Just before Christmas I received a box from a company in the Bay Area. I had never heard of them nor was I sure why or how they got my name.
Well, inside the box was a nice looking 8 ½ x 11 full color brochure and a lot of fortune cookies.
Two of the cookies had especially good messages (i.e. fortunes) inside them.
“Marketing and Sales alignment isn’t hard when both sides have common goals.”
“Stop procrastinating…starting tomorrow.”
What made these fortunes worthy of being mentioned in this article is that I manage and oversee all of the marketing and work with Phil on sales. The second “fortune” reminds me of a saying that my 2nd grade teacher, Mrs. Wilkinson, used to say -“Tomorrow never comes.” Also, the word ‘procrastination’ is the English derivative of two Latin words (pro meaning “for” and cras meaning “tomorrow”). Lest we should not forget that one of Scarlett O’Hara’s famous lines was “Tomorrow is another day.”
We need to get past the procrastination and putting off of tasks — work or personal — by stopping, taking a moment or two and being realistic about what can be done in the neces-sary time frame and if it is worthy of being a high priority, impactful task. Instead of setting those big and oftentimes overwhelming goals for the New Year, I recommend making monthly goals. They could certainly “add up” to form the big yearly goal. A monthly or shorter term goal should still be a challenge; however, it can deliver a more stress free environ-ment for achieving it. (Maybe this is why I always went to schools that were on a semester system and not a quarterly
or trimester system.)
My Top Things To Accomplish in 2012:
Key #1. Stay Connected With Family, Friends And Clients.
Life is just too short not to. No counting is allowed or thoughts of reciprocity (i.e. I haven’t heard from so and so for years). If you want to maintain or jumpstart a relationship of any kind, take the first step and you will be grateful that you did.
Key #2: Implement The Right Things At Work.
It’s important to focus on the activities that will help you reach those critical monthly and annual goals.
#3: Think And Be Healthy.
It is a mindset and a challenging one at that. As I wrote this article, I was switching back and forth between eating two clementines and M&Ms. I should have just had 5 M&Ms instead of the 15 or so. Aargh. Be consistent in exercising and mix it up so it doesn’t get too boring. If you don’t enjoy exercising or eating healthier, remind yourself of the end results (i.e. the outcome).
Key #4: Do Great Things With Rotary.
This is a big year for me because I am assuming the Rotary District 5450 Membership Chair role and responsibilities. I’m excited and nervous all at the same time. There is a rebuilding effort at my local Denver Cherry Creek Rotary club to boot. Also, my pet project, American Student Ambassadors, has launched and is moving forward slowly and surely over in Florence, Italy. Eventually, the goal is to expand to more hubs of study for American students and programs.
Key #5: Read, Read and Read A Bit More.
I continue to purchase more books (hardcover and Kindle) and yet I don’t get them read. 2012 is the year to turn this around. If I could just commit to reading one (1) book a month, that would be a significant result and it would sure make me feel better when I look at my full bookshelves and Kindle books.
Deb – good post – all items you relate are relevant to us all in one way or another. But the M&M’s – keep eating and remember it is worth the extra couple of minutes exercising!