What are your top of mind priorities, your focal points for this new year? Are they clear? A new year is the perfect time to think about this question.

Seek Clarity

“Clarity with regard to purpose” is something I find myself often saying. Before I task time or energy on a matter I seem driven to ask myself “Why is this important and what outcome is most desired?”

2020 was Hard

We’ve all been through so much uncertainty and change this past year. It may have left you feeling tired, frustrated or unbalanced. In that state, goals and objectives become blurry.

Find your Focus

I’ve found that having a focal point, a priority, a clear goal many times can ‘pull’ you through the fog of frustration and focus your mind and your actions on moving forward.

I would encourage you to reflect on this and find something that is positive, fresh, new, and opportunity oriented to focus on this year.

For me it’s ‘Be Helpful’

I mentioned in my first blog post I’ve personally settled on a theme of ‘Be Helpful’. Those two words help refocus my thoughts and actions very quickly when I want to create momentum and drive contribution to others.

It’s not original 🙂

I came across this thought again and again in so many great books. Dale Carnegie talking about focusing on helping others get what they want. Zig Ziglar as well. Gary Vaynerchuk in his book Jab Jab Right Hook talks about focusing on value and giving first. Jay Baer’s book Youtility emphasizing that your marketing content must have value to rise above the noise. And Guy Kawasaki (so many great books!) – his point of your business mission to ‘making meaning.’

So there is my theme – Be Helpful…

Helping Business Owners

I want to be helpful to the owners, executives, leaders and professionals I’ve spent my 30 year B2B technology career serving and advising.

As their companies have grown, there are now generations of young leaders coming up and looking for wisdom in how to best lead, serve and help others. I feel deeply that I might have something to share with them as I commit to exploring my thoughts here each day by writing and sharing.

Helping Parents

I want to be helpful to parents who are searching for a way to encourage and equip their kids to develop their strengths using technology to create and contribute. I’m living in that world first hand and seeking everyday to help my own kids learn, grow and develop an entrepreneurial perspective and have high competency with different technology tools.

Kids are awesome today at consuming content using technology. But I’m really excited to see them learn to create, communicate, collaborate and grow in their confidence to think about and solve problems using their newfound skill sets.

I’m seeking to identify for our kids a technology or business theme for each month of the year to explore together. I’ll share more here as that develops.

Find your theme for the year

So in conclusion, I feel strongly that having a theme, a focal point, a mantra that matters can really help drive positive thought and action this new year.

I think that’s the ‘mindset’ that I’m hoping you can find too. I think having one will pull each of us out of the fog of 2020 and into a brighter and more optimistic future together in 2021.

What’s yours? I’d love to hear!

Please, let me know what your mindset or mantra is for this coming year!