Goals: 42% Less Scary Than Dreams

This year I said good-bye to resolutions. Not that it was difficult; I've never given New Years Resolutions much thought. Picking an arbitrary date and deciding to change an aspect of my life is something I've been relatively successful at (I quit smoking 864 days ago, to name one) so I've never felt the need to make resolutions.

However, a conversation I had with Todd on our way home from Christmas merry-making convinced me that setting goals is an important step to achieving success. This conversation coincides with a book I'm reading on success, and while I've always been a skeptic of recipes for succeeding--and still am as I tend to believe each person's path to success is different--I have to admit there's value in setting goals.

Goals are like dreams you have just prior to waking; often times they are clearer and more defined than the countless dreams we experience during our deepest sleep. Dreams seem unattainable at times. Sure, I'd love to be signed to Sub Pop but I have no clue on how to get there. Goals are merely speculations, ideas that if actualized may lead us closer to that unobtainable dream.

So in the spirit of accountability, I've decided to publish the goals Summer Darling have set for ourselves in 20Penn. It's a bit scary. I hope to re-read this post next January and discover we've accomplished all of them, but it's certainly possible that we may not get them all in.

Summer Darling's Goals:

1. Put out the record. We've all signed off on the mixes, the art is nearly done, and mastering is scheduled for the end of the month, so this one seems like a no brainer. Except that we've been writing and making this record for the better part of 4 years. I've learned patience the hard way and I refuse to take this goal lightly until I'm listening to the record on my record player.

2. Play more shows that are all ages and play more shows outside of Los Angeles. Don't get me wrong--I am so excited to play Spaceland this month. I couldn't believe it when I realized this, but it will be the first time Summer Darling has ever headlined Spaceland. However, we feel like it's time to expand our audience. We want to get the kids into this. We want to get the kids in other cities into this. We gotta escape from Los Angeles!

3. Music Video. We need to make a video for our new record. This goal is probably the most intimidating for me, since I know little to nothing about getting this done.

4. Vocals. We need to learn how to sing live. It's fine to coast on passion now and again, but the vocals on the record are very intricate and we want to try and recreate them for shows.

5. Write and record new material in a concise fashion. No more 5 years between records. We've talked about trying to write and record at least another Ep's worth of material this year, if not start on another full length.

There we have it. The 5 goals for Summer Darling. If anyone feels compelled, post some of your own goals in the comment section. Feel free to do it anonymously. You'll at least have a record of them. Accountability is key! Let's make this a good year!

Be part of the collective this week: Chain Letter happenings

Kissing Cousins and Twilight Sleep @ Pershing Square Ice Rink Wednesday January 6th. The show starts at 7:30. Free.