January is always an exciting time for me. The holidays are over, tax money is just around the corner, and my imaginary mental slate is wiped clean in order to begin a new year.

I guess my only complaint about January concerns the pressure of deciding how exactly I’m going to go about becoming the new person I want to be.  I believe it is extremely important to reinvent yourself every chance you get. In my opinion, one should never become too satisfied with their current situation.  So, each year, I take the time to evaluate my life and where it stands in relation to my goals.  I also review my list of goals and decide how I can add to them, or make them more difficult.  I find it impossible to be successful in life without at least having a plan, and I take these lists very seriously.

Last year, my motto was “Everything in its place and a place for everything.”  I was all about organizing the details.  It began innocently enough, I think.  My ultimate goal was to increase my productivity by taking charge of all the little things.  Unfortunately, a year later I am still the least-productive person I know!  I am slow at everything, I procrastinate, and I can never seem to follow any task all the way to the end.  And so began the era of a paperless lifestyle.

I decided that in order to handle all of my responsibilities the way I needed to, I was going to have to go completely digital.  I started with an electronic calendar that I was able to sync with my phone and utilize it to its full potential, so that way I could plan and control every waking minute of my adult life.  Next began the hunt for the perfect personal financial software that I could use to manually enter every transaction in my checking, savings, money market, credit card and retirement accounts…so that I could manipulate the data over time to see exactly where each penny was going, thereby making better decisions about spending in the future.  Then, I decided to only communicate via text message or email…I no longer had the time for real conversations.  I felt that it would be far more productive for my new busy adult lifestyle.

As you can imagine, instead of becoming more aware of my habits I became cheerlessly anal-retentive.  I managed to suck every last drop of fun out of my days and spent far too many hours trying to organize the life that I was no longer living.  I developed an unhealthy obsession for Ziploc bags and plastic totes, and suddenly everything had to have labels.  The best way to describe myself last year would be a mixture of Martha Stewart and Amy Winehouse.

Some good did come of the mess, though.  I started to live just a little more ‘green’ by enrolling in electronic bank statements (I found that I wasted too much time in the evenings opening mailing envelopes.) I also taught my Dad how to text message. (SUCH a lifesaver!)  But in the end, I still ended up spending too much money, failing two classes and never getting to work on time.  All while actively poisoning my already-dwindling social life.

In 2009, I want things to be different.  I still want to get things done, but I have got to start being a little more hands-off about the small things.  I focused so much on the tangible aspects of my life that I completely forgot that I was still a part of it.  In the grand scheme of things, success isn’t defined in how much you organize your existence.  You’ve never attended a funeral and though “Wow, he could really alphabetize a spice rack like no one’s business!”  I’ve learned that it’s the substance of your life that counts.  Your memories, your laughs, your friendships, your love…and your successes, too, although they don’t always have to be aligned in a neat little row with a label.  Accomplishment comes from thinking on your feet and enjoying the moments you’re thrown into.  You can’t plan every second. This week I’ve been watching Oprah’s series on living a healthier lifestyle.  I admire her for pointing out that ‘getting back on the wagon’ is more than just cutting foods out of your diet and exercising more.  It’s a mental and emotional process, as well.  Taking time for your family, your friends, your dog…those things relieve stress and help make what you’re doing more important because you have others to share your achievements with you.  This year I vow to take more time out for me.  I’d like to read a few more books, play a few more songs, take a few more silly pictures with friends…I want to embrace my youth while I have it instead of being so concerned with documenting it for later review.  Here’s hoping that we all stay happy, healthy and beautiful in 2009.