Getting Down to Business

Resolution. It can be such an intimidating word. Worse yet, as we continue to celebrate the New Year, there is an unspoken requirement, like a giant elephant in the room, to make a list of resolutions for the next 364 days. It definitely takes a certain amount of … resolve … to stick with the fresh list of goals, promises and to-do’s that get compiled on the first day of January.

This blog post is my attempt to do just that.

I could go with some of the easy cop outs: Lose weight >> Yeah, tell me something I don’t know. Be a better parent >> All parents have room for improvement, but I think I am a pretty great dad and I have a wonderfully blessed relationship with my kids. Be more patient >> I can’t wait to tackle that one.

But in all seriousness, this is the year I get down to business. Personal business.

I’ve talked for some time now about making danaCreative an actual business entity. In the past, when trying to explain what danaCreative is, I’ve always stumbled behind the clumsy explanation of, “Well, it’s not live yet, but it’s going to be a creative writing shop that caters to small businesses.” Several yada-yada-yada filled minutes later, the other person would simple nod their head in polite disinterest and walk away.

Well, no more awkward, wannabe conversations for me. This year I resolve to A) Incorporate danaCreative as an official business, B) Specifically and explicitly lay out my business model, vision statement and mission statement, C) Establish separate business and personal web presences, and D) Get this all done before the end of the first quarter of this year.

In addition to getting my business off the ground, I also resolve to finish writing my fourth short novel and compiling all four of them into one, complete manuscript. I will, however, do it right and employ a professional editor and manuscript reviewer to ensure the finished product is something I can submit to publishers for consideration.

My final resolution - on paper, at least - is one over which I have less control and definitely falls under the category of dreaming big. Every year, the Florida Writer’s Association publishes a collection of stories, each with a different theme and different Person of Renown to keynote the collection*. FWA members submit their work for consideration and if selected, the work is included in the published book. This year’s theme is dialogue, and each entry will consist of dialogue-only submission (i.e. no narrative). What makes the contest even more exciting is this year’s Person of Renown is author W. Bruce Cameron. If you remember the ABC show ‘8 Simple Rules’ with John Ritter, Cameron is the guy who wrote that show.

So, now that we’re done with the tangible items, I think it’s important to mention the one thing that will truly drive me in 2011. As is usually the case, I draw much of my inspiration from my wife. Recently, she forwarded me a blog that discussed what it means to be useful. It’s definitely an inspiring read, and her comment on the blog definitely added to what I took away from that posting. All that being said, my ultimate goal for this year is to further be a resource for other people. Be it personally or professionally, I want to add value to every relationship in which I engage.

I recently came across a Twitter bio in which the person described herself as a ‘relationship engineer’. I was intrigued by this and I think it fits well with what I am looking to accomplish this year. I want to work with others to create solutions and engineer something positive for mutual benefit as well as the benefit of others.

I guess when it comes down to it, my ultimate resolution for this year is to be in the business of doing good and positive things. Let’s hope that when this year comes to an end, I can easily say that business is good.

* Visit http://amzn.to/fwa_collections to purchase the previous writing collections published by the Florida Writer’s Association