Resolutions: yes or no?

I'm not generally a believer in resolutions. I like goals. I love a plan. I am all for striving to be a better, healthier, happier person and I really do like the idea of assessing that all as the calendar turns over.

But resolutions are so...loaded. Plus, I just don't think one thing cuts it for a whole year. Of course, many of us want to lose weight. Sure, most folks want to be more financially fit. Absolutely, a big percentage of people would like their bodies to jiggle less, to be better rested, to stop smoking, to ease up on the happy hour cocktails, to leave a crap relationship by this time next year. But with one big umbrella resolution, I wonder how many people just feel overwhelmed or exhausted and abandon the ambition weeks, days, or even hours in.

Or maybe that's just me. While I need an intricate road map to achieving my goals, preferably scrawled out on 17 sticky notes adhered to the edge of my laptop, perhaps you are the kind of person who can say, "Yep, I am losing weight this year!" and awaken on January 2nd to eat an apple, delight in a bag of baby carrots, and skip the 500-calorie mochalochafrappe drink. If so, more power (and released weight, cigarettes, cellulite, debt or whatever it is to you).

Still, moving into the New Year without any kind of renewed focus also feels like kind of a failure. I've decided that in this year of 2011, I give my all to get the best of both resolution making and contempt. I've settled on 12 goals that I have made into monthly resolutions.

There's nothing revolutionary in these resolutions. The biggest one is getting more sleep, and even those goals are manageable - to be in bed one to two hours earlier five nights a week for at least a month. Others include taking care of clutter in my workspace, registering for at least three running events, taking a meditation class, and cooking at home more. Under each goal, I have smaller, simple steps to making that resolution happen for real. Hopefully, the process will give each month such a boost, I will want to make these things into more permanent habits. At the very least, I will have a cleaner desk, stew in the slower cooker, and a few more race bibs at the end of '11.

How do you handle the pressure to be better with every New Year? Are you anti-resolution or are you already a few days deep into a big one for 2011?