My Goals for 2009

Welcome back for Part 3 of the series “My Goals for 2009.” In case you’re just joining us, you can check out Part 1 on the importance of setting goals and Part 2 on how to set goals.

Today and tomorrow, I will be sharing with you some specific goals that I have set for myself for 2009 both personally and professionally. Last year was the first year I had taken the time to really write down my specific goals for the year and specifically what I was going to do to accomplish them. Prior to that, I was like most people in that I had some ideas of things I wanted to do, but I just never got around to doing them. But when I really sat down and not only determined what I wanted to accomplish, but HOW I was going to do it, it clicked for me.

So I share these with you for a couple of reasons….

It provides a sense of accountability for myself. A lot of us have goals dreams that we’ll never get around to trying, let alone accomplishing. They sit on the back burner of our minds and never really pan out to be much. But when you tell other people your goals, it takes it to a new level. Depending on the nature of the goal, the person you are sharing them with may have an interest in you accomplishing that goal and will keep tabs on your progress. It’s a simple way to keep yourself on track.
I hope it motivates you to think big and make your own list. I’m interested in what other people are doing and the goals they set for themselves, because A) it may trigger something for me that I want to set a goal for and B) it may challenge me to think and dream bigger than I currently am.

For both my personal and professional goals, I have a few big categories that I try to group different goals under. This gives me a little more clarity for specific areas without feeling like I’m all over the map. So for my business goals in 2009, I have 5 categories: Product, Marketing, Online, Content, and Numbers.

Here is a further definition of what falls into each of those categories as well as a few specific goals from each of those:

Product – This is where I outline the new products I want to develop for 2009. For this year, I will be working on a new book for students to help teach them about money. I will also be developing a new t-shirt based around the money book and one other potential product concept that you’ll have to stay tuned for.
Marketing – For the marketing category, I want to continue to increase the quantity and quality of my database. The challenge with being a speaker is trying to develope long term relationships with students/leaders when you speak for only an hour at a one-time event. I use this database to keep in touch with people after the event and work to stay connected. I will continue to email a monthly e-newsletter out and will develop a new postcard to give out to students at events. I would also like to speak at a few college events in 2009.
Online Presence – My online presence serves two purposes: 1) help people who’ve heard me speak stay connected with what I do, and 2) help people who haven’t heard me speak get connected with what I do. For this, I want to continue to utilize Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and YouTube and connect with students there after an event. I also want to continue to refine what I’m writing on this blog with a goal of around 300 posts this year. I will also be creating a new website to help teach students about money.
Content – I will be developing a new keynote for 2009 that will be themed around personal responsibility. All speakers do it differently but I plan on creating one new keynote each year, which will become the focus for the events I speak at that year. This helps me to continue to develop new material but also refine my existing material. I have plans to write 4 free e-books. I did a free e-book last month for teachers and advisors called “I Just Wanted To Say Thanks…” that went over really well.
Numbers – This is where I put down specific goals for number of events and projected revenue for the business. I have it broken down by various categories such as the type of event and where the bookings come from (myself vs bureau vs other). Concrete numbers are extremely important in goal setting because you can clearly see whether you accomplished the goal or not.

So that’s what the business side looks like for 2009. While I’m very excited about the new year, there is a lot of work to be done to make it all happen. I gotta get started…