Seeking Less in 2008

January is named after the Roman god Janus, the god of new beginnings. He had two faces, one on the front of his head and one on the back. This handy feature allowed him to look backward and forward at the same time.

Today we all are like Janus – looking back on the successes and disappointments of 2007, but more importantly, looking forward to 2008. I love new beginnings, and always look forward to New Year’s resolutions that might make this the year I finally pull it all together and become my best possible self.

When I was in my 20s, I struggled to narrow down my list of New Year’s resolutions into 10 things that would make me smarter, worldlier or more employable. My lifestyle has changed a bit since then. Last year, I had one resolution: to make Sundays a day of rest. This was a great goal, but proved to be much harder than I expected. And not very restful. I only managed to accomplish this two out of 52 Sundays.

This year I’m taking a different approach to resolutions. My number one personal frustration is watching days melt away into years while some of my biggest dreams bob around aimlessly in my head like a float in the Macy’s parade. (Maybe I should resolve to read one of those self-improvement books collecting dust on my book shelves.)

My resolution this year is inspired by Ed Schafer. When he was governor he always required state agencies to search for savings by submitting budgets that were less than 100 percent of their existing budget. In doing so, he told agency directors, “I’m not asking you to do more with less. I’m really asking you to consider doing less.”

In our time-crunched, high-stress society, looking for ways to “do less” strikes me as a worthy exercise for just about anyone.

Doing less is the central ingredient of the two most common New Year’s resolutions: losing weight (eating less) and saving money (spending less). These two resolutions actually work well together. Amy Dacyczyn, author of “The Tightwad Gazette” (a book full of practical and somewhat crazy money-saving tips), ranks “thinness” as one of her five best bargains. I love her simple sensibility.

“Doing less” could well apply to some destructive behaviors like yelling at my kids, gossiping or complaining. This idea resonates with me right now because I’ve been reading about the overwhelming power of the human tongue to hurt and destroy.

Losing weight, saving money and being a nicer person are all excellent ambitions, but they are not ultimately what I’m after with my “doing less” resolution. I’m looking to clear out the clutter. Simplify. Do less of the crappy little things that consume so much time. Less errands, returns, activities, junk mail and junk email. Less shuffling of toys or listening to unnecessary noise. Rather than making my list longer and blood pressure higher, I’m searching for things to cut out, do without or simplify in order to live life more fully.

Ultimately, I know I won’t really do less. I’m not looking for time to sit on the couch and watch TV. My hope is to make a little room in my marching band of daily life so I reel in and play with one of those big dreams that are floating along in my parade.