Nicholas Bate

Resolutions, Resources and Resolve.

Here are the resolutions of the great Cultural Offering.  Of course to avoid the frustration which Business Blogger of The Year Michael Wade captures so well, here, the resolution is only the start. To that we need to add resources and resolve.

Resources? No problem. Surround yourself with that which supports. 

Start with great bloggers:

1. Cultural Offering. The incredible magazine blog with politics, music, fashion, family and business tips. Forthright, open and generous. And up-to-the-minute.
2. Eclecticity. The blog you need to ensure there's no way your brain can get stale. Ever. Plus did you know he can do consultancy for you?
3. El Canasto Mini. I love it: productivity and Spanish in one shot. Muchas Gracias.
4. Execupundit. Business Blogger of the Year 2007, 2008, 2009. Awesome.
5. Fortify Your Oasis. So good he now has two blogs!
6. Joining Dots. Technology intelligently explained. Thanks, Sharon.
7. Matt Rutherford. Matt always has several great series running. Try his inspiration and marketing ones. This blog gets better and better.
8. Matt Cornell. THE productivity guy.
9. Material Witness The fast-track to great thrillers.
10. Michael Sampson. The man who REALLY can get technology to help rather than hinder teams. And a whole lot more. We managed to share a cup of coffee at Heathrow once. Being in NZ he is always ahead of the game.
11. Nelson Biagio. Cool and abundant twittering. And thank you for all your continued support.
12. Nick Hornby. Great books. Thoughtful blogging. 
13. Paul Schwend. This man is incredible. As well as promoting 'buy local' campaigns, arranging food for the unemployed , connecting people across the blogosphere, Paul will also sort out your insurance. Tornado Paul is your man. 
14. QASpire. Run by Tanmay Vora a truly thoughtful and abundant blogger. Get his new book: now!
15. Reka-Zsuzsanna. Watch this blog. Very smart lady who I met on a programme I ran in Sydney.
16. Breaking Murphy's Law. A presentation skills blog with the angle you really wanted.
17. Steve Clayton. A sort of geek. A brand new dad. And a great blog.
18. Twisted by Knaves. New. Intelligent. Excellent.
19. Chat With The Chamber. Lots of thoughtful posting from leadership to presenting to books.... Cool.
20. Really Good Thinking. With Ian Aspin. Top twitterer and super enthusiast.
21. Notes. The blog which is small (so far) but absolutely perfectly formed.
22. View From The Ledge. All things appreciated.
23. Utpal. Super encourager.
24. Sippican Cottage. Chop wood, carry water, feel better.
25. Manu Rishi Guptha The quality of thinking of which we need more...

Follow-up with some handy free down-loads such as How To Be Brilliant 1-50.

Get clarity with your note-book and working area.

And resolve? Well, let's tackle that tomorrow with January Breakthrough 1-31 and The Seven Breakthrough Principles.

Meanwhile: thanks for all the support I have received in 2009. Those who blog, those who twitter and those who write. Thank you.

2010: Your Best Year Yet. The Director's Cut. For The Truly Dedicated, Only.

1. Nobody can go back and start a new beginning but anyone can start today and make a new ending.  Maria Robinson.
2. 2009 was pretty damn amazing and yet you know you haven’t released anywhere near your full potential yet. You absolutely know you haven’t! So, that’s going to be your 2010 ‘thing’. Full Potential. Full On. Finally.
3. Because you don’t need New Year Resolutions; you simply don’t need to hang around for some ceremony. They are simply a nice trigger. Pencil, paper…start writing. What do you want? No really, really want?
4. When you have decided: get on with it. A decision is not a decision until you have taken an action.
5. 2010 is your real breakthrough year. Breaking through the conditioning which is holding you back. Some of it from high-school, some of it from college, some of it from parents. Crappy feed-back from a crappy manager at some stage, perhaps. What the heck?! There is a level of freedom which is deeper that just a long-weekend surfing in fantastic waters. A level of freedom which is greater than just the sun on you back.  Even than having 10,000 dollars free and easy to spend. To attain that freedom requires some risk and fear. And some people-heaven forbid-not liking you for what you are trying to do. Are you up for it? Clearly:  because the journey is as much if not more than the destination.
6. It’ll be the year of your book. It may or may not be published; it may or may not be a best-seller.  But you are going to write your heart out: what’s your mission, your manifesto, your passion? People don’t get it: the publication isn’t the thing (when you run a marathon, do people say: did you win?). No:  it’s the clear,  current and insistent expression of you; writing will clarify it, determine it and action it. 60,000 words or so about why you are on the planet. That’ll give you focus. Sound a lot? Not enough, actually, when you get going: rain or shine; early or late; one coffee when you start and the second when you finish your 1500 words a day to make the world a better place. Here’s your complete tool-kit: strategy; tactics.
7. It’s the year when you finally get it: it’s down to you. Does that frighten you? Or release you?  Sure school wasn’t bad, the degree helped. And m a y b e you will do an MBA. But you know what, deep down? Success doesn’t correlate that strongly with educational qualifications. Nor even with good ol’ IQ. It does with realising: ‘it’s down to me’. Make it happen. Don’t wait for politicians (ha-ha, as if you would), the lottery (what: are you serious?) or that recruitment consultant to ring you back (whatever bulls*it he gave you about your cool CV). Don’t wait for ‘an improving economy’, until you have a bigger study, you’ve moved out to the country, moved back into the city, sorted this relationship….. Things aren’t perfect: Life needs a bit of Wabi Sabi (…’one of beauty that is "imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete’-Leonard Koren) to make it truly complete. Immerse yourself in Professionalism101.
8. You’re going to breakthrough on your wellness. You are going to make sure you have so much energy you see sun-rise every morning, that you walk almost everywhere, lifts are for wimps and a cluster of ten press-ups is simply something you do while waiting for the copy machine to dispense its sheets.  Your sheer presence is enough to bring a meeting to its senses, a presentation to rush to action and any bar-tender, anywhere in the world, to serve you immediately.
9. 2010 will continue to be tough. Very tough in some parts of the world. Very, very tough in some markets. But you can be tougher.
10. Play Heroes by David Bowie. Louder.
11. Now Back in the USSR by The Beatles. How's that air guitar?
12. Fun and contribution are going to be integral to you new 2010 version Life. Fun as in what’s the point if you are not having fun? You’ll restart your band or join the Latin American dance class (hey they need more men…and have you seen some of the girls who attend…) or clean up your touring bicycle. You’ll be so outrageous101 in 2010. And contribution as in how can I help the growth of others? There are some good people in your team: a bit of coaching would do wonders…And you’re going to have more impact on saving the planet than a dozen Copenhagen conferences by never ever purchasing a bottle of still water. Unless you’re in a certain part of the world where it really is necessary for your health. Like Paris.
13. Never mistake activity for achievement. John Wooden.
14. It’s the year where you will gain real wealth. Soft wealth that is: great relationships, time to travel, health, feeling valued, walking by the shore, holding hands with the one you love, waking up without an alarm, trying water-colours without feeling you have to get it right, time with the kids…. Anyone can get their hands on the hard stuff (money). But when they do, they only want it for the soft stuff, so why not short-circuit the process?
15. After all:
16. What is success? To laugh often and much; To win the respect of intelligent people And the affection of children; To earn the appreciation of honest critics And endure the betrayal of false friends; To appreciate beauty; To find the best in others; To leave the world a bit better, whether by A healthy child, a garden patch Or a redeemed social condition; To know even one life has breathed Easier because you have lived; This is to have succeeded. Ralph Waldo Emerson
17. You’ll learn how to cope with Entropy, Uncertainty and Strange Attractors.
18. It’s the year where you stop talking, any form of procrastination and get on with it . You’ll set up a mission control centre which puts 24’s CTU to shame. Jack and even Tony would be proud of you. Charts, plans, notebooks, high-lighters, arrows, goals and TTD (things to do)….And you are going to start today. Oh boy, are you going to have fun. And watch them wonder what happened.
19. Who wills, can. Who tries, does. Who loves, lives. Anne McCaffrey
20. Nobody’s going to mess with you anymore. If it needs a reading of a great book on assertiveness from the library, so be it. But you’re going home on time. You’re going to get meetings back on track. Life’s too short otherwise.
21. It’ll be the year you strip down: a new lean, mean and  focused you with a quest for simplicity whilst avoiding the simplistic. It’s all in the Instant Brilliant Travel Kit.
22. The mechanics on time management can finally be ditched because you are in such Zen-like state that what needs to get done. Well, it just does get done.
23. It’s the year when you decide the measures. You stop worrying about what others think. So the car is pretty awful for a year or two while you get your business going and the neighbours are making comments. So? 
24. Seriously, so?
25. The Moleskine will never leave your side as you are bubbling with great ideas…
26. A year from now you’ll wish you had started today. Karen Lamb.
27. Oh and there’s no way you’re going to lose this list. Is there? The refrigerator would be good place to put it: use the kids magnetic letters (N, O and W would be good choices). Taped to the back of your Iphone, too. And just for good measure one on the dash-board of your truck and one attached to the handle of your gym-bag.
28. The potential Planet Earth offers for Earthlings is extraordinary. They just have to leave the daily bubble.
29. The air is good.
30. We’re sorted. We’re ready. Bring it on.

Twitter Thanks 3

Big thanks to: Nelson Biagio, RT Dragon Warrior, MedBenTPA.

After Reading About Leonardo Da Vinci

the man turned to his friend and said "you know, I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous".

Although any attempt to analyse a joke rapidly removes its funniness, it is an innately human thing: to have sense of humour. Why? Because we have a brain which loves to see things in different ways. A good gag-even the appalling ones, take us down a  route and then 'flip' the ending. Our brain jumps to a different place and we enjoy it. Humour is good for us. Our health, for socialising and business creativity. Ensure every day there's time for humour. To be enlightened is to have the ability to lighten up. A man with dyslexia walks into a bra.

Where's Matt?

with Joining Dots.

7 Step-Change Books for Business

Every so often a book comes along and-love it or hate it-it jolts your thinking and allows you to think and perform in a clearer way. Several of these are not 'obvious' business books:

1. In Search of Excellence by Tom Peters. Really got us thinking about the service levels we were offering.
2. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R Covey. Reminded us once again of the importance of working on character.
3. The Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge. Introduced us to the power of developing a Learning Organisation.
4. The Four Hour Working Week by Tim Ferriss. Allowed many to have the courage to follow their dreams. And others to rant and rave it wasn't possible. New edition just out.
5. The Road Less Travelled by M. Scott Peck. It's down to you.
6. Rules for Radicals by Saul Alinsky. Written for minority groups  but great for anyone attempting to create change in an organisation.
7. Awaken The Giant Within by Tony Robbins. How to break the conditioning which so often holds a person back.

40 Inspirational Speeches in 120 Seconds

with Cheri.

The Top Two Posts You Enjoyed in 2009

Professionalism101 and Outrageous101. That's got to be encouraging...

Feeling Edgey? 30

1. Feeling edgey?
2. Something needs to change?
3. Frustrating…
4. Driving you mad…
5. The job?
6. The relationship?
7. The commute?
8. The stupid, stupid marketing strategy your boss insists on adopting.
9. The novel so far?
10. The simple fact he hasn't texted?
11. Your rent?
12. Enough is enough.
13. Change it. Yes, just like that.
14. You have all the resources you need: you.
15. Take a walk,
16. or a swim,
17. or pen and paper in your favourite cafe,
18. or fall asleep in the local library.
19. Then create a plan:
20. that’s a what and a when.
21. To change it.
22. As you’ll feel edgey until you do...
23. You see, your mind/body is constantly trying to re-adjust to its perfect state.
24. So it will encourage and cajole you...making you feel edgey.
25. Until you LEAP.
26. Into action.
27. (Re-)becoming:
28. the best version of  you
29. That’s why (for a short period only) you are
30. Feeling Edgey!

Thanks to Matt

for including me on his list. I appreciate it.