Every time management / professional development book out there tells one to not only develop goals but actually write them down. That's the first real step to accomplishing them. One source I read suggested writing the goals as if you've already accomplished them. Because that puts you in the frame of mind of doing just that. So here are my professional goals for 2009 related to community and "personal brand."

·         I have averaged reading 2 technical books a month.

·         I have averaged reading 1 personal development / leadership book a month.

·         I have written an average of 6 technical articles a month.

·         I have spoken at 12 user group meetings or SQL Saturdays this year.

·         I have averaged 3 technical blog posts a week.

·         I have written an eBook on SQL Server.

·         I answered an average of 5 threads a workday on the SQL Server forums.

Right now I'm doing all right on only the 12 user group meetings/ SQL Saturdays with several scheduled for the first half of the year. While I had written them down, I hadn't started considering what it would really take to accomplish them. That's an important step 2. The month of January is gone and I need to make progress on all of these, but 1/12 of the year is lost. So the next week or so will see me fleshing out how to go about meeting these goals by the end of the year. Some of these (like writing an ebook) will require help from others. Therefore, it's important to get my head around what it will take to do. The last thing I want to do is ask for help and then not to be able to carry out my part.