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As the New Year inches towards me, my hope for a promising year rises. I begin to think about exciting things that I could or should do in 2008. New Year's resolutions!

Are you thinking of your New Year's resolutions? Or are you too jaded even to try this old ritual again? If you are, I suggest that, for a change, you do a Year End Review before considering your New Year's resolutions.

I look at a long list of intentions that I set out early this year and review how successful I have been in following through with my intentions. Here success is defined as "peace of mind" in knowing I have given my best effort to realize those intentions. (See the previous issue for details on this definition.)

I have made significant, though not best, effort to pursue parenthood and promote my company's services to the public sector. These are my moderate success. I have made little effort to promote my company's services in China or in the Chinese community in Toronto. These are my failures.

Then I look at the effort I have made on things that were not on that list. They include writing for The Globe and Mail and a local Scarborough newspaper The Mirror, running at the Terry Fox Run, participating in the AIDS Walk, climbing in a climbing gym weekly and taking my niece to the Nutcracker ballet. They are the things I enjoyed and I seized the opportunities to do them while giving my best efforts. They are my successes!

Apparently, the things I have had greatest success with are those where I transferred my intention to actions immediately with heartfelt passion. This insight gives me guidelines in generating my intention list for 2008.

1. It will include things that I feel passionate about or enjoy.
2. It may include things that I need to do out of necessity.
3. All things must have action plans attached to them, with their first actions identified to happen at specified locations and dates.

Find a time to conduct a Year End Review of your effort in 2007, alone or with your partner or best friend. You may gain insight about yourself to help generate meaningful and effective New Year's resolutions. You will live a more fulfilled year in 2008.