eBusiness Weekly
Arthur Marara
The year 2021 is coming to an end, and if you are reading this article it’s a good sign. It means you are alive, and possibly well too.
It’s often said that it’s better to be seen than to be viewed. Several people lost their lives to the Covid-19 pandemic this year.
The Delta variant wreaked havoc. It is also my hope and prayer that the festive season will not plunge us into mourning due to the new variant strains. We all have to be responsible.
The question that you ask yourself as a writer is how do you close the year. What do you want your readers to read as the final piece for the year?
So, for me, I would prefer something that allows me to look into the year behind, and see how best I can take lessons from it and use them in 2022.
Deliberately, and in this spirit, I have decided to take you through the present conversation whose mission is to help you review the year.
Quite a number of things happened globally this year (2021), in many aspects of life be it in business, politics, and social space. I trust you read the news so I will not go through the individual components.
I want to take this exercise with you so that you can review your year. The past is important, it teaches us lessons. Do not ignore it. The easy way out for many people is to simply say that it’s past. It is not past if it still affects you or if it has the potential to affect you.
Deal with it! I want us to do this review with a series of questions.
What were your goals?
One of my favourite definitions of success is by Paul J Meyer who says, “Success is the progressive realisation of worthwhile, predetermined goals”. What this means is that there is no success without predetermined goals. They also have to mean something to me in order for them to be worthwhile.
You are a serious, you would not just walk into a year without clearly defined goals. What were these goals for you? Businesses globally invest billions of dollars combined in strategic planning sessions but usually many people quickly lose sight and focus on strategic goals yearly. Remember your goals. What were your goals for 2021?
Did you achieve them
The answers to this vary. Some achieved them, others didn’t. Some partly did. What is your answer to this question? You see, there is no point in just setting goals and ignoring a fundamental exercise where you actually get to ask if you actually achieved them.
The importance of setting goals lies in the fact that you may not actually achieve them, but it is the person that you become in order to achieve these goals. You will become a better person in the process. What is your story in terms of achieving them?
Why didn’t you achieve them?
There is nothing called “failure”, in life there is something called “learning”. It’s either you win or you learn. I once did an article earlier this year called, “Failure is an option.” The reason is we need to demystify it, and engage it because it is a useful tool rather than a foe.
Let’s get back to the third question, why didn’t you achieve your goals. This requires you to conduct a 360 degree check, and honestly give feedback. The easiest thing is to blame people and the economy for not achieving your goals. You can also look into your contribution to missing the goals. If you do not address the reasons why you were not able to achieve your goals, you are bound to repeat the same in 2022.
It takes a lot of courage to sit down and confront yourself. Sometimes you need to hear things that do not necessarily entertain you, but you need the truth in order for you to make achievements moving forward.
How do you plan on correcting this in 2022?
There is a trend by businesses to just set new goals without asking themselves why they did not achieve the other ones. If you did not achieve your goals in the previous year, how are you planning on correcting this. You need to be willing to confront yourself and come up with real answers to this question.
If you cannot, you can always engage an external facilitator to assist you in terms of navigating this part.
You need to embrace new thinking in order for you to experience new possibilities. Do not be afraid to set free your mind to think and create. “Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. But the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things.
“They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do”.
These words date back to the 1997 in an advertisement which was created for Apple Computer Inc under the title “Think Different”. The advertisement still carries fundamental truths and challenges all of us to think differently.
We cannot doubt the fact that even after his death; Steve Jobs will always be part of the lives of people. Great people do not die, they live beyond the grave. The secret behind Job’s success, he was prepared to go against the grain, and experiment with his fantasies. A company which started in a home garage has grown to be a worldwide phenomenon which has changed the look of personal computing in the world today. Be prepared to be abnormal.
What did you learn in 2021?
The worst thing that you can ever do in life is to worst failure. Do not wait waste it, use it. Learn from it, gather lessons. What was your biggest lesson in 2021? How are you going to use this in 2022.
Let me take this opportunity to wish a happy New Year. Calendar years do not change anything, decisions do. Take decisions in 2022 that will set you up for success.
Arthur Marara is a corporate law attorney, keynote speaker, corporate and personal branding speaker commanding the stage with his delightful humour, raw energy, and wealth of life experiences. He is a financial wellness expert and is passionate about addressing the issues of wellness, strategy and personal and professional development. Arthur is the author of “Toys for Adults” a thought provoking book on entrepreneurship, and “No one is Coming” a book that seeks to equip leaders to take charge. Send your feedback to [email protected] or Visit his website www.arthurmarara.com or contact him on WhatsApp: +263780055152.
