One of my challenges is an insecurity about not being smart enough. Particularly challenging now that I am unemployed. I deal with a lot of very highly educated people and am easily intimidated even though I also have a graduate degree from a top university.

In the past, I have not been very disciplined academically not because I'm not or wasn't willing to work hard because I do and I have but mostly because I have had problems with sleep all of my adult life so I often felt mentally tired and had a hard time concentrating. I was also pretty shy, nervous and lacked confidence when speaking in front of others. I took Paxil as an adult, which helped me. I'm off it now. I also see a psychologist, which also helps. And now I have found PC. I believe if I had had this type of support when I was younger, I could have performed better academically.

Given this background, one of my goals for 2010 is to "get smarter". First thing, I need to accept that I am smart enough and believe in my capacity. When I operate from a place of compassion and kindness for myself and others, I am at my best. So making an effort to put myself in this state of mind will be part of my Brain Fitness program. I also believe in brain fitness, so I am going to embark on a self-designed brain fitness program and am going to use PC to track my activity.

My goals for January are:

Compassion ritual: 20
Vocab days (learn 5 new words): 20
Memory book: Read 30 pages
Play Jumble: 20x
Brush my teeth with my left-hand: 10x
Evening relaxation routine: 10
Gratitude journal entries: 15

Thank you for giving me a place where I can work toward realizing my full potential.