It's that time of year again when we all profess our intentions to change for the better in the new year. Whether that's losing weight, eating better, being kinder, those are all good intentions. However, realistically we should be focused on these all year long ... not just once a year and then sharing them to make ourselves feel good when our friends like and comment on them. With that being said, here are some things we can do to kick off the new year strong that are part of my new year resolutions to carry us through the upcoming year!
Clean Out and Tune-Up!
First and foremost, set yourself up for success. That means cleaning up your messes and tuning up what you need for success. For instance, I'm struggling with a computer that routinely reboots and discovered that it would give off as many as 12,000 errors per day (seriously!). They weren't all critical but it would lead to intermittent reboots. This wasn't good for my sanity and it isn't good for productivity either. I THINK I've fixed that problem and am now working on other items such as cleaning up my desk space so I can do more streaming in 2020. Your choices might be easier, perhaps focusing on how to upgrade to macOS Catalina so your computer platform of choice gives you that stable experience to create on.
Set Goals and Focus On What Works!
Too many times there are conflicting objectives and dozens, hundreds, or maybe even thousands of directions that you can go. The key here is to set your goals and focus on what works to get to those goals. In 2019 I started to learn that a bit by looking at where my content on ManTripping.com and on YouTube fit into the customer journey. Frankly speaking, while conversions happened - they weren't at the same level that I expected. So going forward, I'm focused on applying different types of content to accomplish different objectives. Not every blog post needs every sort of social media amplification, though if a brand wants it ... then I can deliver it since ultimately sponsored content is to please the sponsor, not necessarily sell a product or rank high in search to generate more traffic.
Share Positive Stuff, Not Just Gripes and Grumbles!
I'm usually pretty good with this and I try to go out of my way to say thank you as well as sharing positive stories about great customer experiences etc. There's simply too much grumbling and griping these days and when that's all people here ... that's what people assume life is like. The truth is we all have awesome stuff that happens to us every single day. Even on the worst days, there's probably something positive. I could tell you to ignore mean people but that's just not realistic. There are a-holes and bullies out there looking to make you miserable. Be the anti-a-hole instead. Tell someone that they look great in that Facebook picture, or that you like their watch. It's ok for guys to complement each other.
These three things should be super easy for you to start doing immediately. Don't worry about failing, because we really aren't setting resolutions. These are just simply good things for you to do to make the world a better place. Positive actions lead to happiness and ultimately success in life. That's what we all want, so start small and spread the joy this year.
