This time of year, many people are discussing what they plan on leaving behind or changing about their habits for the upcoming year. Besides the classic “lose weight” and “get finances together” resolutions, many are trying to improve their behaviors and develop some higher-level skills such as patience, honesty, or confidence. Here are some short and sweet quotes, along with some simple explanations, that will help you on your personal improvement journey through the upcoming year.
Don’t expect what you don’t inspect
The lofty goals that many well-intentioned resolution writers betray the wishes and expectations that the year will hold. They expect better bodies, larger salaries, deeper friendships, and more wholesome habits. However, many fail in that they don’t inspect their goals — that is, they neglect to thoroughly investigate exactly what it is they want in an ideal outcome of an event. If you have expectations you hope to see in 2018, take the time to analyze them in depth. What will it take to get where you want to be? Whose help do you need? Inspect deeply if you expect to see results.
Don’t try to reinvent the wheel; instead add the rubber
As the old saying goes, work smarter, not harder. It’s easy in US culture to equate the amount of time spent working with the quality of the outcome, but in truth, the two may have little to do with each other, depending on the situation. US citizens especially put a lot of weight on sweat equity. However, Bill Gates was once famously quoted as saying that the best person to task with a project is a lazy person, as they will always find a way to exert the least amount of effort to get the job done. Sometimes, there’s no need to make life difficult just for the sake of suffering — you’re not only permitted but encouraged to make tough work easier where you can as long as the outcome is the same.
“The greatest ability is Dependability” – Bob Jones, SR.
There’s something to be said for someone who shows up exactly when and where they’re expected to — someone you can count on to come through no matter what. In sports, partnerships, and business alike, dependability is the name of the game for building credibility, trust, and long-term success. Highly talented people lose value to their company and friends if they can’t be depended on to do what they say. If you’re going to develop only one skill in 2018, make it dependability.