As I wrap up a particularly intense and personal Yom Kippur, I am, amongst other personal goals and challenges, taking on a challenge, nay I say, dare from my friend Jenni. Can I come up with a new thing I like about myself and a new thing I like about others (with no strings attached) for forty days? As I endeavor to minimize the negativity, drama and b.s. in my life over the next year, I will approach this with several strategies.

1. I/We are addicted to drama and negativity as a culture so I will approach this like an addiction. One day at a time. 21 days starts a new habit.

2. Pilfered from Tom Rath's How Full Is Your Bucket?: Everyday is filled with hundreds to thousands of isolated opportunities to either fill someone's bucket with positivity and strength or to drain their bucket with negativity and criticism. What do YOU do when these opportunities arise? I will try to be a bucket FILLER this year.

I'll talk more about some of the other strategies tomorrow...