Two Day Magazine

Hello and welcome to the first 2012 edition of The Hollywood Outsider!

This is twodaymag’s weekly look at the world of pop culture from a guy who has no real business commenting on any of it.

Since it is the dawn of a new year, the Outsider thought it would be fun to take a break from giving celebrities advice and decided to give you, the smart and attractive reader, some advice instead.

Let us start by being honest with each other shall we? Every year you make a New Years Resolution, usually some grand personal overhaul like, “This year I’m going to be less of a self-loathing pathetic fat ass (your words),” and every year you make it until about Groundhog Day before you give up and go back to being your horribly flawed self.

New Years Resolutions don’t work because they counter basic human nature. Humans are not designed to make drastic lifestyle changes overnight. We are designed to mature and grow in small bits over a long period of time.

That said, you should still make a resolution, but the key is how you go about acting it out. That’s why the Outsider is here to help!

New Years Resolutions typically fall under three different categories; physical, emotional and financial. Here are a few basic tips to help you get motivated to improve all three.

PHYSICAL

This is probably the most popular of all resolutions. This covers everything from quitting smoking to quitting cheeseburgers, but the most common resolution is “to get in shape.”

There are lots of ways to be more physically active, but the most common is to join a gym. Gyms are great, but only if you use them right. Most people think if they pay $330 for a yearly gym membership, then they would be motivated to use it as it would suck to let that money go to waste. That doesn’t motivate anybody.

Only about 10% of gym members actually use the gym beyond the first 8 weeks. That’s actually part of the Gym’s business plan. It’s easy money to have someone pay for the facility, but never have to worry about accommodating them. It’s also why going to the gym from January 3rd to February 5th sucks.

Here’s what happens: when most people join gyms they get all excited about it and start going every day, some people even go twice a day. Keep in mind these are people that haven’t had a regular exercise routine in years, if ever. That’s a huge lifestyle change when you consider the time commitment for exercising; there’s the time driving to the gym (10-20 min), the time getting situated (10 min), the actual time working out (45-75 min) the time cooling off (10 min), the time driving home (10-20 min), and the time getting cleaned up (20 min). And that’s without throwing a meal in there (the Outsider packs food and eats in the car on the way home. Anything to save time).

In most cases, you have to budget about 2 hrs into your day just to work out properly. If your day was busy when you were not exercising, imagine what it will be like now that you are. Try doing that every day and you can easily see why everybody gets burned out after a month.

If your goal is to get to in shape, make your goal to get to the gym three days a week for the first month. Only after the first month should you try to up it to more than three. You are talking about a lifestyle change, don’t do it overnight.

Finally, take some time and actually learn about it. Read some books on fitness and talk to some experts. Don’t be afraid to ask questions either, or you’ll be that guy/gal staggering through the gym like an angry gorilla who stubbed its toe.

EMOTIONAL

The human emotional state is a strange and complicated mix of behavioral psychology and genetics, and it’s not something that is easily changed. But there are some things one can learn to do to try to understand and improve one’s current mood. The best and easiest way to change your thought process is to think positively. Studies have shown that the subject of any sentence tends to stick in the mind regardless of any modifier.

For example, when you tell yourself “I am going to be less mean.” The key word is “mean” and “mean” will stick in your head more than “less.” Instead you should say, “I am going to be nice.” Instead of saying, “I am not going to be cynical.” say, “I am going to be grateful.”

Take some time and make a list of the things you have always wanted to do or learn about, AND GO DO THEM! At a party, who do you think is more interesting to talk to, the person with the awesome skydiving story, or the person who lists all the reasons why he/she never went skydiving?

Find some time to do or learn something interesting and (this is very important) help encourage others to do the same. People love to be around others who contribute to their enjoyment of life, whether it’s volunteering in some way or even sharing a good story. And while you are at it, take some time this week and compliment five people.

You would be surprised that by being kinder to others, you may find that you are kinder to yourself, as well. (And get a lot more invites to parties, too!)

FINANCIAL

Here’s a fun fact. Did you know most Americans are far more comfortable talking about their sexual exploits than they are talking about their debt? When it’s time to talk about personal finance most people get that sick - just found out your very recent ex is pregnant - pit in their stomachs.

But this one is really important. Having your finances under control is central to your overall well being. People who are financially secure appear much more attractive than their peers who act like ballers...but are economic train wrecks.

A common misconception is that making a lot of money instantly solves your financial problems. This is incredibly incorrect. You only have to look at lottery winners. Most multi-million dollar lottery winners are broke or even in serious debt after five years. Even look at professional athletes, Terrell Owens was on top of the NFL world making millions of dollars a year for over a decade. After only being removed from football for a year, he is too poor to afford his child support payments.

If you are like most people and have had your financial head in the financial sand, then make this the year you straighten yourself out. Remember, being financially squared away doesn’t mean being debt free; it’s all about getting the right knowledge and developing the right habits. But like everything else, you have to take it one step at a time.

Start with getting your credit checked. You are allowed to get your credit report (different from your credit score) for free once a year. You should also check your credit score, and it’s better to go to the credit sources and pay the $15 to get it checked versus the “free” websites that make you jump through so many hoops that it’ll end up costing you way more.

Once you figure out your debt situation, you need to start getting it under control. Take some time and find out what you make and what you actually spend. The best way to do this is using a service like mint.com. Mint will link up with your banks and credit cards and organize you budget for you and let you monitor it in real time. No spreadsheets, no calculators, nothing (and it’s free).

Unfortunately, the Outsider does not have the space to explain all of the crazy things dealing with your finances, so you’re going to have to do some work on your own. Here is probably the best place to start: Click HERE

Once you start down the path to having your money under control, all of those interesting things you wanted to do in the emotional category become so much easier to attain.

2012 is going to be your year, if you put in the work to make it your year. If not, get ready for just more of the same. The choice is yours.

See you next week when the Outsider returns to the wild world of celebrities!

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