For several years, Chris Brogan has led the way in setting the tone for the year ahead by picking 3 words that are the focus of the year. Rather than making resolutions, or resolving changes to improve our lives that we seldom see beyond the first two weeks of January, this approach is more focused yet broad.
Like many others, I’m glad to see 2011 fade behind. It was a year full of changes. I became engaged at the stroke of midnight a year ago, which was an amazing blessing and has been throughout the year. I finally launched that social media course I’ve had in my heart for many years, but I still have a big goal for membership there not yet attained. I’ve built stronger connections locally, and am building business with clients in my town. Many of my current projects are carrying over into 2012 and hopefully beyond. I feel that I’ve endured 2011 in many ways, but am ready to enjoy 2012 with more passion, energy, and focus than any other before.
Play
While there is something to be said about working hard, I’ve realized how very little I allowed myself to relax and enjoy 2011. I am rejuvenated by vacations, board games, reading books, playing my violin or mandolin, and getting together with friends. I make time not “working” a priority for the year ahead. It brings creativity and detaches me from hours spent “working” but getting nothing done. I have intentions of getting into more video games this year as a way to enjoy time with my fiancé as well. Play then carries over into work. Read up on it in [amazon_link id=”0786868686″ target=”_blank” ]Fish! Tales: Real-Life Stories to Help You Transform Your Workplace and Your Life[/amazon_link] .
Balanced
I tend to give myself 100% to one thing at a time. While I’m an avid multitasker online, in maintaining a balanced life, I am either spending long days doing little else but sitting at my desk. While play is one part of balance and likely the most needed, I also need to bring balance into these areas too:
- Nutrition
- Physical exercise
- Spiritual studies and meditation
- Relationship with mentors
- Networking
- Customer satisfaction
- Business studies
- Personal development
Success
Just the other day I was reading a post by Seth Godin that served as a wake-up call. The point I took away wasn’t really the focus of the article, but summed up a struggle I’ve had for years. Am I avoiding failure or pursuing success? I jumped ship into my business at an alarming rate without many plans on making it work. I lost a lot of the comforts of life and let my hasty choices take its toll on myself and loved ones. I’ve since improved many things in the past few years, but I’m not yet where I want to be. I’ve sunk into avoiding failure versus really achieving what I am capable of. This doesn’t just reflect finances, but what I want out of life. My entire passion and reason for being in this world must be reignited and fueled. Avoiding failure won’t do that for me.
To keep things moving along, I’ll take a note from Fitarella and break down one thing per month to do. Making commitments to myself builds confidence, produces results, and is a great way to try things out.
For the month of January, that first thing I commit to doing each day is blogging. You see, I get all revved up and last for a whopping 14 days. I will push through this because blogging is fun, it’s beneficial for my work, and it’s a way to organize my thoughts. To break it down further, I’ll be using 31 days to build a better blog and incorporating a variety of multimedia into my posts.
What about you? What are your three words for the year, goals per month, or other major mental shifts you are making in 2012?
Related articles
- Three Words for 2012 (christopherspenn.com)
- My Three Words for 2012 (suzemuse.com)
- My 3 Words for 2012 (chrisbrogan.com)
