So, as of today it’s 2009, a new year.  I know, it’s a time of hope and reflection, planning and contemplating…and time to makes some goals…

If you are anything like me though, New Years Day always comes with a certain amount of dread.  See, I am someone who is perpetually locked in a battle with myself over what my goals actually are.  I usually decide what my goals for the year are somewhere around the very end of that year.  It’s a somewhat flawed system, I’ll admit.  You know how you can never think of what you want for Christmas when asked, but by 12:01am Christmas morning you know exactly what you wanted, and you know you didn’t ask for any of it?  Yeah, that’s me with my goals.

I tell you this because I know most of you are indeed just like me.  That’s kinda the reason you’re reading this now, isn’t it?  If we were all good at goal planning we’d all be fabulously rich, and there would be about 1000 less authors writing books about life planning as we sit here.

I also tell you this because I am going to make a change this year, and I hope you will join me.  Don’t worry, this isn’t going to be too demanding, or kum ba yah-ish, and it’s not even guaranteed to work (how’s that for a sales pitch?).  It will take half an hour at best, and it comes with a commitment from me that over the next year, I will tirelessly seek tools that let schmucks like us take some control of our lives.  That is what it’s all about, right?

So, just write down some goals and loose plans on how you think you may achieve them.  If you can make an airtight strategy with military precision all the better!  As long as it is something, you’re getting further than you did last year.  I know how dreams can be a floating target, and I also understand just how scary it can be to put them down on paper (or liquid crystal display, but that lacks the imagery for my point) because all of the sudden you feel answerable to them.  Now there is something you can fail at.  BUT, now there is also something you can succeed at, and that is powerful. 

I remember during a lunch interview one time, the gentleman looked at me and said, “You have had some real success so far in your career, but it’s been a collection of incidences, not of planned direction.”  He didn’t mean it as a dig, he was stating what he saw, and he was right.  Up until that point, I had never sought direction.  I just assumed it would come from the companies I worked for.  It has taken me some years to come to grips that it is up to me, but taking the initiative to begin to steer my own course is so energizing and enlightening.  Do this with me, and we can share our experiences, both good and bad.

Here are a few resources I’m using in this process.  I’m not going to go into detail about them right now.  Play with them, and see what you like.

• Omni Focus Personal Task Management http://www.omnigroup.com/applications/omnifocus/
  This is a detailed project oriented program that I am just getting started with.  They also have an iPhone application which is nice, because I find I get most of my ideas when I am doing other things.
• There are lots of great Mind Map tools available.  I personally use Mind Maker for the iPhone.  It’s such a great, intuitive way to lay out your brainstorming for a project quickly and clearly.  Another resource is: http://www.mindmeister.com/.  I have never used it, but it does come highly recommended.
• Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
  by David Allen is an important book to read in the road to actually accomplishing things!  Here is a great checklist you can use: http://gtdmastery100.com/

If you have ideas, or suggestions for other tools, please share them via a comment.  Shaun and I will talk a little about this on the next podcast coming  up soon.