New Years Resolutions

it has been a while since ive been idle during the holiday aftermath.  so i woke up one morning with nothing to do, and on the verge of panic i tried to think of a time when being idle was actually normal.  amazingly that last time was when i was in high school!

so what did i used to do with post holiday idleness?  make lists of course!  i would fix my planner which was still handwritten back then, jotting down special dates, writing down my goals for the year and making the ever cliche new years resolutions.

with the advent of the electronic planner, techy hubby (then a bf) gave me the Palm and after that there was no turning back!

my very first electronic planner

my palm was replaced by a sony clie

colored sony clie

then an upgrade

Clie PEG TJ37

then my well loved O2

O2 atom

and now my currently prized omnia

samsung omnia

after i got plugged in i didnt need to write down the important yearly dates anymore.

and because i got too busy with work, there were no more thinking of my yearly goals.  you could say i was going year in and year out on the need basis.

it was going well until now when im able to sit down and really think about it all.  and so to make good use of my idle time before i start my review, let me go old school and write down my new years resolutions.

1.  take better care of my skin

i went and got my much needed facial pampering (thank you dr. k for the skintificate!) and left the shop with an addition to my new home regimen.

2.  stop being a back seat driver

whenever we find a parking spot in a crowded parking lot i cant help but push the hazard light on.  well yesterday, i got too excited and pressed the button too hard and got the button stuck into its slot.  to make me feel better, i had to apologize endlessly and go to the garage this morning to help hubby take a look at what i broke in our hard working race horse.

hmmm...i dont know what we were looking for...

i didnt do much but i did find materials to practice my shots

3.  conceive

ive got to get me one of this!

my adorable inaanak

the cute bday boy

darling little ate

the charming little boy

4.  continue to save the planet

meet the new members of my planet friendly collection

thank you to my generous juniors! i will miss you!

5.  learn to better manage my finances

6. build my career

read read read

7.  build my character

i read this in one of my favorite columns from francis kong

1. UPDATE YOUR CURRENT SKILLS.

I know you are good with your computer skills but in case you haven’t noticed nobody’s using DOS system anymore. With so many people being declared redundant, it would not be difficult for companies to get younger, more eager and more skilled people who can’t wait to take over your job. And they are willing to receive a lower pay too. So attend seminars. Read books and update your skills.

2. KNOW THAT YOU ARE NOT INDISPENSABLE.

The business landscape is constantly changing. Business owners are more than ever conscious of measuring their costs and investments. And if you fail to deliver expectations, you will be replaced. This is a guarantee!

3. DROP THAT ATTITUDE THING.

It’s time to realize that the universe does not revolve around you. Drop that “Diva” habit and think “TeamWork and TeamWorth” instead. If you think like you’re the only person at work who can get the job done, your people will make sure you will fail and this will qualify you for the pink slip.

4. DELIVER EXCELLENT RESULTS.

Nobody wants average and in fact “average” is a dirty word these days. So start delivering superior results. Under promise but over deliver. The day I began appearing regularly once a week on a popular TV morning show, I was told that they have a minute-per-minute rating or survey on every segment of the program. What a blessing to know that the segment we are doing registered high and this is the reason why I am still there. Do you know that business and professional fields are becoming more like the TV and Radio business? If one’s ratings go down, then it doesn’t take a lot of effort or guilt for business owners to have them replaced.

5. DROP THE TITLE AND ENTITLEMENT MENTALITY.

Those who harbor a sense of entitlement for simply having stayed with the company longer than others irrespective of the results they deliver are guaranteed to fall by the wayside.

The stakes are too high. The fact is that there are more people than jobs available so you better work on yourself more than you do on your job.

6. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A LIFE PLAN

Every successful person I know has a well-defined life plan. They know what they want and they set all effort to get it. Forget all those empty promises of so-called “motivational speakers,” forget all those stupid mystical books that promises success without having to work for it. At the end of the day, it is the person with a goal who works hard for it who will get ahead of the dreamers who merely dream great dreams without waking up and doing some work. You and I need to have a life plan. Without a plan, we leave our success in the hands of others who may or may not have time to look after other people’s successes.

7. SURROUND YOURSELF WITH SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE

This is one principle I find amazing. Successful people are always in the company of equally successful people. Losers are almost always with losers too. They rush to get to their happy hour they tell tales where they are the heroes of their own stories while successful people talk about ideas on how to be more successful. They network with each other and the glue that holds things together is integrity and trust for one another.

8. ASK QUESTIONS ALL THE TIME

Be naturally curious. Find out everything you can know about how your company operates. Get to know the people behind the positions. Ask intelligent questions and you get intelligent answers. Be knowledgeable. Knowledge is power and winners remain unceasingly interested in learning ideas and approaches. Successful leaders are those who ask questions all the time and they build trust with their people.

9. MARKET YOURSELF BUT GIVE CREDIT TO OTHERS

In a huge organization setup, it will be difficult to just work hard and hope and wait for the people upstairs to take notice. You have to learn how to market yourself correctly….. (which is an entire seminar on its own)…but in doing so, make sure you give credit to others.

Most people think this is strange. “How can I be noticed when I give others the credit instead of bagging the credit for myself?” The answer is quite simple. You cannot succeed alone. It takes a lot of effort from other people to help make you succeed. And even if you were the first one to come up with the idea and even if you were the person who contributed big time to making the project work, when you pass on the credit to your team, they would love to work with you and make you more successful. And then the irony appears. PEOPLE KNOW! So you don’t have to toot your own horn. This is one of the effective ways in marketing yourself. Never forget this: If you say good things about yourself then it’s bragging. But when others say it, then it is a fact!

10. BUILD YOUR CHARACTER IN ORDER TO BUILD YOUR CAREER

Ask any owner and they will tell you that top in their list are people who are not only efficient but trustworthy. Hands down, no contest. Integrity rules! Most people rise up to their success because of their talents but only to crash because of their lack of character. This is why you need to cultivate a pure heart and clean hands as Scriptures would say and work harder on yourself than you do on your job. Do not lose perspective. The end does not justify the mean-ness. At the end of the day, people love people who are kind, caring, competent and trustworthy. At the end of the day, people are thrown off by scheming, deceiving, slandering and maligning folks who would sacrifice their own personal values on the altar of worldly success.

This is how you build your career in 2009 and this is how you build yourself for the rest of your life.

8.  enjoy life!

what are your new year’s resolutions?

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