Ask the Reader: What’s Your Most Important Goal of 2012? (+ my full list)

There’s no getting around it, accountability creates results.

For some reason we tend to have a difficult time keeping promises to ourselves. But most people absolutely hate breaking commitments with others.

That’s exactly why further down this post I’ve shared every goal of mine for 2012. Showing you all everything scares me a bit, but I know that the more people I commit to (10,435 of you as of today), the more on the hook I am and the more likely these things are to actually become reality.

I’ve found no more powerful way to produce results.

So now’s it’s your turn.

In this edition of Ask The Reader, I want to hear what matters to you most this year. This is your chance to speak up and add direct value to what we’re building at Live Your Legend, and get specific help on your biggest goals, both from me and the community.

So here’s the question (please answer it in a 1-5 sentence response in the comments below):

What’s your most important goal of 2012?

**Feel free to stop reading right now and go directly to the comments section below to answer the above. I will pick one of the commenters to feature in an upcoming post and I’ll provide specific guidance to as many of your responses as possible.

If you’re not usually one to comment, I urge you, if you only comment on one post, this is the one. Even if it’s only a sentence or two, and feel free to leave it under a fake name if you must. It will dramatically help YOU, and the rest of our community. 

More than anything I want you all to achieve your biggest goals and Live Your Legend (and I) am here to help in any way possible.

So in the spirit of sharing our biggest plans with each other, here is everything I’ve mapped out for 2012. Big or small, here’s the full list…

My 2012 Resolutions/Habits:

As noted in the Goal Setting and Action Workbook, I like to start my process with the overall themes, resolutions and habits I want to engrain this year to be a part of my life for the rest of it. While goals are things that get checked off, these are something that become a part of you. I generally tackled a max of one each month. Thanks to my buddy Leo of Zen Habits for this idea!

Here are mine:

1. Be early. Shoot for 10-30 min early. An ongoing focus from 2011.
2. Plan less. Sow down and keep balanced.
3. Simplify. Go paperless.
4. Leave something on the plate. I tend to eat everything in front of me  .
5. Reread more. Reread my top books of all time (80/20 reading).
6. Outsource everything that’s not “me”. Only spend time on my natural strengths.
7. Meditate.
8. Make introductions. Constantly think of people I know who would benefit from meeting each other.
9. Become a bigger part of the Young Entrepreneurs Council (YEC). I became a member last year and want to get deeper.
10. Work Less (i.e. not on nights an weekends, even if it’s ‘fun’).

And now onto my specific goals and outcomes for the new year.

My 2012 Goals:

These are divided into my various life Areas of Attention. You’ll notice I try to give mine fun and inspiring names. I think you’ll figure out which category is which.

I believe everything (absolutely everything) starts with health so that’s where we’ll start…

Flying Out of the Gym:

I am crazy about fitness challenges. Especially 30-day challenges. Here are the big ones.

1. Get Lean Challenge – 25 days of Bikram hot yoga within 30 days (today is my 9th day straight). I am competing with a good friend to see who can lose the most body fat in a month (measured before and after using a DEXA body composition scan). The more fun competition, the more likely it is to happen!
2. Run a Long Way (either 50k or 50mi) – The Marin North Face Endurance Challenge is what I have my eye on.
3. Complete the Goruck Challenge

Expand the Mind:

1. Complete a Neuro-Linguistic Programming course
2. Complete a Transcendental Meditation course
3. Reread my top 5-10 books

Helping People Find Passion and Do Work they Love:

1. Create “version 2.0″ of Live Off Your Passion (thanks to all your feedback). Don’t worry, it will be free to those who’ve already bought.
2. Create a test to help people understand whether they should leave their job or not.
3. Create a guide on How to Connect with Anyone.
4. Start a Live Your Legend YouTube channel.
5. Create a full-blown Live Off Your Passion live course.
6. Create a strategy for publishing my first book. Chris Guillebeau’s most recent creation, The Unconventional Guide to Publishing, is going to be the perfect road map for this.

Give it Away:

1. Spend 5 hrs a month (minimum) volunteering in SF with my wife.
2. Join Tony Robbins’ Foundation.
3. Make an impact for the Live Your Legend partner charity, impossible2Possible.
4. Give things I don’t need to people who will benefit (books, things, clothes, ideas…).
5. Help at least 2 people a month by connecting them with others.

Never Stop Exploring:

1. Visit Turkey/Greece (to see one of my best friends’ family and hometown).
2. Experience Portland (for World Domination Summit and a wine trip with my wife).
3. Take more weekend trips (and longer) with my wife.
4. Spend a few nights backpacking with close friends.
5. Climb Half Dome (never got around to that in 2011).
6. Experience Burning Man (my Italy trip got in the way of this last year).

So there you have it. I’m officially on the hook!

It’s possible other bigger and more imporant things will come up this year, and if they do, I am more than willing to prioritize accordingly (it’s important to not be too rigid with this stuff so you don’t miss any sudden out of the blue opportunities). But most importantly I have an idea of what I want to make reality in 2012.

If you think you can help with any of these, please reach out – I’m sure I could use it!

Now it’s your turn.

Please tell us your biggest goal in the comments below (if you’re reading this in email. Leave just a sentence and use a fake name if you must.

Life is not meant to be passive. All that matters is you contribute.

I can’t wait to hear your thoughts, and feature some of you in upcoming posts!

So… What’s your most important goal of 2012?

Simply writing it down below will dramatically increase the odds of it coming true.

We’re all ears.

“This one step – choosing a goal and sticking to it – changes everything.”

~Scott Reed