&t;I&gt&uot;The never-ending task of self improvement.

Tuesday, January 08, 2002

&uot;The never-ending task of self improvement…&uot; – Ralph Waldo Emerson

The new year traditionally seems to bring out intentions of self-improvement. However, although New Year’s Day is probably the most common target date for changing old habits (after &uot;one of these days,&uot; anyway), bettering oneself should be an ongoing, rather than annual, process.

Many resolutions are non-specific and quickly forgotten. If someone makes a resolution to &uot;spend more quality time with my children,&uot; but fails to specify just when he or she will do this, or how much time, that resolution will most likely fail.

Setting goals, on the other hand, gives us a sense of purpose – a destination. And with that destination, we have to make a solid plan to accomplish that goal. Just as we wouldn’t think of leaving for an overseas vacation without making the necessary reservations, neither should we improvise on our self-improvement plans if we have any reasonable expectations of success. Put another way, when we fail to plan, we plan to fail. For a goal that is never written down is only a wish.

This year, in lieu of making resolutions, I have set goals. One of my personal goals is to spend more time writing and less time playing computer games. Specifically, I plan to finish the final draft of the novel I’ve been working on by the end of March, and to finish the preliminary draft of its follow-up by the end of 2002. I will achieve this by committing at least two hours of every day (with few exceptions) to writing. If I were to make a generic resolution simply &uot;to write more,&uot; what would that mean without setting a specific goal? Absolutely nothing.

When we set and reach goals, it gives us a feeling of accomplishment. But why stop when we reach them? Why not continue setting even higher goals? That’s what we did while we were growing up. Remember earning stars by our names for every good day we had at school? We looked forward to getting those stars, and we were bummed out on the days we didn’t earn them. How about the summer reading program at the public library? They would give us a list of all the books we had read all summer long – it made us want to read even more. We embraced these kinds of goals and challenges as children because of the tangible rewards, which at the time was most likely a &uot;prize,&uot; a certificate of recognition, or something to that effect. Those prizes and certificates we received are probably long gone by now, but the intangible rewards – better social interaction, appreciation of the arts – are what stayed with us. We owe it to ourselves to continue improving ourselves throughout our lifetime.

An example of continued self-improvement would be the college graduate who, after years of hard work and dedication, finally lands a fulfilling career in his or her selected major but continues to take classes to stay up-to-date in the industry. He or she chooses to continue learning instead of growing complacent. Not only does this give the student an advantage when being considered for a promotion; it also provides the benefit of continued learning.

Self-improvement doesn’t necessarily have to be self-serving or for material gain, however. We can improve ourselves by touching the lives of others as well. The United Way, The Salvation Army, churches and many other local organizations can attest to this. Ask them about the feeling they get from helping others.

Wherever we look, we have opportunities to improve ourselves. Albert Lea itself has countless groups and organizations of all kinds, open to anyone interested in joining. Those who cannot find one to suit their interests can start a group of their own. We have a community college and a community education system that are always providing opportunities for learning. And if nothing else, our pubic library has free internet access – a connection to &uot;the rest of the world&uot;. We can make use of these resources – or we can make excuses. Which is exactly, unfortunately, what some people do. Unfortunately, these people tend to miss out on quite a bit.

I believe that we should make the most of the opportunities we have for growth and improvement throughout our lives, Why settle for the status quo and let the world pass us by? After all, we have grown to expect excellence in the customer service we experience, the products and services we buy, and in the food we eat. Why should we expect any less from ourselves?

Dustin Petersen is an Albert Lea resident. His column appears Tuesdays.