Given the new year and my views on annual resolutions, I have been struggling a little with the concept of how to better grow and improve. I dislike forcing an annual plan where I have to accomplish X, Y, and Z in twelve months or I am a failure. And truly resolutions are semi-synonymous with, “a cute goal I won’t achieve this year.”

I struggle because I can lose track of the goals I am working towards and the way I am moving forward in the areas outside of work. Growing personally has much more significance and long term payment than a job does. Do not get me wrong, I love my job and I think there is much significance and long term payoff in my role. However, when I was slinging coffee, my job started when I clocked in and ended when I clocked out. The long term significance lasted as long as caffeine buzz and a trip to the bathroom.

I was left to grow and develop on my own during those days. I did not have someone who paid me to grow as a person. There was no responsibility or eternal significance to my success or failure as a barista. Thus I had to motivate myself. I had to push myself to grow and get out of my comfort zone. I was not using any solid metrics to ensure I was growing. To a large extent, I still do not use any excellent metrics. What is worse, I usually have no clue how I am doing in progressing towards accomplishing my goals.

I need to assess regularly. I need to look at my goals more often, be reminded of what I want to achieve, who I want to become. Where I want to go in life. I need to look at where I am at more often. There is a detrimental side to this where I assess too often and am defeated by measuring my lack of progress. I think for me I will start with assessing three or four times a year. Each phase of assessment will require me to recalibrate my interworking and assess my progress.

What are your goals? How often are you assessing them? What are your metrics to know if you are progressing.

Assessing,

–JT