Six months down, six months to go.
2009 is sliding by awfully fast and at this mid-point I find myself thinking about what’s been and what will be. Time and dates are pretty arbitrary aren’t they? I mean, July 1 (or September 12 or October 29) is as good a day as any to make new commitments and define new goals. A New Year’s resolution is romantic but it’s really just one of 365 opportunities to decide, plan and act.
So, on the first day of the second half of the year I owe myself a quick reality check about what I’ve done about my 2009 development plan. My mantra this year is to “Expect More” of myself and others. Specifically, to actively pursue my goal of becoming a a credible, inspiring and respected speaker/presenter on leadership, employee engagement and organizational culture. This has required more risk, more candor, more presence and more commitment. Here’s a quick list of what’s happened so far:
1 conference presentation (February)
1 journal article (March)
1 MBA student roundtable (April)
1 webinar (June)
1 consulting engagement (July)
1 keynote (August)
1 association presentation (pending)
26 blog postings (March-July)
That’s exactly eight more such activities than last year and what’s especially gratifying is that four of these things came about simply because I asked the question: “Do you need a speaker at your conference?”; “Do you need any leadership development support for your MBA students?”; “Do you have a client who would like to hear about my work when I visit the east coast?” And, to evidence the generative impact of getting started, two more items on this list happened as a result of something else – the webinar came from the conference; the keynote came from the roundtable. Cool.
Looking at the back half of the year my goal is simple: keep going. Continue to “expect more.” Continue to ask the questions. Continue to learn from each experience. Continue to refine my voice and my message.
Continue.
