One of the best things about twitter is the constant stream of ideas that flow by. Now only do I keep up with friends and so on, but I follow an extended network of folks I find interesting. As of this moment I follow some 116 people* but I am still looking for others.
In any case, Chris Brogan send out a tweet about a blog entry of his that gave me the hook I needed for my first post of the year. The comments were pretty cool too.
โTry setting your three words far out on the horizon, but such that they can lead you to your goals every day. Meaning, can you use the same word to get you started, but have it still be relevant when youโre almost at the big goal?โ – Chris
So I thought about it someโฆ took my big plans and my challenged and refined it down. What tools would lead me to my goals and be the weapons I need to eradicate my obstacles? Here is what I came up with.
- Sovereignty โ a critical factor in my entire life โ this means the ability to pursue my goals and act in service to my values. This is a more subtle thing than you might imagine. I am involved in a number of relationships where I hold greater or lesser authority over the actions of others, yet those people still retain this quality. This is not a paradox.
- Allegiance โ loyalty to my friends, a common front against our foes and challengers. Allegiance to me represents a loyalty hard won or earned, not lightly created and almost impossible to sever.
- Indulgence โ remembering that the things we enjoy are to be pursued and valued, not considered a distraction. Doing something because it makes me or those I care for happy is a good thing, in and of itself. It also means I should find why I shy away from the things I want and fix the problem while helping others do the same.
In short: Increase my options, remain staunchly loyal to those who deserve it and increase the amount of time we all get to spend doing the things we like without making ourselves feel bad about it. That is what 2009 is about for me.
Thanks for the idea Chris!
* Note: yes, that does get a little rough, and no I am not even close to the max on that. I am experimenting with TweetDeck as a replacement for Twhirl for Twitter because of this.