6.Hunker down and last it out – read good books, curl up by fire, sleep, don’t fight it. It’s a hibernating time anyway. Get massages. Take naps.

7.Start a new intellectual project at work or at home. At home, start a new physical project - building a greenhouse or painting guest bedroom. It will give everyone a lift. Focus on thinking and moving, not feeling. 8.Kickstart your brain by taking a new course. If you’re an extravert, go to community ed classes. If you’re an introvert, enjoy yourself online with distance learning coures and take teleclasses.

9.Change your diet dramatically. Do a juice fast, or something very cleansing and healthy within constraints of your physical condition. Get that sugar and alcohol out of your system and replace it with vitamins and minerals. Don’t forget your vitamin C. If you live in an area where it's peak allergy time (like texas, USA), watch your diet – it’s cumulative – pollen PLUS what you eat PLUS dust and mold in your house. Get you’re a/C ducts cleaned.

10.Get rid of “stuff.” Grab a garbage bag and fill it with stuff. Put bags in garage or barn. Then clean garage or barn, and get rid of it all. (Nice to donate to charity of course).

If you think you might be clinically depressed, please see your personal healthcare professional.

Appreciate those moments during day when you have no choice but to be silent and patient. Waiting for your email to download? Standing in line at checkout? Riding in an elevator? Fill lull with observations. Look around. Notice scents. Pay attention to lighting. Listen. Think of these pauses as opportunities to sharpen your senses. Enjoy a Da Vinci moment.

#3 Define Your Life Philosophy. Quite frankly, I don't understand how this one gets so neglected in our culture. We do a whole lot of talking about being authentic, honoring our individuality, and finding our true passion. Well, how can anyone be true to themselves if they haven't taken time to figure out who they are? If you don't know your values and beliefs, you're never going to get to where you think you ought to be.

A defined life philosophy serves as a road map. It gives you landmarks to recognize, navigation tools to guide you, and a clear destination. Just like greatest road trips, you may end up going in a completely new direction that's nowhere on that original map. That's okay. But knowing your starting point is most crucial part of any journey.

Fate, birth, death, love, freedom, responsibility, morality, faith, destiny--these are concepts we need to explore in order to develop and define our own unique life philosophy. Thinking about these ideas is coolest thing we can do. We feel alive and connected whenever we dig deep into Real Stuff.

Don't shy away from delving deeply. It's only way to develop as a thinker and as a human.

Take these three secrets--interrupting yourself, appreciating lulls, and defining your life philosophy--and run with them. Pick one as a New Year's resolution and commit yourself to mastering it.

Vow to become a better thinker in 2004. It may be your most meaningful--and enjoyable--resolution ever!