This is our so-called black-out period that prevents me from talking about how well IBM is doing or making predictions about our industry that might affect stock prices, so instead I will talk about my New Year's Resolutions.

First, let's see how well I did against last year's[Resolutions for 2008]:

Improve my writing skills

For this, I purchased the[Associated Press (AP) Stylebook] which some consider to be the Journalist's Bible for how to spell, write and phrase things correctly.I also followed various blogs about writing, including John E. McIntyre's[You Don't Say], Dan Santow's[Word Wise, and the Quotation's Page[Quotes of the Day].

Improve my HTML and Web design skills

I helped out several local organizations with their Web sites, and learned some of the latest HTML features, Common Style Sheets (CSS), Javascript, and Active Service Pages (ASP).

Contribute to the OLPC Foundation

Last year, I resolved to contribute my time and effort to the One Laptop Per Child[OLPC] project led by Nicholas Negroponte. It didn't takelong for them to contact me, and I had wonderful experiences helping the folks in Nepal andUruguay.Despite building and delivering half a million laptops to deserving kids, the OLPC team has been impacted by the recent economic meltdown. From their [announcement], theOLPC team is making some shifts in their direction and priorities. Here's an excerpt:

"This restructuring is also the result of an exciting new direction for OLPC. Our technology initiatives will focus on:

• Development of Generation 2.0
• A no-cost connectivity program
• A million digital books
• Passing on the development of the Sugar Operating System to the community.

With regard to deployments:

• Latin America will be spun off into a separate support unit
• Sub-Saharan Africa will become a major learning hub
• The Middle East, Afghanistan and Northwestern Pakistan will become a major focus"

It's not clear how involved I will be with OLPC in 2009, and I will probably wait for the dust to settle on this one.

Eat Healthier and Drink more

I hired a nutritionist and improved my diet. I also drank more (that was an easy one to keep!). Unfortunately, there is still room for improvement on this one.

Attend more movies and film-making events

I've renewed my membership with the Tucson Film Society, and attended several of their eventsin 2008, including a meeting Will Conroy, screenwriter for the Action/Suspense thriller[Transsiberian] starring Woody Harrelson and Ben Kingsley.

Get better Organized

Well I carried my [Hipster PDA] in my back pocket most of 2008, but it just did not catch on. I did get somewhat better organized, with three-ring binders and a scanner that converts paper documents into searchable PDF files.

While some might find the concept of New Year's resolutions silly or pointless, I find themuseful. Here's some interesting research on Wikipedia:

"Recent research shows that while 52 percent of participants in a resolution study were confident of success with their goals, only 12 percent actually achieved their goals. Men achieved their goal 22 percent more often when they engaged in goal setting, a system where small measurable goals are used (lose a pound a week, instead of saying "lose weight"), while women succeeded 10 percent more when they made their goals public and got support from their friends."

Here are mine for 2009:

Spend More Time with Friends and Family

According to this [article by Albrecht Powell], reconnecting with friends and family is the number one on the Top 10 list.I think the economic meltdown served as a great wake-up call for people to focus what is mostimportant in your life and adjust your priorities accordingly.

Enjoy Life More

Back in 2007, I vowed to laugh more. While the current economic crisis might not seem like an appropriate time for this one, I think there is hope, a new US President, and some much-needed enthusiasm for change.

Learn Something New

At a dinner with clients, one of the IBMers had brought his 20-something daughter and hersimilarly-aged friend. Their college was closed for the week after a student shooting, andhe felt it best to give them a change of scenery. They couldn't wait until they were "done withschool" so they could get on with their lives. I had to break the bad news to them that intoday's world, they should expect life-long learning. Gone are the days where you can learna specific skill or trade, and do that the rest of your life. Hopefully I didn't frightenboth into giving up a career in favor of marriage with such advice!

With the world getting smaller, flatter, and yes "smarter" also, I resolve to learn somethingnew. I don't necessarily know what that is yet, but I will keep it in the back of my mind.

Make Tucson a better place, and enrich the lives of its residents

I've actually gotten complaints that I was helping people in other countries, through OLPC and [Kiva],and that I should domore for people right here in Tucson. That's fair. This year I resolve to investigatethat further.

Get Better Organized

Last year was a good start, but I can certainly do better in 2009, both at home and at the office.Perhaps I need to dust off my old copy of ["Getting Things Done"] by David Allen and read it again!

Hopefully, this list might inspire you to come up with your own resolutions. Not surprisingly, writing them in a public forum helped me keep most of them, and stick to my resolutions throughout the year. Here are [other hints to help you], and some[expert advice on maintaining resolutions].

technorati tags: IBM, New Year's Resolutions, AP, Stylebook, HTML, CSS, ASP, OLPC, Transsiberian, Will Conroy, Woody Harrelson, Ben Kingsley, PDA, PDF, Kiva, GTD, David Allen