Personal and Professional Goals-2007

By: Elaine Romberg
Date: 1/1/2007

We are already in the New Year - 2007. By now, if you haven't, you should have written out the achievements you expect to attain this coming New Year - achievements are your personal and professional "goals."

Almost all of the trainers and professional speakers we will ever hear, or come in contact with, will talk about the importance of goal-setting. It is a fact that successful people are goal-setters.

You might ask yourself, "Why?" There is a pretty obvious reason: Once you have made a decision to do something, you have convinced yourself that you want to do it -whatever it is - and you write it down, then you keep it lodged in your mind. It then becomes a belief for you - and it isn't all that long before you will find you are continually thinking about it and asking yourself what you need to do to make it happen and become a reality.

Imagination
There are a number of things that also happen to us when we make the commitment to attain a goal. First of all, we are probably just "dreaming" about what it is we want to accomplish...and yet the power of "dreaming" is really what will create an idea that eventually becomes an achievement. Sometimes necessity creates the idea or dream of what you accomplish, but sometimes it is merely something in your mind that you really want to do, and you do it!

I believe it was Albert Einstein who once said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." He was known to have believed that knowledge can be learned or gathered, but dreams are really the catalyst in an endeavor. How true this is.

Once we have the idea or the dream or "goal," we begin to focus our energy on the goals we are setting for ourselves, whether they are personal or professional. Focused energy is nothing more than knowing what you want; then going after it. It makes you become aggressive, and you begin to channel your energies toward making the achievement or attaining the goal.

Desire
Vince Lombardi was known to have said he wanted players with "desire." The desire to play football and the desire to win. It's obvious why "desire" was a #1 requirement for his players. He had also said almost all players had about the same ability, but that "desire" made the difference. Why? Because if you really desire something enough, you won't stop at anything to achieve it. It makes you plan, organize, reorganize, re-visit your plan, and do whatever it takes to achieve the goal. Successful individuals truly desire to do what they set out to do, and will not allow anything to stand in their way.

Determination
As you are setting your 2007 goals (if you haven't already), another ingredient in achieving your goals is determination. There are many stories of successful individuals who knew what they wanted to achieve, and even when they did not attain the goal the first time, they were so determined to try and try and try again. Abraham Lincoln always comes to mind - he persevered to become President of the United States - he struggled against so many odds and pressures, but he had the desire and determination....and we know the rest of the story.

Enthusiasm
As each of us review our goals for 2007 from time to time, it doesn't hurt to remind us that enthusiasm is also an important ingredient in our day-to-day relationships. Who wants to work with someone who is always negative, or the person who seems to always be looking at the dim side of achieving the goal? It's a lot more exciting and fun to work with the person who is the first to say, "Let's go...I know we can do it!" Enthusiasm makes a huge difference, and at the same time it allows you to enjoy and receive self-satisfaction from whatever you are working on. The fact is, if you aren't enthusiastic, you cannot encourage others to be any more enthusiastic than you are! Think about it...How enthusiastic are you? Does it rub off on your staff?

Now that we are already into the New Year, even if you haven't written out your goals for 2007 as you read this, you really should. Now is the time. And, don't be afraid to set your goals a little higher than you think you can reach. You will attain a higher level of success if you challenge yourself and reach for a higher level of accomplishment.

You may even want to say to yourself every morning, "I know I can do it - and I am going to do it." Believing in yourself is as important as knowing what goals you plan to achieve this coming year.

Let nothing stand in your way - take advantage of services that are available to you to help you attain your goals. Networking may be a goal that you'd like to consider - think about becoming a member of IPA (Inter-City Personnel) if you are an independent owner that does split placements. IPA will be 35 years old this coming May, and many, many independent owners have added to the success of their agencies because of the services and relationships developed with affiliate owners.

Elaine Romberg is the president of Inner-City Personnel Associates (IPA). She can be contacted at 920.720.5323, or by email at ipa@athenet.net.