[chessmind] Dennis Monokroussos: Happy New Year!

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Posted by Dennis Monokroussos:
Happy New Year!
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1167631977.shtml


   A New Year's wish: may all your (worthy) resolutions be maintained,
   and may all your combinations be sound!
   I can't really help with the second wish, but let me offer two points
   regarding the first.
   First, consider adding a meta-resolution, a second-order resolution
   guiding your actions in the eventuality that you break a first-order
   resolution. (Not that any of us would ever do that...but just in
   case.)
   Second, as we all know, resolutions by themselves are hopeless - the
   spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. For our resolutions to even
   stand a chance of making it through January, let alone the whole year,
   we must put means in place to keep our resolutions from being so much
   hot air. (For a good discussion of how this works, have a look at
   [1]this article by Christian writer and USC philosopher Dallas
   Willard. The Christian application is pervasive and overt, but the
   general principles of his discussion can be used for by anyone
   attempting to achieve certain excellences through the formation of new
   habits.)
   Again: Happy New Year!

References

   1. http://www.dwillard.org/articles/artview.asp?artID=119