Changes and Challenges

There are a lot of things I could, and should, be doing differently. Don't get me wrong... I don't think I'm a complete lost cause. I simply know that I have the potential to live a greater life than I'm currently living. Unfortunately, I can never seem to summon the motivation to change out of the dark chasm of my brain in which it lives (I hope it's in there somewhere).Every book, blog, and article I have read about changing oneself and one's habits suggest two things: setting goals and creating something to work toward. I always have the intention of utilizing these tactics, but I never follow through. Obviously, thanks to my lacking motivation, changing my willingness and ability to change will not be easy. But maybe giving these tactics an honest chance will be the kick in the pants I need to get over this quarter-life hump once and for all.

Goals
1. Work out 5 times a week
2. Ween myself off of soda
3. Better manage my finances (two parts):

• Create a budget and stick to it
• Pay off my credit cards

Challenges
1. 30 Day Shred - I will do Jillian Michaels's 30 Day Shred DVD for... 30 days! I'm pretty out of shape, so I'm not fooling myself into thinking I won't need rest days. I will. But if I can stick to doing it at least 5 times a week (per the goal) for 30 days, I think I'll be creating a great new habit.
2. Chug-a-Lug - I can't give soda up cold turkey. I'm an (sugar) addict and I know it. My plan here is to slowly replace soda with water and tea. I need to set up a weening schedule. It's like I'm a baby or something.
3. October Budget - Today is September 23rd. Before October 1st (~8 days), I will create a budget for the month of October. The challenge here is to stick with the budget! This will be particularly difficult since I'm going to on a trip in a couple weeks.

While Challenge #2 is just as important as the others, I think I'm going to focus on #1 and #3 at first. I have a set deadline to get the budget done for Challenge #3, and as far as #1 is concerned, I've been putting it off for years and it's time to get moving (literally). I am hoping that this blog will hold me accountable; that by reporting my successes and failures to the world I will be able to increase my percentage of success.

The internet is an incredible resource to help me meet my goals, and the blogging community seems to have a lot of great people who are willing to throw their support and friendship behind total strangers in order to help them be their best. I can only hope I'll be lucky enough to be welcomed into this community.