From Joe Calloway:
Here’s advice that I’m giving myself for 2016. You can partake of it as you see fit:
- Lighten up. My family is healthy and happy and we’re all together. In light of that, any “problems” that I might have are trivial.
- Listen to and think about what people that I disagree with have to say. I don’t have anything near a monopoly on the truth. If I listen more I might learn something.
- I don’t have to attend every fight I’m invited to. There are plenty of fights going on these days, and my nature is to stick my nose into every one of them. Truth is that nobody really cares what I think – they pretty much just care about what they think.
- Get better at my work and the value I deliver to my clients. Any time I start to think I’m hot stuff, I need to take another look at my competition. They’re good at what they do. REALLY good. If I don’t get better – I’m toast.
- Count my blessings – which are endless. It’s hard to feel down when you’re counting blessings. My prayers can go on for hours if I just focus on “Thank you for….”
Joe Calloway helps great companies get even better. www.JoeCalloway.com
From Mark Sanborn:
Here’s one way to get a great start for the year ahead.
Begin by reflecting on this question: One year from now, what people and events will have made me the happiest?
I realize happiness isn’t the only metric for a great year, but it is a very good one. We are happiest when we’re doing the things we most enjoy with the people we most enjoy doing them with.
The ability to integrate those two things—people and experiences—into both your personal and professional life is powerful. Sometimes it isn’t always feasible. If that’s the case, you might need to look at your work as a means to an end. The results and compensation you generate at work can be invested into doing the things you want to do with people important to you.
Improve the quality of your questions and you improve the quality of your life.
Here are four more simple but powerful questions that will help you create your 2016 agenda for success:
- What do you need to learn?
- What do you need to improve?
- What do you need to stop doing?
- What do you need to start doing?
Happy New Year!
Mark Sanborn is president of Sanborn & Associates, Inc., an idea studio for leadership development. He is an award-winning speaker bestselling author of books including, The Fred Factor. For more information and free resources, visit www.marksanborn.com.
From Scott McKain:
Here are two steps I suggest you take to launch 2016:
1) Overestimate what you can accomplish in the coming year.
Peter Drucker famously said, “We greatly overestimate what we can accomplish in one year. But, we greatly underestimate what we can accomplish in five years.”
Drucker was talking about business and management – however, his insight applies to New Year’s resolutions, too. We want to lose weight, make more money, perfect our relationships, and change everything that’s wrong with our lives.
Remember this: there is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting those goals.
So – go ahead and write down those resolutions! Take a sheet of paper and overestimate what you can accomplish, right now! Then…
2) Develop a specific game plan to accomplish those resolutions — that isn’t time dependent.
Your life is not a gallon of milk stamped with a pre-determined expiration date.
Executing your plan to earn more money and have a better career might exceed twelve months. Would you quit on December 31, 2016 if you knew success might be only another year away? Of course not – that’s just silly.
The problem is we don’t develop the plans – we just state the wish.
Overestimate – then, get to work!
Scott McKain teaches how organizations and individual professionals can create distinction in their marketplace, and deliver the “Ultimate Customer Experience®.” For more information: www.ScottMcKain.com.
From Randy Pennington:
Start 2016 by focusing on what it will take to end the year with the results you want.
Thinking about and planning what you want to accomplish is great, but the amazingly low percentage of people who achieve their New Year’s resolutions has very little to do with the lack of goals or plans. It has everything to do with their lack of discipline to turn good ideas and intentions into sustainable action that delivers positive results.
Most people know that they need to do something different. They aren’t really ready to go all in to actually change their thinking, actions, or performance.
Others set unrealistic expectations, confuse a good idea with a goal, or don’t know how to implement the changes they want to make. There are ample resources available to help you overcome these challenges IF you really want to change.
Aristotle taught that excellence is a habit. If you want things to be better, you have to consistently do something different. If you want things to be different, you have to change. If you want a successful finish to 2016, start by learning the habit of making and sustaining positive change.
Randy Pennington helps leaders deliver positive results in a world of accelerating change and disruption. He is an award-winning author, speaker, and consultant. To find out more, go to www.penningtongroup.com.
From Larry Winget:
Begin the year with this word: Commitment.
A commitment is a deal you make either with yourself or with someone else. And a deal is a deal.
Make a commitment to reading more. Jim Rohn said, “You would do better if you knew better.” The best way to know better is to read. Commit to reading ten books in 2016. Seven pages per day is ten books of two hundred fifty pages. You can read seven pages per day. No one is too busy to do that.
Make a commitment to adding value. Add value to your employer. Add value to your customers. Add value to your friendships and family. Add value to your community and to society. Don’t be a drain on anyone. Don’t be a taker. Be someone who makes every situation better.
Make a commitment to your commitments: your family, your creditors, and your employer. You gave your word, now keep it.
No explanation required: Commit to being on time. Commit to being completely honest in your words and in your dealings. Commit to being healthier and happier. Commit to working harder at every thing you do. Commit to spending more time with people you love.
Larry Winget, the Pitbull of Personal Development®, is a six-time NYT/WSJ bestselling author, social commentator and appears regularly on many national television news shows. To find out more, go to www.LarryWinget.com.
