The Goal Notebook

Author's note: I've talked about this before, I'm sure, so if you've been reading this blog since 2003, you might want to skip the first few paragraphs.

Since the age of seven, I have felt the need to document things, in detail. My Gran bought me a diary, complete with lock and ever-so-secure key, for my seventh birthday. I felt like it was crucially important to tell the diary, which I named "Rose", all about my frustrations with Disney World.

At some point in time, the lock-and-key diary gave way to scraps of paper, probably because I figured out that all the diary keys were universal, and the lock didn't work anyway. The scraps of paper followed me to college, then Dallas, and finally back to my first little house in Oklahoma, where I finally found the time to sort and organize them. As I carefully compiled each writing, by date, into its own little sheet protector, and notebook of the appropriate year, I started to notice that I had made little goal lists every so often.

The astonishing thing about the lists was that they were so similar. I started setting them aside, and ended up creating a separate goal notebook. I don't use it very often, but with the new year upon us, and major changes happening in the business, I felt the need to pull it out today.

The oldest goal list is undated, but I would say it probably dates back to my junior or senior year of high school. It reads:

My Goals in Life

• Own a company.
• Write a book.
• Live in South France for a year.
• Learn French.
• Obtain a "Silver Screen" figure.
• Build my dream house.
• Get married, have kids.
• Receive a dozen pink roses.
• Never settle for less than my dreams.
• A gorgeous husband.
• Have a maid.
• Weigh 130 pounds.

Yes, you can laugh.

OK, you can quit laughing now. Some of it is ridiculous. But, own a company? Check. Married, kids, roses? Check, check, check. Gorgeous husband? CH-ECK. Have a maid? Check. Weigh 130 pounds?

OK, you can laugh again now.

But the point being, for a list I made in high school, that's some pretty good checking.

Today, I've been feeling rather introspective. Look at where I've come, determine where I'm going--all that jazz. I wasn't a big fan of 2008, and I really have detested 2009, at least from a business perspective. So, I've put all the wheels in motion for big changes in 2010. And I'm jotting down my goals.

You can call me crazy, but I really believe in the power of putting this stuff on paper. I tuck it away after I've written it down, back into the goal notebook, back into the cabinet, where it isn't hanging over my head every day. I like that these are goals, not resolutions. Resolutions are almost always broken. Goals, on the other hand, can exist indefinitely like stars waiting to be reached.

I know, I know. CORNY.

So, here is the goal list for 2010. Actually, it's probably the goal list for the next decade. And you can laugh, but remember that I like to dream big, and encourage others to do the same.

• Write a book.
• Live in France for a year.
• Learn French/Spanish.
• Weigh 130 pounds.
• Build my dream house.
• Get my MBA or MIT.
• Go to China.
• Learn to play golf.
• Own a jet.
• Lake house with boat.
• "Cabin" in Vail. Ski-in, ski-out.
• Visit Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
• Have our home published in a magazine.
• Figure out how to get Hubs onto Augusta for a round.
• Improve my photography skills.
• Learn to sail.
• Join YPO.
• License designs to other product manufacturing companies.
• Tithe.

What's yo dream?