My list of goals usually has too many things on it, and those goals change throughout the year. This year, I’m going to try and keep it simple.

Be healthier

I’m steering clear of the “get in shape” line and getting back to what’s important — health. This means I need to eat better and exercise more.

I’ve already dropped nearly 10 pounds in January by just eating better.

It’s not all about physical health. I need to get out and enjoy life more than I did last year. I spent more time than necessary behind a computer screen, and that’s not good for the ol’ social life. Just in case I’m feeling unmotivated, I’ll keep my copy of Yes Man near the TV. That movie always gears me up for a whirl out in the real world.

Become an English teacher

Last year proved to be rough in the job hunting process. I had never walked out of an interview and not gotten a job until last spring. It wasn’t the last failed interview either.

I’ve learned from my experience and have wedged my foot into a few doors over the past year. This time around, I’m going to give it everything I can and land a teaching job.

If you feel like wishing me luck, I’ll take all of it I can.

Build an online empire

Honestly, I want to blog more this year. Of course, I tell myself this a few times a week.

One of the reasons I don’t blog as much is because it becomes tiring. I sometimes spend hours working on a single blog post. Doing that on a regular basis isn’t much fun.

I need to reorganize some things around this site. The biggest change I’ll be making at some point this year will be the incorporation of a few custom post types. This will allow me to build the type of site I’ve been thinking about for the last couple of years and post content in ways that better suit my passions in life.

I’ll post more about my thoughts on this (and probably some tutorials on how I’ll be doing it) in a future post. For now, I’ll give you a preview of a possible new home page.

I also want to try my hand at a few art-directed posts, which I hope will keep my creative juices flowing.

No more goals?

Sure, I have loads of smaller goals. While the smaller goals are sometimes just as important as the larger ones, they’re usually steps that lead up to the major plans. So, I wanted to provide an overall outlook at what I want to accomplish this year.

Omelet and toast

One of my New Year’s resolutions is to eat healthier. Isn’t that on all of our lists? Another is to take more pictures.

Since I’m making an effort to do both, I thought I’d share some of the things I eat along the way. Now for the first recipe.

Today, I got up bright and early simply because I wanted to make sure I got breakfast in. I’ve had a craving for an omelet for a while. I haven’t made one in a couple of years, so this was an experiment in making sure I didn’t completely burn something.

Ingredients

• Whole grain bread (I prefer Arnold’s 12 Grain)
• 1 whole egg
• 3 egg whites
• 2 Tbsp fat-free/skim milk
• 1/3 cup of cheddar cheese (reduced-fat), shredded (I used mozzarella because I was out of cheddar)
• 1/4 cup of lean ham or turkey, diced
• 1/4 green bell pepper, diced
• 1/4 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 slice of an oninon, diced
• Black pepper
• Chili powder
• Ground cumin
• Minced garlic

How to cook the meal

First, you need to toss the whole egg (preferably without the shell), the three egg whites, milk, and black pepper into a bowl. Whisk it until you’ve gotten it looking like one substance and not some weird mish-mash of foods.

While doing this, you should have a frying pan (or skillet as non-Southerners call them) warming up on medium heat. Yes, this should be on a stove-top.

Pour your omelet mixture into the frying pan. While waiting for the next 3-to-4 minutes for the omelet to set, toss in a sprinkle of chili powder, ground cumin, and minced garlic. I prefer to season as desired, so there’s no set measurements for seasoning. Feel free to experiment.

Once the egg mixture is set (isn’t runny on the top), add the ham, half of your cheese, green and red bell pepper, and onion onto one half of the omelet. Take your spatula and flip the other half on top of that. Then, sprinkle your remaining cheese across the top.

Let this set until the cheese on top starts to melt. Also, you might want to toast that bread.

At this point, you can throw it on any type of plate you want (notice that I went with the traditional paper plate with a paper plate holder) and enjoy.

My thoughts on this recipe

The biggest mistake I made was not picking up cheddar cheese while grocery shopping yesterday. Mozzarella just doesn’t do an omelet justice. And, I may have set the heat a bit too high at first, which is why the omelet is a little browner than I wanted and had a little breakage around the edges.

Another thing I might try next time is tossing my ham, pepper, and onion into a separate frying pan and heating them before adding them to the omelet. I might go with a real plate the next time I take a picture too.

Overall, it was tasty. But, more importantly, it was much healthier than the things I was eating every day last year.

It’s one thing to try and convince your family that you’re doing the right thing. It’s an entirely different beast trying to get other people to take the plunge with you.

Over the summer, I’ve been talking to a few folks about expanding my projects online. Sure, many people are interested in the idea. But, when you tell them that you have no financial backing for certain projects and that the projects can fail at any time, they lose interest fast.

Motivation is key

If you’re not entirely convinced you can be successful, you won’t be.

Even if I convince people that things will work out financially in the long run, it’s tough instilling self-confidence and motivation into everyone. The thing people most often tell me is, “I don’t really have the time.” They want success, but they don’t have time for it. Or, they want someone to hand it to them.

If you don’t think you have enough time, let me introduce you to a few people I know. How about a single mother with two kids, two jobs, and college classes to attend? I know few people with busier schedules than her.

Not having time means you don’t have motivation.

I can’t even begin to tell you how many people I’ve referred to Ian Stewart’s website There Really Is No Secret. If you haven’t checked out that site, it’ll tell you all you need to know to be successful in all things.

Finding the right people

My journey to find the right kind of people for my team has been tough. I have a handful of people that are on board right now for some upcoming projects.

I know plenty of folks online that have the right amount of determination, but right now, I want people that are close to home. I like being able to meet people face to face and having the ability to have weekly meetings where we can all get together and run over ideas.

To find the right kind of people, you have to put yourself out there. Get out there and make things happen. Be open and honest.

My selling point is: If you’re not willing to put your heart and soul behind a project, we’re not going to be a good fit. That’s what it all comes down to for me. I don’t care if you’re a genius or have never even touched a computer. You need to be willing to work hard and see it through.

What the heck am I talking about?

These are just a few thoughts I’ve been playing through my head lately.

I’ve been building a team of people that are willing to work hard and have fun on some online projects. I’ll keep everyone updated on the status of these projects (and what they are) as they near their launch.

In the meantime, if you live or know someone that lives around Montgomery, Alabama, that might be interested in working on the Web, shoot me a message through my contact form.

My best friend and I were having a conversation the other day about people like me. He’s a teacher. Basically, he said gifted students (those too smart for their own good) have trouble sticking to one thing. They get bored or want to do too many things. In short, they’re not focused enough. I’m not personally calling myself gifted; that’s just what they labeled me in school.

The conversation we had made it feel like someone truly understood how my mind works at times. It’s easy for me to lose focus. This is especially so when I don’t have structure in my life. A large part of this has to do with me having worked from home for these last few months — no structure. So, I get bored and lose motivation.

Another part of me feels like I’m living in the wrong place.

Where my passion lies

Since about the time I could hold a pencil, I’ve been writing. This mostly started because I wanted to be like my father. He’s a song writer. This has neither brought him fame nor fortune, but that’s not what it’s really about.

When I talk about losing focus, I’m mainly talking about my writing. But, my writing is a reflection of my life. If I had to choose a number one goal in life it would be publishing a novel.

I haven’t been working toward this goal as much as I’d like. I understand that there’s no one to blame but myself. I’m the type of person that says, “If you want to do something, then do it.” I try to apply this to every aspect of my life. And, I tell anyone that says they wish they could do something the same thing.

I need to simply tell myself, Write a novel, Justin.

Home is where the heart is

I left my hometown (Highland Home, Ala.) nearly six years ago for college. I had my own apartment within a month of my high school graduation. I was ready to step out of that world and never return. If you’ve grown up in a small town, you can probably relate to that feeling of needing to leave, to explore the world, to have a life outside of where you grew up.

Something’s always drawing me back there. So, I’m packing my bags. Alabama, here I come.

Part of me feels like I need to return. I feel like I’m out of touch with my roots, and that hinders my writing. I don’t know if I’ll find what I’m searching for there. There’s probably no great mystery of the soul that I’ll unravel. I understand that one can never go home again.

Alabama is peaceful. I hope it at least gives me a chance to reevaluate my goals and focus on the important things in life.

It’s not all about my goal of writing. I have a family that I haven’t truly spent time with in years. A little brother and sister that are growing up too fast. Friends that desperately need me for Friday-night bonfires.

Making a change

Since I’ve already decided on this change, I’m not going to wait around. I should be completely out of Georgia and back to smalltown Alabama in a few weeks.

Sure, I won’t be living five minutes from Wal-Mart anymore, but I can live with that. I hope.

I hope you all look forward to some of the things I have in store as much as I do.

Life-related goals

I suppose I’ve come a long way since the days when my best friend and I would make resolutions about things we planned to accomplish with girls for the year. Ah, the good ol’ days.

I did set my sights a bit higher this year.

• Get my ass back into shape.
  I had to start with a classic. Isn’t this everyone’s New Year’s resolution?
• Meet WordPress users and other bloggers in person.
  I’ve met so many people online in the last couple of years that I’ve become friends with, but I’d love to meet some of you in person.
• Travel to a foreign country.
  I’d really like to go to back to Japan, lie on a beach in Thailand, or visit a ton of other Asian countries. I’d also like to visit some of my Canadian friends.
• Participate in a charitable event.
  I want to be a little more involved this year in events that help others, such as the Alanta Breast Cancer 3-Day in October.
• Save more money.
  Last year, I managed to pay off $8,000 of debt from college. This year, I’d like to pay off and save at least as much.
• Help others in their quest to work from home.
  What we don’t see enough of is practical tips about working online. I want to share more of my experiences and how they apply to my life offline to help others.
• Continue studying foreign languages.
  I’ve got a little Spanish, German, and Korean under my belt, and I like to continue improving my skills with those languages and maybe start adventuring into one more.

WordPress-related goals

I have plenty of goals dealing directly with the WordPress community as well.

• Continue fostering the growth of Theme Hybrid.
  Our community at Theme Hybrid is growing daily, and I can only imagine what it would be like in a year’s time.
• Write more about WordPress.
  Most of my posts here on this blog are about WordPress, but I’d like to write more tutorials, give more tips, and start more discussions than last year.
• Attend at least one WordCamp.
  Unfortunately, I came home to Alabama only about a week after WordCamp Birmingham in 2008, which would’ve been a perfect opportunity for me. I’d like to attend one this year.
• Design some BuddyPress themes.
  I’ve been tinkering around with BuddyPress for a while (whenever I have the time), and creating specific themes for it would be cool.
• Provide bbPress alternatives to my WordPress themes.
  bbPress is a fast, lightweight forum software that I’ve fallen in love with. Expect to see my WP themes getting bbPress makeovers.
• Make more WordPress plugins.
  I tend to focus on themes, but creating plugins is another passion of mine, which are typically ideas I get when developing a theme.
• Create quality WordPress themes, of course!
  I have loads of theme ideas in various categories that I plan to release this year:
  • Magazine/News
  • Store/E-commerce
  • Photo/Portfolio
  • Video
  • Book/Movie/Etc. Reviews
  • Lifestream
  • And many more!

Any goals this year?

I’m always interested in hearing what other people plan on doing for the year. For me, a large motivational factor is announcing my plans to others because I’m much more likely to follow through with them.

Please share any goals you’ve made for the new year. Or, you can just discuss mine.

I’m going to take a little time to reflect on everything and give you all a chance to read some older posts if you’re up for it.

My life offline

I started off 2008 in Seoul, South Korea amongst thousands (millions?) of people at probably one of the biggest New Year bashes in the world. At the time, I was teaching English to advanced Korean students (elementary age) in Bundang, which is a bit outside of Seoul. I spent the rest of the year there until coming back to the U.S. a few months early in October.

When I came home to Alabama, my sister, Amy, and I decided that it would be beneficial for us both to live together. So, I packed my bags for Atlanta, Georgia, where I’m currenlty living and working. At this point, I had decided that I’d be working from home.

Okay, so living in Korea was pretty much the highlight of the year. I met people from all over the world, learned more about different cultures than many will in a lifetime. I made many good friends that I will never forget and some that I still keep in regular contact with now.

My only regret is not chronicling more about my life here on the blog, which is something I hope to do more of in the future (even if it does bore some of you). Here are some posts from this past year on my life:

• Changes: Some things to expect in the coming year
• South Korean morning
• Korean folk village
• They do say all good things must come to an end
• I’m leaving on a jet plane

My life online

Most of this year, at least here on this blog, has been about WordPress. WordPress is pretty much my life anyway. The highlight of the year online for me was launcing Theme Hybrid. Since I blogged so much about WordPress, I’ll have to break these posts into categories.

WordPress plugin/theme releases, news, and other announcements

• Options WordPress theme release
• Cleaner WordPress Gallery Plugin
• Get the Image WordPress plugin
• Project M announcement (Theme Hybrid)
• Bringin’ sexy to…bbPress?
• Launch of ThemeHybrid.com
• Hybrid WordPress Theme Framework
• Widgets Reloaded: WordPress Plugin
• JavaScript Logic: WordPress Plugin

WordPress discussions

• In defense of the WordPress 2.5 widget panel
• Screw the premium theme market.
• Got options?
• If you were a WordPress theme developer: Page templates
• If you were a WordPress theme developer: 404 templates
• If you were a WordPress theme developer: Widget areas
• If you were a WordPress theme developer: Plugin support
• If you were a WordPress theme developer: Theme options
• If you were a WordPress theme developer: Feature
• Putting the boot to premium theme developers
• Using bookmarks (links) more effectively
• Some thoughts on the WordPress community, themes, and the GPL
• Why I created a WordPress theme framework

WordPress tutorials, tips, and hacks

• Doing more with Gravatars: Comments
• Doing more with Gravatars: Author bio
• Doing more with Gravatars: Authors page template
• Replacing WordPress content with an excerpt without editing theme files
• Tips on using and developing for WordPress happily
• Installing two WordPress blogs with the same users
• Making your theme’s comments compatible with WordPress 2.7 and earlier versions
• New page menu function in WordPress 2.7
• Creating single post templates in WordPress
• How to change your feed links without using .htaccess

Looking toward 2009

I suppose it’s time to say farewell to 2008. It’s been a great year, and I expect 2009 to be even better.

Now I’m off to draft my goals for the new year. There’s a lot to look forward to. I hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year’s Eve.

I received many great gifts and literally feasted on foods that I hadn’t eaten in two years. I’m fairly certain I put on an extra 5 or 6 pounds.

I feel blessed that I’ve been financially fortunate enough to actually buy a few gifts for the family this year. I bought my sister a Nintendo Wii (I’m fairly certain she got the best gift). Before, I was always in school and broke, so gift giving wasn’t at the top of my list. I know Christmas isn’t all about money and being able to afford great gifts, but I consider it a blessing because I’m finally standing on my own two feet, so to speak.

The support of family

A few months ago, I made the decision to work online. Thus far, it’s been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I enjoy the work I do and the people I interact with every day.

Anyone that has taken this plunge knows that getting your friends to support the decision is easy. Convincing your family that you’re not crazy is the tough part. I’ve been surprised at the support I’ve gained from my family since I embarked on this online journey. Of course, they still remind me about my financial responsibilities, but that’s a good thing.

I have my friends to tell me that I can do anything, convince me that I can soar above the stars, and give me all the motivational advice one might need in a lifetime. I have my family to wrangle me back somewhere near reality.

As I mentioned, I’ve been surprised at the level of support my family has given me, especially considering that I once thought my dad believed that the Internet was the root of all that is evil in the world. Maybe I’m being a tad over dramatic there. Plus, I still can’t convince my stepmother that a search engine and Web browser are two separate entities, that each exists separately from the other.

My dad and stepmother got me two books on building a Web design business for Christmas:

• How to Start a Home-Based Web Design Business by Jim Smith
• Talent Is Not Enough: Business Secrets For Designers by Shel Perkins

I can’t speak about the quality of the books as I haven’t read them yet. The point I’m really getting at is that it’s great for my family to be taking an interest in seeing me succeed in my field.

Enjoying Christmas

I was in need of a break. I’ve been going full speed since I got home from Korea in October and hadn’t taken a chance to sit back and relax. I didn’t even turn on a computer for three days. That’s an accomplishment in and of itself.

Part of me wishes I could’ve been back in Korea for our school’s Christmas party, which was awesome last year and possibly one of the coolest Christmas parties I’ve ever attended. I do miss my friends out there, and that was the only sad thing about this year.

Overall, it was a great holiday. I hope everyone else had a wonderful experience as well.

The past year was no different for me because I was working a full-time job and working on a lot of different WordPress projects when I came home. Needless to say, I put on a few pounds.

Now that I have a little more time (though time should never be an excuse), I’m planning on getting back into shape. Actually, I was so tired from working out last week, that I didn’t even manage writing a single post here on the blog.

Last week was a warm-up week though. This week is the real deal.

A little background information

When I was in high school (not too long ago), I was in great shape. I played football, shot basketball, played golf, weightlifted, and threw the shot put for the track-and-field team. I was a member of three state-championship powerlifting teams. I was a all-state tight end in football. Even had a couple offers to play at small colleges that I turned down because I wanted a good education at a good college. And those were just the school sports I was involved in.

Yes, I was very active. And yes, I’m still a computer nerd.

Then, college came.

After a few years there, I realized that I needed to get myself back into shape. Luckily, this wasn’t too hard because of my background in athletics and food and nutrition science (I was a hotel and restaraunt major at one point, so I had to take those classes).

I coupled my knowledge with the Body for Life program to drop from 250 lbs. down to 215 lbs. in three months with minimal muscle loss. Trust me, 215 lbs. is not a lot of weight if you look at my height (6′2) and body structure. Anything under that would be unhealthy for a guy my size. I was in great shape.

To keep this long, drawn-out story short, I fell back into awful shape again, which leads me to today.

Going forward

Mostly, I wanted to write this post to keep myself motivated. The biggest motivator for me has always been making something official, or public, because by not going through with it, I’m not only letting myself down — I’m letting everyone that’s invested a moment of their time in reading about my journey down.

My sister will also be joining me on this. Recently, she fell from a 10-foot wall and broke two vertebrae. She’s just now gotten to the point where she can work out a bit. In a few weeks, she should be cleared to go back to her old, extremely active lifestyle.

For now, I’m making sure she takes it slow, but she’s adamant about being able to run a full marathon again in February. I think we’ll get her there though.

I’ll probably periodically post bits and pieces of my journey along the way.

Health and WordPress

What in the world does this have to do with WordPress?

Well, one of the biggest driving forces behind a workout plan is keeping goals. You need to keep track of what progress you’ve made. This gives you a realistic picture of where you’re at and where you’ve been. After a month or two, you can notice significant changes. That data is a big motivator for a lot of people.

We wanted a way to easily keep track of our progress, so I said, “Why don’t I just put together something to take care of this?” My sister, unlike me, is no computer nerd. She has finally managed to understand how to send an email though.

I plan on creating The Workout theme. It has to be something that easily manages workouts, eating plans, and notes. Otherwise, my sister wouldn’t have the slightest idea what to do with it. This idea just hit me today, so I don’t have a lot of stuff on it yet. I’ll keep my WordPress readers posted on the progress of this.

Anyway, I’m off to work on this theme and prepare myself for tomorrow’s workout.

Of course, you could always join me in my plan to straighten my health out!

I’m just hours away from my flight back home. Actually, I’m about an hour away from leaving; I haven’t even showered yet.

I wanted to make one last post to say farewell to Korea. So, farewell Korea! I’ll miss you. It’s been a long, wonderful ride in this last year. I wouldn’t trade my experience for anything.

For you blog readers, I’ve schedule a few future posts, which is something I don’t normally do. So, we’ll see how that works out.

It’s a continuation of my If you were a WordPress theme developer series. Please take some time and leave plenty of feedback. I hope to turn many of these ideas into WordPress-theme reality when I get settled in.

If you need to contact me by email for the next couple of days, please give me a little time to respond. If you’re a member over at Theme Hybrid, try to help each other out on the forums until I get back.

Well, I guess that’s it. I need to finish a few things, shower, and head to the airport.

I’ll be writing to you all from the United States next time.

1. Make enough money to pay off some college debt, at least put a small dent in the total.
2. Save some money if I don’t spend too much paying off college debt.
3. Totally immerse myself in a completely new culture.
4. Activate my secret plan that I wouldn’t dare tell my parents about.

I didn’t lay out too many specifics. I just wanted to get my feet on solid ground and start thinking about the rest of my life seriously because I figured that’s what you’re supposed to do when you’re all grown up.

What’s this secret plan?

Well, it’s nothing monumental. I hope I didn’t build it up too much.

I still haven’t told my family and friends, only hinted around the idea a bit. So, Mom, Dad, in case you’re actually reading my blog…

I’m going to work online.

What I mean by this is that I’m not going to take a day job right when I come home. I’ll be attempting, I hope successfully, to make a living by working on the Web.

The secret plan has been to establish myself in some corner of the Web, actually the WordPress corner. Mostly, it was to build up an online presence. I feel like I’ve done that well enough in the past year.

I’m usually pretty upfront about what my plans are with friends and family, but a conversation I had with my dad almost two years ago made me seriously think about what it is that I want out of life and how I must go about achieving whatever it may be. I was a bit less mature and a bit more naive at the time, but I knew I needed to take a spin in the real world before getting any crazy ideas (i.e. working online).

I wanted to feel like I’ve established myself somewhat before any of my family or friends would take me seriously, before I could take myself seriously.

So, you want specifics, right?

Well, I’m not going to lay out all my plans in this one post for you. I just wanted to kind of make everything official — it’s a personal motivation technique. If I’m telling the world, I’m much more likely to see my plans through.

I will say that Theme Hybrid will be my top priority. That’s not going to change. Business has been going well enough there for me to feel comfortable with this announcement.

I have a couple of other projects lined up too. Announcements on those will come in due time.

The plan was to start the new year with my major career decision. I wanted to stay in Korea until December, but as I recently announced, that’s not going to happen. So, I’m adjusting the plan. That’s life.

I’m both excited and nervous, but I also feel like I’ve been blessed with good timing (I’ll talk about what I mean by “timing” later).

In a couple of days, I’ll be embarking upon a new journey — one that I hope you’ll stick around to help me through.