New Year Resolutions for Techies

posted by Winny Ho

AeA LA Council
Executive Committee
2009 Marketing Chair

Winny Ho recently accepted the position of Executive Committee Marketing Chair for the AeA Los Angeles Council. In this capacity, she will be coordinating outreach and programming in conjunction with Lisa Leight who is in her 2nd term of the Executive Committee Membership Chair.

She asked that I post the below entry. Thanks Winny! (Follow Winny on Twitter)

Raise your hand if you've made a New Year’s Resolutions this year. Got your hand up? (Use the other one to pat yourself on the back... Hokey? Cheesy? Tony Robbins-esque? Yes, all of the above.)

It’s a distinctly human endeavor to try to better oneself. If you ask anyone else in the animal kingdom – your dog, cat, or parakeet – they probably think they are fine just the way they are. You will find only humans at those night Spanish language classes, buying exercise equipment from infomercials, and checking themselves into rehab.

Let’s celebrate the process of trying to be better. We may not succeed at every attempt to lose the last 5 lbs or eat more vegetables, but that doesn’t mean we should stop trying. It’s hard to change…almost impossible. But it can be done. Look at Oprah: she’s successfully lost and kept off 80 lbs…oops, scratch that example.

I hope I fare better in keeping my New Year’s Resolution, which is to face my heart-stopping fear of public speaking. Specifically, I resolve to attend at least two Toastmasters meetings every month. Wish me luck; I will need all the good thoughts you can send my way when I’m sweating bullets right before my first extemporaneous speech.

Think about what fear you and your company could conquer in 2009. Companies have resolutions too, but they go by fancier names – objectives, business plans, metrics, scorecarding, etc. What will you do differently in 2009 to improve your company, team, or career? Are you willing to step out of your comfort zone of doing things the same old way? Change is not for the faint of heart. Living outside your comfort zone is scary. If you are brave enough to take on behavioral change (that’s psychology-speak for a resolution), get comfortable with the discomfort that comes with doing something new.

If you’re ready to jump onto the resolution bandwagon, let us introduce you to a few new ideas for improving your business in 2009. The AeA will be offering up a stimulating and provocative set of programs next year to push you out of your comfort zone – come ready to discover new perspectives, start a dialogue, and develop new skills. The big ideas are all around you and they may already be inside your head; you just have to be ready to see them and take action. Let the AeA LA Council help your business make and keep its resolutions in ‘09. But if you decide to buy that gym membership – sorry, we can’t help you there.