Welcoming 2014 with Resolutions for the Work Place

In Blog by Kate Cunha

Do you make New Year’s Resolutions? Personally, I usually don’t. I know myself and know that I won’t really keep them. Some people are great with resolutions, though. Which one are you – the January gym joiner/February couch potato or the person who sticks with their resolution the whole year through? While I may not be the best at keeping my resolutions, I do like the idea of them. I like that we all take a moment to reset, regroup, and to take a good look at areas of our lives that could stand for some improvement. Whereas most resolutions tend to be made in regards to our personal lives, there’s no reason why we can’t reset, regroup, and take a good look at the areas of our professional lives or work that could stand for some improvement as well. Here are a few resolutions that were suggested by our own office. Some are slightly job specific, but most are actually fairly universal and can be applied to most positions.

  • ·         From the Admin department:

    o   Remember to stretch frequently during long spells at your desk.

    o   Breathe deeply during stressful moments.

    o   Frequently look away from your screen.

  • ·         From the Tech crew:

    o   Document everything! OK, OK, maybe not everything, but increasing or improving documentation is a great resolution for all business, especially the pool industry.

  • ·         From the Sales guys

    o   Attempt to know your target market better. This is a great resolution for those who work in the “front of the house”, so to speak. Who are your clients? What do they want and what can you do to give it to them? The more you know, the better you can suit your approach to the needs/demands of your market.

    o   Don’t procrastinate. Reach out to your prospect before someone else does.

  • ·         From Marketing

    o   Figure out what works. This happens to be my own professional resolution this year. I resolve to take a more analytical look at my efforts, so that I can put more energy into what is working and stop wasting time on what isn’t.

  • ·         From Management

    o   Prioritize. Resolve to keep track of tasks in order of priority so that the important ones are managed first.

    o   Utilize “to-do” lists. This one goes hand in hand with prioritization. Some tasks should be tackled immediately, while others may be more medium to long term goals. To-do lists are great ways to keep your eyes on the here and now without losing sight of those long term tasks.

How about you? What resolutions did you make, or could you make, this year?