Diversified New Year's Resolutions Redux

Last year I attempted five different New Year's Resolutions and pretty much failed on all of them. Even though knowing when to quit is important, I'm not yet convinced to give up. The main reason I've decided to give it another go is because my goals haven't really changed much. If I still think they are a good idea, then they must be. Just to remind you, here are the goals:

1) Moderate exercise for 20 minutes a day, 3 days a week. From what I have read this is the minimum time needed to remain nominally healthy. Hopefully I will work my way up from here, but it's good to start small.

2) Drink 0-1/2 soft drink daily in my home. Again, the plan is to work down to zero, but there's a good chance I'm addicted to caffeine.

3) Read the Bible every weekday. Not many exact parameters on this one yet, but I would like to open and read a portion of the Bible 5 days a week. I claim to believe it's valuable, but my actions say otherwise. (update)

4) Pray regularly. Same details as the previous one.

5) Allow my wife to pick one for me. She knows my flaws better than anyone and I trust her more than anyone. Who better to help me improve? (update)

The only difference is this year I'm going to put my economics skills to work. This year I'm going to try a very specific commitment device. I hope to put in place a future incentive to keep my future self just as motivated as my current self. Last year a reader recommended that I put money on the line using the website stickK.com. The only problem with that is my wife is cheaper than me, so she would be punished more for my failure. Not a recipe for a happy household. Instead, I've made her my commitment device. One of our big financial debates is whether I got out with friends after improv practices and shows. So here's what we've agreed to:

For each of the five goals completed, I will earn $1 to go out with friends every week.

It's not much, but maybe it will be that little nudge I need.