I just read a very funny, yet slightly depressing but totally relatable tweet: One guy said he was entering 2018 with 2012 problems. I’m hoping you guys aren’t carrying some unrealized resolutions from way back when, but I know I got a bit lazy in certain departments in the last couple of years. The fitness department.

Of course, it isn’t just laziness. There were health issues, which led to a more severe lack of movement, which caused more health issues. That decreased my productivity, and that is never good for the mood, income or the creative spirit.

It might be slightly naive to be this optimistic about any new year but a good mood does wonders for the health, so it can’t hurt. Especially if it is backed up by action.

So let’s get to it:

– Pitching: Until you have enough well-paying clients that treat you well, ten pitches a day is a good idea. They don’t always have to be cold pitches. You can pitch your favorite magazines and blogs as well. But even if you write both non-fictin and fiction, whatever pays, keep that pitch at 10. Thank you, Gina Horkey for the number.

– Fitness: My favorite thing to is to dance my way to my favorite songs, which incorporates whatever I like into fast rock numbers. Motley Crue, AC/DC, Guns’N’Roses. Yes, I’ll try to walk 10,000 steps a day. But if I can’t, my trusted rock frontmen will inspire my moves.

I’m also buying a watch that counts my steps because it is annoying to have to look at my phone all the time.

– Health: Hopefully, this will mean less junk, more salad and less screen time. I’ll try to listen to radio more, read paperbacks and well…that is pretty much it. I already don’t smoke. And I don’t drink much. I also don’t drink fizzy stuff or juice, so there is only so much I can do here…

– Writing: I have two works in progress that have been works in progress for years. No more. Those screenplays will be written, even if I have to endure the typically shitty first draft. Thou shall not wait for inspiration, but instead, rewrite and brainstorm the hell out of it. 

– Meet more people. This one is tricky because I’m a writer who works from home or a coffee shop. There aren’t any decent co-working spaces where I live, so traveling to one of those to be more social isn’t worth it.

To give you more context, I live in Istanbul. The city is huge, and you can only imagine the traffic if you live in Los Angeles or New York or something. Also, changing continents is only fun when the weather is decent, and you are willing to lose time waiting for stuff. Not ideal for a well-planned, productive day. And definitely not for a work emergency.

I have many friends, but it is hard enough to meet them, let alone to try and meet their friends. I belong to several meetup groups, which are my best bet. I made some pretty cool friends that way. I just end up canceling on many of those because due to inconvenient locations, mad weather and health issues. Fingers crossed for a more social year.

If you are an introvert, I have to talk up the networking benefits as well as inspiration of this goal. More people mean more story ideas. Living in our heads is awesome but even the most prolific authors occasionally need the outside stimuli.

– Clean up and organize: This includes my working space, wardrobe and the inbox. I hit mass delete once and it was awesome. Look, whatever info I was saving, if I didn’t get to in a week or month, it clearly didn’t matter that much. Even if it did, I can always find a more updated version online. Obviously, tread lightly with your work email, but going from a thousand to zero is bliss. So whatever you don’t need, get rid of. Also, unsubscribe is a magical button.

Throwing away clothes and stuff is harder. Many carry sentimental value and/or represent goals. What if I lose weight and wear that again? What if I put on weight and need something comfortable and looks good?

I will tell you what. You are allowed to keep a few very good items that look new. So if your weight happens to fluctuate, you don’t have to go shopping that minute. But the rest? Come on. You can do this. If you have kept something for 30 years because your beloved Aunt Rita gave it to you, keep it. But if you bought it 6 years ago and haven’t remembered to wear it, that has to go.

This is not coming from a high horse. I’m writing this post for myself as much as I’m writing it for you. More clothes cramp the space. They also cause dust and make it harder to clean. And I hate cleaning even when it is easy.

You can always shop more when you get more money and space.

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Alright. These are all for now. Wait for an end-of January post to see how I handled all these. What about you? What are your goals?