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Actually, I’m not a great fan of doing outrageous things that often.  In my view, parties and events should be proportional to the impact of what’s being celebrated.  I would imagine that there might have been a pretty outrageous party after NASA landed the first man on the moon.

But I wouldn’t think it would be good to have outrageous parties for relatively normal events.  With that mentality, you end up with an over-the-top culture like Enron or AIG.

So here’s today’s thought to consider:  Celebration is good, whether it’s work-related or personal.  What would be proportional to the emotional impact you’d like it to have?

Perhaps that’s an interesting thought as we consider what to do for our sweethearts for Valentine’s day!

There are some real time-savers in MS Word, though…

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I have just signed up with a coaching services firm, Small Fish Business Coaching, based in Australia. This is a huge leap forward for me and my business, because I’m moving away from working totally on my own, to being in partnership with a rapidly growing group that is intent on improving the plight of small business owners, one at a time.

It also means that I’ve tightened my focus from being all businesses – really much too broad – to be on small businesses. That would typically be smaller than 50 employees or $20M in revenue.

I completed my training, I’m getting my business cards printed later today, I’m now listed on the Small Fish websites in both Australia and the US, I took care of state registration and other logistics, and I’m cranking away on spreading the word.

There’s a lot to do, but I can already see progress. This is a new, exciting phase to my career!

There’s a couple of requests I’d like to make to you:

If you’re a small business owner in Northern Colorado, or know small business owners who really want to improve the state of their business, please let me know. I have a powerful process which can help a business owner improve profits, customer satisfaction, employee motivation, and personal balance.

If you’re a business coach, and you’re looking to team up with people who have a powerful process and great marketing, then you might want to check out Small Fish. They’re looking for great coaches in the US, especially. I’d be happy to provide you an introduction and answer any questions you might have about how I selected them.

And if you want to get a copy of the Small Fish e-mail newsletter, just let me know.

The idea was first captured in 1937 in the book Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill.  It’s a small group of people meeting regularly to:

• Support each other
• Challenge each other
• Bring new ideas forward to help each other

Being interested in the concept, I decided to form a group last year which would help me move through the transition from being employed, to looking for a job, to creating my company.  Four of us meet every 3-4 weeks via telephone for 90 minutes, and each of us talks about the progress we’ve made, the actions we’d like to take, and what support would be helpful from the others.  So far, the results are that each of us has valued the support of the group, and achieved important goals.  The only cost is our time, as we’re using a teleconference line graciously supplied by one of our members.

Here are the critical factors for a successful group:

• Small enough so that you can get to know each other personally, but large enough to have some diversity of thinking – I decided 4-6 people was the right size for us.
• Some elements of commonality of background to help quickly form relationships – Our group is formed from people who used to promote coaching at my former employer.
• Some elements of diversity so you get richer depth and breadth of ideas – Our group is two men and two women, physically located around the western US, each looking to take different steps in our lives.
• Being focused on helping each other get useful results.

Some groups will pay someone who facilitates the conversations and logistics, but given the backgrounds of the four of us we were able to do without.  And on the whole, we’ve found this to be quite useful!

If you’re interested in the concept, simply Google “MasterMind Group”; there’s plenty of resources out there.  Maybe this will be a valuable asset at an important point in your career where you’re looking for fresh ideas and personal support!

In general, people like to be helpful.  I suppose part of it is an expectation of getting something in return, but that’s not the core.

The fact is, you get a rush just from knowing you’ve done good.  It actually physically feels good to you, and in many cases that may be enough reward in itself.

Of course, we get rather cynical about all this.  Many charitable organizations prey on our need to be loved and to feel like we’re making a difference.  After a while we get the sense that maybe we’re not actually making the difference that we’d hoped, and that some of the unscrupulous types might be taking advantage of us.

That’s why Peter’s example is so powerful.  It’s about making a difference to someone here and now, in a way that makes a difference that you can actually see.

Here’s what we learn about giving:

• Let people see the difference they’re making, in as immediate a way as possible, and in the way that person values.
• Entering payment into the equation introduces a whole different dynamic – it becomes about the money rather than about the value delivered.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for help.  People like helping.

As I said before, the act of giving has great value.  Remember that in your own life, and those of people who you work with.

Now it’s time to look forward:

• Where would you like to be a year from now?  Five years from now?
• What are your goals for your professional life, your family life, and your personal growth?
• Who can help you on this next step of your life journey?
• What other resources do you have available to help you?

Logically, we all know that there’s nothing really special about January 1st – this kind of introspection would be great to experience any time we have the opportunity.  But this day is a certain emotional event in our year, and for that reason is a good time to sit back and think about the big picture.

I’m not particularly a fan of new year’s resolutions, especially because our culture has become so cynical about them.  We focus on our failure to keep resolutions.

I’d rather focus on successes, on inspirations, on possibilities.

So let’s spend this period thinking about what magnificent possibilities are available for 2010, and beyond.  Here’s to looking forward!

Despite all that, I’ve been blessed with a great number of friends and supporters, a wonderful number of opportunities, and the love of my family.  If you’re going to lose your job and head off into a new career, it’s hard to ask for more.

Thank you.

Now let’s get to work on making 2010 a much better place!

Ten years I was employed in Hewlett-Packard, just beginning to discover this new emerging field called coaching.  I was managing a team that was embroiled in the whole Y2K issue, worried that all our hard preparation might not have been enough to ward off customer problems on January 1st.  As it turns out, things went remarkably well.

On New Year’s Eve 1999, we were captivated by all the celebrations taking place around the world.  We had CNN on TV nonstop for the entire day, and every hour was a new joy.  In the midst of industry growth and optimism – before the “high tech bubble” popped – all we had to look forward to was opportunity and excitement.

The industry downturn, and then 9/11/2001, changed our lives deeply: materially, mentally, spiritually.  We have a much different view of the world and our government now.  Other, more personal, events have become a part of my life and have sent me off on new journeys of discovery.

But it’s unbelievable to me that this decade has disappeared like a flash.  I still clearly recall the experience of “partying like it’s 1999.”  Is the next decade going to go even faster?

The big change, I think, is moving from a world of scarcity (hard to find good business strategy/operations jobs) to a world of abundance.  It’s now my challenge to build my future business based on all the need and opportunity that I perceive.

Another huge shift is the kind of support that I’m getting.  When you’re looking for a job, people:

• sympathize and empathize,
• usually don’t have much help for actually finding an open position, and
• are often more than willing to share their pessimism and scare stories.

On the other hand, when I talk about the creation of a new business, most people:

• help build my confidence in my own abilities,
• are genuinely interested to find out more, and
• are generous with ideas, pointers, and encouragement.

It certainly is scary to move away from a “comfortable” model to one that I’ve never directly experienced before.  I’ve observed, though, for many years, as my brother and friends have built their own businesses.  I hope, and believe, that I’ve learned enough to get going.  I’ve started my business plan and have been talking with a great number of coaches, coaching businesses, and coaching schools.  Possibilities are opening up and are very encouraging.

Here’s what I’m focusing on now, internally and externally:

• Keeping my optimism, fortitude, and focus;
• Creating a solid business plan so that I’m really clear on what I’m doing;
• Figuring out who my most important partners are going to be to get this off the ground;
• Getting lots of help and advice of people who are familiar with this space; and
• Being patient – I’m building a long term business, even if the next year is rather rocky.

Building a business isn’t for everyone, but I truly believe that this is the right decision for me at this point in my life.  This is how I’ll make my best contribution to the world, that part of me which has been aching to break out for the last decade.