So this post is a little late for a 2013 post. In the past 2 months from December 2012 to January 2013 I managed to do a lot of reflective thinking. I was called up for reservist in December and early January was kind of a holiday-cum-rest period before term begin. While I was preoccupied for a large part of this period I managed to reflect a lot upon my life these past 23 years.

A lot has happened and I’ve definitely went through multiple turning points in the past 7 years. I stood on the threshold of the new year and I started to wonder where was I headed And I realized I didn’t really know. But what I did know was that I repeated certain mistakes that I didn’t want to repeat again and there was definitely a list of habits I wanted to cultivate in 2013. So for this year I’ve decided to do something different. Resoultions never seem to work for me and for many others. This time round I decided instead employ a daily checklist coupled with a list of 10 simple and clear rules to follow. In Switch a book by Chip and Dan Heath there were three crucial factors towards affecting change namely the rational emotional and environmental. The daily checklist and 10 rules provide and important daily script that I can follow with very clear goals. For example I divide the day into 7 timecycles (late night-morning-noon-afternoon-late afternoon-evening-night) each with specific tasks that would structure my day i.e. Check email at 1230pm. The 10 rules help to complement the checklist by reinforcing the habits they are trying to create. For example the rule “Sleep by 11pm latest” ensures that I am able to maintain a regular sleep schedule a schedule that is outlined by the timecycle approach for the daily checklist. I also make sure to reduce all tasks to something that is easy to do i.e. 30 minute revision. The best part about this approach is that it is meant only as a guideline and i follow them only to the point I am able to day by day hoping that by the end of 2013 I am able to follow through the checklist from the first to the last task. In this way I’m able to go at my own pace and also hopefully cultivate some new habits in the process.

Also, we only had about 2 weeks of holiday break in January, but me, Hudz and Farid managed to plan at the last minute a 5-day holiday to Penang and Hat Yai. A well deserved getaway and most of the time we were either eating or just chilling. Not really a sightseeing trip but good enough for us to just unwind away from Singapore.

It’s now already week 2 of the new term, but already I have a good feeling for the year ahead. But as always, only time will tell. For now, I’ll just take one step at a time, at my own pace.

-MDF