The last *real* resolution I have for the year is to be better at my job. Now, that statement is not simple nor smart, so I’m just going to try to make it fit within those guidelines. The two ways I know of to get better at my job are to:
1. Arrive to work on time.
This is the “simple” part because all it takes on my part is to leave home on time with enough ‘cushion’ for traffic. 8:15 am is okay, if too early, 8:45 am is okay, if too late, and 8:30am – the ideal time to leave based on travel time – is a horrid pain in the ass as far as traffic is concerned. Testing out the ideal times to leave last week left me harried and completely frazzled by the time I got to work if I left at 8:30 am. It felt like there were a disproportionately greater amount of speeders, weavers, and distracted drivers compared to 15 minutes earlier or later. In fact, I was nearly run off the road twice last week by ragers who would rather speed up when they see my turn signal than to let me move over into the lane. When we’re already going 60MPH (96 KPH) that’s a dangerous situation!! And much too early in the morning.. I would rather be late to work than to deal with that sort of mayhem. Which is what I have been doing.. which is why I’m here making a goal to be early instead.
2. Continue training/education
Since my employer provides tuition reimbursement for college courses, I am going to resume my college schedule after the wedding. In the interim, I am an active member of Toastmasters and have set a goal to give 1 speech per month and to fulfill 3 alternate roles per month in Toastmasters from now until June. By doing this, I will complete 4 training hours per month, checking the box on that requirement, but it will also keep me in the routine of extracurricular activities that require some thought and effort from home.
So, the Simple Goals: Show up on time; keep up in Toastmasters.
The Smart Goals (be on time):
S – Specific – Show up to work 5 days per week before the scheduled start time, ideally 8:45am. This means leaving the house at 8:15am in order to avoid the road ragers and distracted drivers.
M – Measurable – My time card will reflect my efforts.
A – Attainable – If I can’t show up on time or early to work, I don’t deserve to keep my job @_@; This is definitely one of the most attainable goals for me.
R – Relevant – Being on time is paramount to my position because other people rely on me to be there. Moseying in whenever I feel like it creates a window of almost 20 minutes where people could be waiting for my assistance. It doesn’t look professional, nor is it courteous to my mates.
T – Time-bound – This one will be continuous, but I will provide a progress report weekly.
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S – Specific – Perform 3 roles in Toastmasters, and complete 1 speech per month.
M – Measurable – check the box, did I do it or not? The speech, at least, will be scored on a rubric and has the potential to mark progression of expertise in delivering speeches.
A – Attainable – Given that I have taken a break from school in order to focus on current life events, I think that it is entirely reasonable to do Toastmasters with some of my spare time.
R – Relevant – Toastmasters improves my functioning at work because it is improving my grammar and spelling, but it is also improving my active listening skills. More often than not, I find myself being a passive listener and multi-tasking while people are explaining something to me. Since joining Toastmasters, I have become a more attentive listener and started to provide co-workers my undivided attention. This will make me ‘better at my job’ because it will improve interpersonal relationships and further reinforce the notion that I’m a professional. This will be important, should I decide to apply for a more professional role.
T – Time-bound – This goal has a mid-marker in June. I will be doing monthly updates on my experiences with Toastmasters.
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So, we’re a week into January so far, and I had set some pretty normal goals previously of cooking dinner at home and working out regularly. We’ve cooked dinner at home 5/6 days 🙂 The grocery bill this week was $145 and so if we can continue to eat the food we have at home, we can stand to save almost that much in the breakfasts, lunches, and dinners that we buy from restaurants because it’s inconvenient not to. I’ll continue to track this.
Work outs have not been completed the last three days, I have no excuse except that it’s not a switch you can flip. It takes time to build new habits and to break down the old, but working out is still something that is important to me. I will be checking out the community center after work today and I have a new pair of work out pants to sport if I decide to join up.
How are your new year’s resolutions going? Did you forget about them yet?
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