This is the time of year when people tend to identify something they want to change about themselves and they make a “New Years Resolution”.
Let me go on the record as saying that I HATE New Years resolutions.
Goal: noun \ˈgōl\ : something that you are trying to do or achieve
Resolution: noun \ˌre-zə-ˈlü-shən\ : the act of finding an answer or solution to a conflict, problem
See? There’s a difference between goals and resolutions – knowing the difference might bring you over to my anti-resolution dark side.
Few people ever make a resolution that they are able to stick with – at least not with the same fervor that they started off with – despite the fact that most resolutions are admirable. According to the people who keep track of these sorts of things at the US Government, these are the most popular resolutions that are made every year:
- Lose Weight
- Volunteer to Help Others
- Quit Smoking
- Get a Better Education
- Get a Better Job
- Save Money
- Get Fit
- Eat Healthy Food
- Manage Stress
- Manage Debt
- Take a Trip
- Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle
- Drink Less Alcohol
Admit it, you’ve made a few of these “resolutions” at one time or another … we all have. While I can comfortably acknowledge that I really need to address number’s 1,7, 8, and 9, I feel pretty good about number’s 4, 5, 10, 11, and 12. The others don’t apply to me as I see it; I already (2) volunteer a lot, I’ve never (3) smoked, I (12) reduce, reuse and recycle at home and work, and I don’t want to (13) drink less alcohol … I think I might want to actually drink more.
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I wrote a post back in April of 2010 that talked about the importance of setting goals because I’d like to think that I’m a goal oriented individual. You should read that highly amazing and inspirational post for yourself but for today, I’m just going to focus on what I think it means to be “goal-oriented”.
The goal oriented individual does not get distracted by the process but rather stays focused on the big picture – the goal. Determining the big picture is what the best leaders do but you have to go through the process of collecting the skills and abilities to effectively lead. You need to understand the tasks, how they come together in a plan that fulfills the objective, and how all the objectives together achieve a goal. There aren’t any shortcuts, you may have the ability to move through these categories more quickly than others, but make no mistake, you do need to go through the process.
Most of the 13 items listed above are more task or result oriented and since I am entering into uncharted waters as a business person, I am going to be spending my time trying to figure out what exactly I need to be doing to achieve my goals for 2014 – my biggest of which is to sell more work and develop business relationships. Since most of my projects come as an extension of some personal relationship, it makes sense that I need to meet more local people.
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On a far lighter note, I have not been at work for just over two weeks and I think my brain is turning to mush. While I thoroughly enjoyed my time off, it will be good to get back into the office and back to work. I have spent very little of the last two weeks doing any sort of work, even less on this blog … but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been on the look out for taking pictures. I am still really enjoying Instagram and taking pictures of interesting things that I come across in my day-to-day activities. The last week of my break was spent up in Seattle visiting family and just using the camera in my iPhone, I think I took about a hundred pictures – some for me and some to share.
How can you not take this photo when you’re standing right there? Yes, I am well aware that a million other people already took the same photo but I don’t really care. Now I’ve taken that photo. Check.
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This is the “Gum Wall” at Pike Place Market … and it’s super gross – but look at all that free gum!!
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That dark area at the bottom is the concrete barricade, not a cropped area. I don’t normally advocate taking photos while driving and in my defense, I just aimed my camera out the window and took about 15 pictures without looking – hoping one would come out okay.
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Who doesn’t love a triple-X root beer? No one.
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Lastly, my wife has asked me to start working on the plans to renovate our Master Bathroom … it’s a tall order.
There are a lot of things that aren’t quite right with out bathroom space and after living in the house for almost 5 years, I think my wife is right … this has got to be dealt with. I don’t actually know the timing behind when this particular project will happen, but I am going to go ahead and do the design and drawings so that I can be in a position to get a construction permit when the opportunity presents itself.
If you’re new to this blog and haven’t had the pleasure of reading the first two posts that I’ve dedicated to my master bathroom, do yourself a favor and read them now – you will be amazed.
An Architect’s House – Master Shower – June 24, 2010
Master Bath Shower – You Displease Me – October 17, 2011
Yes “Sucky Master Bathroom”, your time is coming…
Cheers, it’s good to be back at the office. Here’s to a Happy and Prosperous 2014.
