Monday Motivation: Look Back Before You Look Ahead

2009 December 28
by Kate O'Neill

Rear View
Creative Commons License photo credit: Misserion

When people set goals, they’re often dreaming of some ideal version of themselves or their business that isn’t founded in real characteristics. In other words, if you resolve to lose 20 pounds but you’ve spent the better part of the past year traveling and eating road food, and you don’t see your travel schedule changing in the foreseeable future, that resolution is going to be difficult to achieve. Unless, of course, you address the travel issue.

And that’s the key. Looking at where you want to go and really aiming to get there means looking at where you’ve been and what’s kept you from reaching your destination. The most obvious obstacle may not be the one that’s holding you back.

In my professional life, I’ve been part of many, many goal planning sessions. They inevitably involve some kind of quasi-introspective exercise, like a SWOT analysis, and then when it comes to goal-setting time, everyone almost always promptly forgets all the would-be insights from the introspection. It’s a challenge to be brutally self-honest, and even more of a challenge to continue to be optimistic in the face of that kind of self-evaluation, but that’s what it takes to shake off the anchors of previous years and previous quarters and move on to what’s possible now.

When you’re tasked with setting goals, you’re often reminded to make them SMART — that is, specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely — but who’s to say what “attainable” really means? Only you know the context of what’s preventing you from achieving greatness. Only you can address the root issues that need addressing.

As we end and begin a quarter, a calendar year, and a decade, I wish this for you: that you will bravely confront what keeps you from being and doing everything you dream of, and that you will boldly vow to overcome it. And then that you will overcome it.

Happy New Year, everyone.

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Monday Motivation: Winding Down a Year

2009 December 21
by Kate O'Neill

Burlington Chicago Pocket Watch
Creative Commons License photo credit: alexkerhead

The end of December is always full of parties and year-end lists. This one is no different, except, well, there are decade-end lists, too.

It’s a good time to stop and think about what you accomplish this year, and what you want to accomplish next year.

Did you have goals for your business and for yourself? Did you accomplish them? Do you have goals for next year? Are they aggressive enough, or are you sandbagging? Can you push yourself to do more?

Was 2009 the year you took a risk? Made big changes? Got laid off? Figured out next steps? Went back to school?

Is 2010 the year you’ll make a big change in your career? Start a business? Go back to school?

A year is a long time while you’re living it, but easy to compress into a snapshot in retrospect. What you take away as the memorable moments from 2009 will define what the year meant in your life. You have a chance to influence what those will be in 2010. What will you remember?

Happy Monday! Go get ‘em, tiger.

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Poll: What kind of posts do you like best?

2009 December 16
tags:
by Kate O'Neill

Today we’re continuing our week of polls to try to learn more about what you, our readers, like and want to read about. Which is why, in today’s poll, we’re getting right to the point and asking which of the topics we cover most you prefer.

By the way, if we’re missing out on a topic or theme we should be covering, please let us know in the comments.

What types of posts at Corporate Idealist do you like best?

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Poll: Where do you work most often?

2009 December 15
tags:
by Kate O'Neill

Continuing with our week of polls, today we’d like to know about where you typically work. As always, we love your comments, so if you have anything to add, you know what to do.

Where do you work most often?

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