Computer-Assisted New Year's Resolutions?
I've been looking at "43 things" (described in detail here on Bill Larnach's blog).
In theory, I can see its attractions: instant contact with people anywhere in the world who share your aspirations.
In practice, it makes me shudder deeply! Sites like that make me want to crawl into a hole & contemplate my inadequacies. Or get very drunk. Most of the ideas put forward by contributors seem either very scary (requiring youth &/or beauty &/or vigour &/or confidence) or very private, to a squirmingly embarrassing degree.
I reckon New Year Resolutions should be treated like the wishes you make when you blow out the candles on a birthday cake: don't tell anyone about them until they've come true.
In theory, I can see its attractions: instant contact with people anywhere in the world who share your aspirations.
In practice, it makes me shudder deeply! Sites like that make me want to crawl into a hole & contemplate my inadequacies. Or get very drunk. Most of the ideas put forward by contributors seem either very scary (requiring youth &/or beauty &/or vigour &/or confidence) or very private, to a squirmingly embarrassing degree.
I reckon New Year Resolutions should be treated like the wishes you make when you blow out the candles on a birthday cake: don't tell anyone about them until they've come true.
posted by bluefluff @ 8:01 PM
4 Comments:
At 06 December, 2005 23:57,
kat said…
I'm only going to have one New Year's resolution - Work less and play more.
At 07 December, 2005 06:34,
Bill said…
As well as the strange and unusual there are many very ordinary 'things', such as 'sell something on eBay' or 'get an invite to a Gmail account'. The 'things' requested seem to reflect modern society in an up-to-the-minute way.
Like any innovation involving people with different views, 43Things seems open to criticism (a great deal on the list wouldn't interest me:-)), but generally I think the concept is an exciting one and here to stay.
As Web 2.0 develops I think we will see more and more of this type of collaborative social software.
At 07 December, 2005 23:52,
Nogbad said…
Because I have youth, beauty and vigour I'm less concerned on those counts but I sometimes wonder about the value of an online scoreboard particularly when, as Bill points out, some of the goals are very, very ordinary indeed.
I wonder if another part of my reticence is the way I was brought up to get my head down and work for things rather than publically "wish" for them?
At 08 December, 2005 03:41,
bluefluff said…
The 'things' requested seem to reflect modern society in an up-to-the-minute way.
Bill - yes, I take your point that it could be used as a handy guide to current culture (in the broadest 'practices & values' sense). But surely it's only sampling those whose culture includes displaying one's needs in public? We'd have to assume that sample accurately reflects the others who keep their aspirations to themselves.
Nog - Youth, beauty & vigour notwithstanding, I think you may have hit at least part of the nail on the head there. It's the same upbringing that says it isn't quite polite to emote in public.
I suppose blogging is a sign that we're overcoming those inhibitions to some extent?
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