I'm usually not that big on New Year's Resolutions. Mainly because I never felt the need to stop smoking, lose weight or drink less, the main resolutions we always hear about. But this year, a few factors have come together to help me make a New Year's Resolution

1) I feel that my episodic or "experiential" memory (as opposed to my semantic or "reading" memory) is very weak and lacking. I don't remember things that happened to me a year ago - other people will tell me things I said or did. (And no, it's not because I was wasted...)

2) I never feel as organized as I want to be. There are always things I need to do that slip through the cracks, or appointments that I miss and I want that to change.

3) When buying a gift for my mom at the Stanford Bookstore, I saw a Daily Planner Moleskine. I'm a big fan of Moleskines and it looked so nice and professional. I wanted it.

So these factors combined have lead me to make a Resolution: each evening I will review my appointments and tasks for the next day, and write one sentence about any interesting or significant or happy things that happened during the day (inspired by the Happiness Project's journal). This will allow me to become better organized, and happier as well. Not a bad combination in my view.

I want this planner/journal thing to become a habit. I have a very hard time developing good habits - I just do things as they come to me, and I hope this Resolution will become a daily habit that makes my life better. So if you're still thinking about making a New Year's Resolution (it's not too late!), think about making a daily, or weekly habit. Imagine the difference one year later.

It's what you do everyday, not what you do once in a while, that counts.