“It shouldn’t be easy to be amazing. Then everything would be. It’s the things you fight for and struggle with before earning that have the greatest worth. When something’s difficult to come by, you’ll do that much more to make sure it’s even harder―or impossible―to lose.” ― Sarah Dessen
You will be spending nearly a quarter of the coming year in your workplace. If this sounds a bit daunting, it might be time for a change in how you handle this aspect of your life. The trick is to start right and use that momentum to keep you going throughout the coming year.
What’s the plan?
We all hit the New Year running with the best intentions to achieve great things. In truth, crushing those goals, though, can be a challenge. Especially if you feel like your track record in the past hasn’t been great.
Ask yourself who you want to be at this time next year. Are you content where you are or are you hoping for a promotion or shift into another career altogether? If change is in your future, set those dreams as goals. What do you need to make these things happen?
The good news is, it’s a brand-new year. You’re starting fresh, and the past doesn’t matter as much as you think it does. The secret to having a dream year lies in these helpful tips.
What Did you Expect to Happen?
You start with an honest assessment of what you’ve done (or not done) before. If you haven’t been meeting your goals, you might want to check your expectations, especially if you’ve been looking at ‘overnight success’ stories as your inspiration. Remember, those ‘inspiring tales’ ignore all the hard work in the background required to create that success. With this in mind, ask yourself what’s reasonable when setting your goals.
What’s Working?
The focus of your thoughts is more important than you think. If you start obsessing over the mistakes and failures along the way, you’re guaranteed not to make any forward progress. Instead, check your self-talk with a new focus on the positive. Tell yourself about your successes instead. Remind yourself of everything you’ve done right thus far. Take failure as lessons to be learned, not as roadblocks.
Write it Down
Why is it so easy to remember what went wrong while successes drift past, soon forgotten? The key here is to write down when things go right. Keeping a journal of your achievements becomes more than a written record of your work. This tool is something you can pull out, again and again, to encourage you in the year to come. Nothing inspires more than the reminder that you got it right before and can again.
What Do You Need?
Ask yourself if you need to learn some new skills to move ahead. Now is the time to figure these things out. How can you set about learning these things? Are there classes you can take or other educational opportunities you should be taking advantage of?
What’s Coming?
Is there a buzz about the company involving potential layoffs or other news with profound ramifications for your job? What’s the escape plan? Now might be the time to think ahead about your future elsewhere. Make a list of potential job alternatives.
What’s the Word on the Street?
What’s being said about you? If you’re going to be job hunting or even setting out for promotion, you need to have a solid reputation. Is it time to update your resume with your various accomplishments from the last year? What does your social media say about you? Do you need to work on your LinkedIn profile? Do the work necessary to give the world the picture of you that you want them to see.
Who Do You Know?
Your new year should involve meeting new people. Networking is a great way to get ahead at work. More than that, it builds relationships with the people you’re going to be spending a lot of time with. It’s far easier to work with friends than strangers. Also, consider joining professional organizations to increase your reach. How about a goal of meeting at least five new people every week?
Clear Your Mind
Sometimes it’s our own brain working against us. We get cynical about the past, about what we’re doing today, and where we’re going. Practicing mindfulness clears your mind of negative clutter and helps you to center yourself again so you can move forward without dragging around negative baggage.
What’s Your Five?
Every day find five things you can do to get you closer to your goal. These shouldn’t be big things, but small, easy to accomplish tasks. Crossing these items off of the list every single day will push you along in surprising ways. You’ll be at your goal before you know it.
Dare to Accomplish Great Things
Sometimes you need to take a chance. Dream big. Take a leap of faith. It’s an incredible feeling when you propel yourself to new heights.
Do these things and crush this New Year. It’s going to be amazing!
