Putting Our Best Foot Forward in 2015

It's that time of year when many of us are setting our personal and professional goals for the coming year. We really want to be successful and are often excited about the idea of starting anew. To keep you on the right track, here are some tips on how to truly stay focused:

• Keep it simple.

• Choose only one or two goals. We all get easily overwhelmed with too many demands, go easy on yourself. Choose only a few goals. "A goal is a dream with a deadline." -Napoleon Hill

• Measure your success.

• One of the biggest mistakes we all make is not noticing our successes. Give yourself a week to work on one of the smaller goals, then when you achieve it, celbrate it! (Now that doesn't mean going through the Portillos drive thru). Give yourself a compliment out loud! The motivation created by achieving our first smaller goals helps us to keep moving in the right direction. The key is to build momentum.

• Use the buddy system.

• We all need a cheerleader in our corner when we are working hard on something new, find a helpful support person to cheer you on. Having someone to share your goals with and to help hold us accountable can be a huge motivator. "A man's (person's) pride can be his downfall, and he needs to learn when to turn to others for support and guidance." -Bear Grylls