“Every man should be born again on the first day of January.  Start with a fresh page.  Take up one hole more in the buckle if necessary, or let down one, according to circumstances; but on the first of January let every man gird himself once more, with his face to the front, and take no interest in the things that were and are past.” ~Henry Ward Beecher

Happy 2009!  Is this going to be a wonderful year for you and yours?  I hope so.  I certainly intend that this be the best year that I have experienced so far.  How about you?  What are your intentions?  What are your goals?  Would you like to make this your best year ever?  Would you more than like it – would you love it – do you want it so much that you can taste it?  Then read on (and make a habit of reading this blog.  We are going to go on some great adventures together this year!)

Last time I shared my blogging goal.  I must tell you that sharing that goal made me a little uneasy.  When it was a private goal, I could easily make excuses to myself.  But I am tired of making excuses to myself – I want to see my dreams living and breathing right in front of me and accomplishing that will take action and lots of it!   So, I made a public commitment.  I can feel the power of that commitment even as I write these words.

So, here are all of my Top Five Commitments for 2009
Health: I will return to my optimal bodyweight before the end of 2009.
Family: My wife and I will  take our family to New York for a great vacation to celebrate my elder daughter’s completion of her graduate program.
Business: I will blog 5 days per week – every week of 2009.
Finances: I will earn more in 2009 than I ever have before – at least 25% more.
Fun: I will run in the USA’s largest cross-country race: The Living History Farms Seven Miler.

By the way, each of these resolutions or goals is what one of my old bosses called a “bhag” Bhag: a big hairy audacious goal – a goal of tremendous importance that a first may seem daunting or impossible, but upon reflect is realized to be so desirable that you will do whatever it takes to make it happen.  I just love that term.

Are these all of my goals for 2009?  Not even close.  But these are the drivers – these are the goals that will ensure that all of the other ones get done.  Next time, I will talk about how I will use these on a daily basis to make sure that I accomplish my goals for 2009 (and have a great time along the way!).

Bye for now…Jack

“What man actually needs is not a tensionless state but rather the striving and struggling for some goal worthy of him. What he needs is not the discharge of tension at any cost, but the call of a potential meaning waiting to be fulfilled by him.” ~Victor Frankl