Here are some concrete things you can do to to have a better 2013. No hand-wavy, touchy-feely resolutions. Just a few simple things to do that will make your life a little better.

Don't sleep in the same room as your phone.

There's no reason to be checking your phone first thing when you wake or last thing before you sleep. Let your mind rest a bit. Charge it in the other room when you sleep.

Send a gift to someone that doesn't expect one for no reason other than they could use some love.

Why wait for holidays? People can use a little boost any time of the year. Receiving something out of the blue is a wonderful feeling. Knowing someone is thinking about you during a tough time is sometimes just what's needed to get through. With internet shopping for pretty much anything you can conceive, there's no excuse.

Go outside and exercise at least two times a week.

Exercising your body is the best possible thing you can do for yourself. Being outdoors and away from screens and into the sunlight is also great for your body and mind. If you don't like to ride or run, even just walking during your lunch hour is great. Get outside, move your body, feel the sun on your skin and a breeze on your face.

Read book that is non-fiction, not self-help, and about a topic you don't know well.

Getting outside of your normal zone of information is the only way to expand your perspective. Learning new things will help you make connections that you might normally miss. Our world is amazing, take some time to see it.

Listen/Read/Watch these things:

Bullseye - Podcast w/ Jesse Thorn interviewing people involved with popular culture from today and the past, shining a light on great things. Jesse's interviewing is top notch, bringing people out from behind their standard PR answers and offering a glimpse of the person, not the persona.

Saga - Comic by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples. The best written and most innovative comic book out there today. Romeo & Juliet meets True Romance meets Alice in Wonderland. Not for kids, it's an comic for thinking adults.

What Technology Wants - Book by Kevin Kelly - A look at how technology affects and drives human society. Are we technology's master, or are we doing it's bidding? Well written and comprehensive.

The Diaz Brothers - Song by the Mountain Goats - My favorite song of the year. Simple, but with strange allusions to films and literature. A catchy tune that earwormed me for months.

The Great Hobini - Truly wonderful music mashups with a hip-hop touch.

Moonrise Kingdom - Movie by Wes Anderson - Finely crafted movie about an adventure in the world of 12 year old children. Touching, funny, and with enough commentary on adults to add a few layers of meaning.

Posted by michael at January 01, 2013 04:38 PM