projects' (though of course you should feel free to do so). Take up something more esoteric instead: painting, music, or a language.

Just my 2 bits

Re: Some offbeat ones

[Black Parrot]

> I have my own reasons for learning to play music

Yes, it's called "girls".

Get laid

[Money for Nothin']

This is one most of us /.'ers (including me) should do...

Re:Get laid

[larien]

Only on Slashdot could that be considered "insightful"....

Re:DAOC Character Leveling...

[pimpimpim]

I didn't get any of the acronyms, and I'm perfectly happy with that. I just have one question for you: will it hurt?

Re:-1 million "Troll"

[masterzora]

No, but that's only because the meaning of the word "comedy" has changed over time, but titles don't change.

From Wikipedia:

Dante called the poem "Comedy" (the adjective "Divine" added later in the 16th century) because poems in the ancient world were classified as High ("Tragedy") or Low ("Comedy"). Low poems had happy endings and were of everyday or vulgar subjects, while High poems were for more serious matters. Dante was one of the first in the Middle Ages to write of a serious subject, the Redemption of man, in the low and vulgar Italian language and not the Latin language as one might expect for such a serious topic.

Ob. Simpsons

[Jerf]

Ah, the Internet. The cause of, and the solution to, all of our productivity problems.

Re:-1 million "Troll"

[thesandtiger]

Because some people are just waaaaaaay too stuck on themselves.

True story:

I was at a Borders with a friend of mine, a GORGEOUS blonde from Lithuania. I wanted to pick up a copy of "Strangers in Paradise" so headed over to the comics section. My friend squeals and says "Oh! These are the comic books! I love the Archie!" A neckbeard who is perusing the manga sniffs and says "We call them 'Graphic Novels'." She just looks at him for a second, and then says "You have not had sex, is that right?"

Bet I get -2 million :D

Re:-1 million "Troll"

[masterzora]

The difference is irrelevant in that it would be improper for us to change the title, but to separate a sub-genre is perfectly proper.

I'm not saying there's any error in calling "graphic novels" "comic books", especially since I would say that "graphic novel" is a subset of "comic books". In my opinion, the only error in such would be if one were specifically attempting to separate the sub-genre for some reason, so "graphic novel" would merely make more sense than "comic book".