Before I got started with the “new Steve” project, I took some time to set some goals:

* New Cisco CCNA certification by the end of May
* New stress relief mechanism to replace eating
* Add more professionalism to all parts of my job

Day 1 of “new Steve” went well. I skipped soda and made good choices at lunch and by the end of the day it paid off. I left work feeling less stressed and much more alert. Coffee was a substitute for some of the day, but I skipped much of the sugar. I think that really helped cut my mood swings. I hit the gym at 5:30AM that morning so my muscles are feeling it today. It’s a good reminder that my muscles are growing and that means progress.

I also took some time to get my work area set up to make a little more sense, pulling some shelves off the cube walls. The lighting was pretty bad with plenty of harsh fluorescent white light and little contrast. I climbed up on a chair and fixed that by twisting the bulbs so they went out, plunging the area in to welcomed darkness. The last step was to mount a whiteboard on one wall and clean all of the surfaces. Now it looks like something I want to use instead of a dumping ground for projects.

One day at a time…