Once a year and it is almost always at about this time, I begin to reflect on the year which is about to end, and the year that lies in front of us. It is truly a unique time when we are closing one chapter, and opening the next. For me, I wonder about how this year will stack up in the context of all the years in my life. Was it a win, a loss or a draw? Without question I begin every year with the best of intentions to improve my life and those around me by being a better husband, father, friend, advisor, business man, etc. And, I think I can say with complete confidence that I have never started a year planning to retreat in any area, or to invest twelve months of my life that simply had no special characteristics or positive movement. Suffice it to say, I’ve seen the full spectrum. What did I do differently to be successful in the years that were most productive? What can you and I do to make 2010 our personal best year ever?

The answer is that we need to know where we’re going and to know what we want to achieve. And like the commercial says, “We have an app for that”. It’s not sophisticated and requires no special talent, genius or even software. It will require us to think about the possibilities though, and to get into a mindset of focus and achievement.

The first step is to establish personal strategic plan that outlines our goals that we want to reach for the year. It could be fire the boss, lose weight, start a company, learn to play guitar, run a marathon, get promoted, become a professional drifter, get a new job, the list is limitless. However, these goals should express what matters most to you in the coming year. Goal setting is a great method of deciding: what is important for you to achieve in your life, separating what is important from what is irrelevant or a distraction, motivating yourself, and building self-confidence based on successful achievement of goals.

Here’s a simple time, time tested goal setting framework called SMART to make the initial steps easy. Goals for the year should be:

Specific with no room for ambiguity

Measurable so that you will know your progress at all times

Achievable in order to stay motivated. Set large and smaller goals to be met throughout the year.

Relevant to the overall objectives for the year

Time sensitive to stay on track

The second step is to write them down and keep them in a visible place where you can see them and monitor them on a daily basis. Don’t try this on your own….Third, tell family, friends and colleagues about your goals and most important, get an accountability partner. Set up monthly or quarterly lunches, or meetings at the local coffee shop to talk about what’s been achieved, the impediments standing in the way of the next achievement and what’s left to be done. An accountability partner is an invaluable asset that will help you stay on track and meet your goals. Lastly, find like minded people who share your dreams and aspirations for achievement and associate yourself with them. Our achievements in life have more to do with who we associate with than most of us believe. Achieving our goals requires discipline and focus but our chances for success are much higher with this simple methodology

Will 2010 be a year that we look back on as one of our most proud moments? We hold all of the necessary elements of success in the palms of our hands. Even though next year may be a challenge economically, we can make it a better year by establishing, working and achieving our personal strategic plan.

All the best for a terrific year,

Bob