A Green Resolution Revolution for 2012

Welcome to 2012! A brand new year like a lovely clean sheet of paper unscrolling before us, right? A new chance to go fitter, leaner, break the bad habits—and go greener.

Maybe your list includes an item like: “Live a Greener Life!” Great intention. But painted in a broad brushstroke--which makes it hard to follow from the start, & easy to lose track of as life goes on.

So here’s an idea:

Break that green resolution down into smaller pieces, and tie those to your individual goals for 2012.

If working on your own health, career, clutter, habits and relationships will also help Mother Earth, you’ll be doubly motivated. And if those days come when you can’t do it for yourself, you can win one for Gaia!

Here are green twists on typical New Year's personal goals:

1. I’ll get fitter and lose weight: Don’t just sign up for the gym and Weight Watchers. You know how memberships swell every January, and by February 1 there are lots of empty spaces. So:

Walk or bike wherever you can – you’ll save on fuel while incorporating your body goals into a holistic lifestyle that makes you “fit for life.”

Tip: Cambering trikes can give you a boost along roads and hills, and provide a fun workout for muscles and balance too.

2. I’ll eat more healthily: Don’t just cut out the simple carbs for a month. Take steps toward the bigger picture, that you can sustain. Wherever possible, replace some of the things you’re eating now with organic, non-GMO, cruelty-free, local foods. And cut down overall on your animal-protein intake, with protein-rich vegetable sources. Your health and your family’s will say thank you; you'll contribute to an earth-and-animal-kinder world; you’ll help create more demand for healthy products, which over time lowers their prices; you’ll support independent farmers and your area's economy.

Tip: Some of the cost differential for organic veggies or grass-fed meats can be offset by cutting down on paper product use. Recycle old sheets and shirts into cleaning cloths; buy reusable cloth products like "People Towels."

3. I’ll find a new job, or enter a more satisfying career . With so many people out of work entirely these days, the emphasis has been shifting from satisfaction to survival. But one fast-growing economic sector is green capitalism and green energy. Green work is a huge, varied field: investigate the parts that fit your interests and experience. If your former job provides reeducation help, you could use it toward new skills in an earth-friendly field.

Tip: Much of the bunker mentality we see in "this economy" is built on fear. Coming from a perspective of passion and choice can accomplish the seemingly impossible! Two "gurus" we’ve found especially helpful in the area of manifesting your genuine desires are Robert Anthony, with his Secret of Deliberate Creation program, and Barbara Sher, author of "Wishcraft: How to Get What You Really Want," and "I Could Do Anything if I Only Knew What It Was."

4. I’ll clear this clutter! Well then, recycle it! And hook it up to your other goals.

- As you trade in a flabby physique for a fit one, reward yourself with some new clothes and release the old. Do a clothing exchange with a few friends: everyone brings wearable clothes you don’t need anymore, lays them out, and takes home what they like best. Give the unclaimed things to charity.

- Raise fast cash by selling items that no longer fit your life. If you love it but don’t have space for it, take photos to remember it by. Start at the top: antique/collectible dealers or eBay for the best stuff, and lightly used books, CDs and DVD’s on Amazon. Box up the rest for a yard sale in the spring, which you schedule now in your calendar. Donate the leftovers.

- Reduce the paper chase. Scan old photos and documents you don’t need hard copies of. Read ebooksinstead of buying printed ones, and subscribe online to your newspaper and a single e-magazine service to replace a half-dozen printed magazines.

- Say no to plastic--there are many ways--and you’ll reduce the perma-clutter in Mother Earth’s house.

5. I’ll create more satisfying relationships . Peace and love within leads to a more peaceful world. Meditate, do yoga (helps fitness too), insight work (can help with the next career step)—the things that support you in creating a loving relationship with yourself—as early each morning as you can. That's a base that can be extended out into your relationships with other humans, all beings, the whole planet. As it comes full circle, old relationships are healed and the right new ones enter your life.

Then, when everyone’s looking to ol' Punxsutawney Phil on Groundhog Day for a prediction about how the spring will come, you won't need him. You’ll be well on your way to earth-kindly self-realization: your personal Green Resolution Revolution!