At the stroke of midnight each December 31, we raise our glasses, blow our noise makers, kiss our neighbors and shout, Happy New Year as we watch the ball drop in Time Square.  (pardon my U.S. East Coast centricity, if you will).

And, with the new year, we resolve to DO something new, different, or better  so that we can HAVE more and BE happier or better in some way.   Fewer than 20% of resolvers are actually successful reaching their declared goals.  Part of the reason for this is that most of us are already so busy, we can’t possibly DO one more thing!  The other is that we believe that we need to HAVE before we can DO.  I often hear people say they want to BE more fit and energetic. But they claim that in order for that to happen, they need to HAVE more time in order to DO more exercise.  So, they can’t BE happy until they HAVE more and DO more.  Others say they want to BE a better friend but then, insist that they have to HAVE a bigger house in order to DO more entertaining.  People want to BE happier in their marriage but they can’t BE unless they HAVE a different, better spouse.  The HAVE-DO-BE paradigm creates quite a conundrum! And, I’ve found myself caught up in it myself!

So, 2013 will be my year of BEING.  I resolve to BE the person I needed to be in order to DO the  things I need to do and HAVE the things I want to have.

My BIG goal is to BE of greater service to more people.    More specifically I want to reach and serve 2,000 people to help them be happier, healthier and more fulfilled.  There are lots of things I need to DO in order to reach that goal, like offering group coaching programs, sending out regular email communication with valuable content, posting inspiring videos on my site and on You Tube and speaking to large live audiences. If I DO all of those things successfully, I’ll HAVE  more clients, make a bigger impact, HAVE more money, and BE successful.  It would be easy for me to believe that in order to BE successful, I need to HAVE more time and more money and a staff of people to help me DO the things I need to DO.  But the reality is… I don’t.

So, I ask myself, “Who do I have to BE in order to attract success?”   I need to BE healthy and energetic. I’m going to BE the person who goes to the gym even when I don’t feel like it.   When I am faced with a task or a challenge that feels scary or overwhelming,  instead of avoiding it, I’m going to BE an organized, courageous, hard working, risk-taker.  I will carry myself with confidence, even when I’m not feeling it.  I will BE bold enough to reach out for help and BE vulnerable even when I’m feeling resistant .  If I can BE those things, I will be able to DO what it takes to reach my goals and dreams and then I’ll HAVE what I want in my life.

Who will you BE this year in order to DO what you need to DO to HAVE what you want to HAVE?