Well, here we are.  It’s the beginning of a New Year (okay, I realize that I am about three weeks late on the whole “New Year” shtick, but hey, this is the first chance we’ve had to “talk”, you and me).  Some might say it is the beginning of a new decade, but anyone who knows me well, knows that I am a stickler for precision, therefore, I would be one of those saying that this is the LAST year of the decade.

But I digress…

This is the traditional time for well-wishes and good intentions for the upcoming year.  That’s right…it’s Resolution time.  Now, I’m not much for resolutions, mainly because I have this uncanny ability to fail miserably at keeping them.  However, I do see the value in being forward thinking, and for that reason, I will offer my thoughts on what kinds of “resolutions” we ought to be making for 2010.  These aren’t specifically health or career oriented, however, these over-arching principles have the potential to touch every area of our lives.

I would like to submit that we should all “Turn Pro”.  I am not normally one for catchy, gimmicky motivational statements, so this marks a first for me (and to be honest, I’m secretly patting myself on the back for being so clever).  What do I mean by “turn pro”?

It’s all about a prefix.

Earlier this week, Christopher challenged us to be PROactive.  He and I did not plan this out, but there could not be a better prelude to this article (Thanks, Christopher!).  What I refer to when I say “Turn Pro” is this…there are a number of words where it would help us to replace the prefix “re-” with “pro-”, and in those cases, I challenge everyone reading this article (all two of you) to focus on “turning pro”.  Let me give three examples:

1.  Proactive vs. Reactive:  As I mentioned, my good friend Christopher already touched on this, so I won’t spend a great deal of time here.  But, suffice it to say that someone much wiser than me (Stephen Covey, perhaps) once said that people who are REactive have things happen TO them and people who are PROactive HAPPEN to situations.  In other words, the proactive person acts ON the situation.  To a reactive person, situations happen TO them.  Okay, the dead horse is officially beaten, but let me sum this concept up.  It is always best to plan.  It is always best to anticipate things BEFORE they happen.  This is essential to being the proactive person.  Don’t wait until a situation reaches critical mass.  Act in advance, and head the crisis off at the pass.  Nip it in the bud.  Insert any additional cliche about thinking ahead you’d like here…

2.  Protract vs Retract:  Even the most outgoing, vivacious person has situations where they would prefer to fade into the background.  We all have areas where we are uncomfortable with “putting ourselves out there”.  I would challenge everyone to PROtract..extend yourself…do something that is uncharacteristic for you.  Try at least ONE new thing each month.  It doesn’t have to be profound.  If you are a picky eater, maybe give sushi a try.  If you are a reader of fiction, maybe try a biography.  If you are sedentary, maybe give walking around the neighborhood a try.  These aren’t massive changes, but they are changes nevertheless.  Instead of REtracting and retreating into our habits, let’s try PROtracting and extending ourselves into new areas and new adventures.

3.  Progress vs Regress:  There are many cases where it is comfortable to step back into certain levels of immaturity, because it feels safe.  When it comes to conflict in our relationships, in many cases, it is just easier to regress back to being a teenager (or even a toddler) and deal with the situation on a level befitting someone much younger than ourselves.  Sometimes we would just rather say “Mine, mine, mine!” rather than work out our differences.  Sometimes we would just rather say “Because I DESERVE it!” rather than consider the ramifications.  But, I believe the wonderful part about being an adult is that we have daily opportunities to make PROgress in our lives and our levels of maturity.  We each have different areas where we need to make progress.  Perhaps you need to listen more than you speak.  Perhaps you need to think “outside yourself” and consider the needs of others.  Perhaps you need to make a conscious effort to put your spouse’s desires before your own.  Perhaps you need to MAKE time to play with your kids instead of burying yourself in your work 14 hours a day.  The fact is, I don’t know you personally, so I don’t know what your challenges are.  But, I’m willing to bet that upon a few minutes of introspection, you could identify three or four areas where you could work on making some PROgress.

So, there you have it.  Three areas where we all could probably stand to “turn pro”.  Obviously, Rome wasn’t built in a day.  Understanding that is essential to success on a journey of self-improvement, and if we all try to make small steps in one area at a time (yes, ONE AT A TIME…that’s critical), we can become “pros” in less time than we think.

Happy 2010!

On your mark…

Get set…

Go (PRO)!