Ah, the first Monday of the new year. I’m not sure what it is about the first of January that gives us all pause. Maybe it’s the hangover after a month of holiday parties, maybe it’s a fresh perspective from changing the dates. Whatever the reason, we all seem to set out on January 1, or in this case January 4, with a new ambition and our sights on different goals and dreams. As you set out today, keep some of these things in mind.
Goals versus Dreams
A dream is a vision of what you would like to see. It’s a picture in your mind of a preferred future for yourself, your family, or your company. A goal is a guidepost toward that dream. Goals are how we take those dreams and make them into realities. They are landmarks along the way. Let’s say you want to lose 20 pounds this year. So, some goals would be to lose 5 pounds this month.
Make it Achievable
I would love for AVNation to be bigger than Disney. Sure, why not. That’s a great dream to have. We could be a world-wide media conglomerate that owned Star Wars and Marvel alike; maybe even the Harry Potter franchise as well. That is an example of an unrealistic dream or goal. Make it reachable within a certain amount of time. One of mine this year is to increase our overall audience by 10%. It is achievable with milestones along the way. We can adjust our content to attract more listeners and readers, ask our audience to share their experiences with their friends, and expand our coverage. These are all things we can do to meet a certain achievable goal.
Don’t Be Afraid
A recent Facebook post really spoke to this. “Don’t fear failure. Fear being in the exact same place next year as you are today.” That is exactly it. Growing up one of my biggest fears was not being good at something, at failing at it. The older I get, the more I realize this is not something to really be afraid of. Yeah, I’m going to fail… a lot. That’s ok. Move, change, grow. Fail and fail often. But learn from it and be a better person because of it.
The bottom line is this, set yourself some goals for this year and set out to achieve them. Some of them you may miss completely, others you may not hit exactly but at least you will get close. As long as you are making yourself and your world better this year won’t have gone to waste.
About Author
Tim Albright
Tim Albright is the founder of AVNation and is the driving force behind the AVNation network. He carries the InfoComm CTS, a B.S. from Greenville College and is pursuing an M.S. in Mass Communications from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. When not steering the AVNation ship, Tim has spent his career designing systems for churches both large and small, Fortune 500 companies, and education facilities.