Best Year Ever

If the idea of having your best year ever interests you, then I have good news for you.

No, I cannot guarantee your best year ever this year. I don’t think there is one perfect plan that works for everyone.

At the same time, I can give you the steps I used for this past year. I am confident that with these steps and your full commitment, you can have similar results. I am so confident in this, I am using these same steps again for this upcoming year!

Why Is This Important?

Before I give you the steps, I want you to know why I believe this is so important to us as Christian business owners and leaders. We are first of all commanded to live a life that is salt and light to this world (Matthew 5:13-16). We are also going to be held accountable for our results based on the resources we have been given to steward (Matthew 25:14-30). Finally, we are to be an example to others (1 Corinthians 11:1; 2 Timothy 2:2).

For these reasons, I believe it is our responsibility to take the time to plan out our efforts every year. We should be looking at the past year and assessing our strengths and weaknesses, disappointments and victories. We should then learn from this review and adapt with necessary changes for the upcoming year. Once we have our plan determined, we need to stick to it. This means regular reviews with accountability.

My Planning Process

If you agree with all of this, then I think you will love these steps. Feel free to tweak them to fit your needs. As I said before, there is not one perfect plan. Hopefully these steps will work for you or trigger ideas for others that will. Let’s dive in!

Step #1 – Prayer

No plans should begin without prayer. We should be trying to determine where to direct our efforts and how to allocate our God-given resources in the coming year. Our desire should be to maximize the impact of these resources for God’s purposes. Before we even start planning our best year ever, we should seek His wisdom and guidance in the planning.

Step #2 – What Is Your “Why?”

This may seem overly simple, but before you can start building something, you need to know WHY you are building it. The same goes for determining your plans and goals for the upcoming year. You must know your core reasons for doing what you do. Why do you get up in the morning? What motivates you to work hard and make progress? Are these reasons aligned with Scripture?

In this step, I answer 6 basic questions relating to my reasons for doing what I do. Even though I have done it each year, I never skip this step. It is a critical reminder for me. You can get a copy of the six-question worksheet I use *HERE* in my Resource Library.

Step #3 – What Are Your Roles?

Another key question you must answer before laying out your plans for the year is this – What are your roles? Stephen Covey described this process in his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Basically, you need to define each of your roles in life (disciple of Jesus, spouse, parent, employer, etc.). You can download the worksheet I use *HERE* in my Resource Library.

Imagine your own funeral and what people are saying about you there. What would you want them saying about you in each role? Start with these comments as your goal for each role and define them that way. Here is an example [with Scripture references] from how I define my role as a “Faithful Steward of God’s Business”:

As a Faithful Steward of God’s Business, I first recognize that he indeed owns it ^{[1a, 1b]} and has entrusted it to me for a time and a purpose ^{[2a, 2b]}. I lead this business based on an eternal perspective ^[3], seeking to add team, economic, and spiritual value every day ^[4]. I recognize and embrace the responsibility I have for impacting the lives of our employees and their families, our customers, and our community with the love of Christ ^[5]. Above all, I seek to please God ^[6], not men ^[7]. One day I will hear Jesus say, “Well done, good and faithful servant. ^[8]”

More To Come…

I hope these first three steps give you a good idea of how to get started with your plans for your best year ever! I encourage you to go ahead and start with these steps. I will post the remaining four steps next. Until then, get to work!

^[1] Deuteronomy 10:14; Psalm 24:1
^[2] Ecclesiastes 5:19; Luke 12:42-48
^[3] 1 Corinthians 3:10-15
^[4] Matthew 25:20
^[5] John 13:34-35
^[6] Matthew 6:33
^[7] John 12:43
^[8] Matthew 25:23

Photo: Dafne Cholet

The Frying Pan

I want you to read this brief story and then answer the questions below.

Two men went fishing. One man was an experienced fisherman; the other wasn’t.

Every time the experienced fisherman caught a big fish, he put it in his ice chest to keep it fresh. Whenever the inexperienced fisherman caught a big fish, he threw it back.

The experienced fisherman watched this go on all day and finally got tired of seeing this man waste good fish. “Why do you keep throwing back all the big fish you catch?” he asked.

The inexperienced fisherman replied, “I only have a small frying pan.”

So what is the point of this story? How does this apply to the first of the year?

Well, I think there are a couple of points to be made.

Goals Too Small?

First, let’s assume your mindset is the frying pan. When opportunities or goals are put in front of you, do you throw them back or dismiss them because they are too big for your current mindset?

Is someone asking or expecting more of you than you have given before? Maybe you would like to go for it, but you are afraid because you have never done it before?

Faith Too Small?

Or, second, maybe your faith is like the frying pan. Maybe God is showing you a path that scares you because your faith is too small. Maybe you see what you should be doing differently, but you do not have the confidence that God will protect you and see you through it.

Whether it is a problem or possibility that you are facing in your work, personal, or spiritual life, I encourage you to get a bigger frying pan this year. Stretch your mindset and pray for stronger faith. Step out of your comfort zone and see what happens! You may just surprise yourself!

Are you comfortable with your 2012 goals or are they stretching you?

Are you ready to get a new frying pan in a specific area of your life?

What is holding you back? What are you going to do about that?