S.M.A.R.T.

The New Year is fast approaching and with it comes the concept of a fresh start, where people can make changes or improvements in their lives that will give them a better future.

Resolutions are a New Year's tradition for many people, but also something that may cause stress down the road. It's one thing to say you're going to do something or make changes, but it's another thing to stick with it for the long term. 

Here's a few tips to help you stick with your resolutions and be successful with attaining your goals, all based on what is referred to as the SMART approach!

Specific: Your goal should be clear and specific. 

You could also substitute the words simple, sensible or significant for specific, but the essence is the same, you need to have something on which to focus your efforts or truly feel motivated to achieve. 

Consider the following when seeking to define your goal...

• what do I want to accomplish?
• why is this goal important?
• who is involved?
• where is it located?
• which resources or limits are involved?

Measurable: Once you have a goal, you need to be able to gauge progress.

Assessment will help you stay focused, meet deadlines and build excitement as you get closer to your objective.

Consider the following when defining measurement....

• how much?
• how many?
• how will I know when it's accomplished?

Attainable: Setting a goal that is actually manageable will avoid frustrations and enable success.

Your goal needs to be realistic and achievable to be successful, stretching your abilities but remaining possible.

Consider the following when determining if your goal is achievable...

• how can I accomplish this goal?
• how realistic is the goal, based on all the contributing factors and constraints?

Relevant: Ensure your goal is relevant to you and is in line with your other goals.

You are responsible for achieving your own goal and, although support and assistance are great, you need to be in control.

Consider the following when defining relevance....

• is it worthwhile?
• is it the right time?
• is it in line with our other needs and efforts?
• am I the right person to reach this goal?
• is the environment right for this moment?

Timely: Give yourself adequate time to achieve your goal

Every goal needs a deadline to focus upon and work toward. It also prevents every day tasks from taking priority over the long term plans.

Consider the following when looking at your time line...

• when?
• what can I accomplish in 6 months?
• what can be done in 6 weeks?
• what can be done today?

Summarize your SMART plan to reflect all of the previously discussed elements so that you have a clear and concise 'mission statement'.

e.g. Because I want to reduce my risk of having a heart attack which is in my family history , I will lose 4 pounds a month for the next 12 months, weighing myself once a week and writing the results in a journal to track my progress.

or

e.g. In the next 3 years I will sign up for and pass all the educational courses necessary to build my resume so that I am fully qualified to apply for a management position within my company.

Here are 5 tips to help you stay on track and be successful with your SMART plan.

1. Focus on one thing at a time. Concentrate on your number one priority and don’t set yourself up for frustration and failure with too many resolutions. . 
2. Take small steps. Taking smaller steps will not only keep you on track and focused but will help you feel a sense of accomplishment when they are completed.
3. Reward yourself for small success.  Give yourself a pat on the back and celebrate your accomplishments with each step gained.
4. Be kind to yourself. Life happens and you’re only human so don't get hung up on set backs. 
5. Create a support system. It’s easier to achieve a goal when you have support, though remembering that you and you alone are still responsible for success.

Climb That Mountain!!

Words to consider, as you enter the New Year 2018.

Bert

Bad Luck?

luck

lək/

noun

1. 1.

   success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one's own actions.

   "winning the lottery was pure luck"

Some people are definitely lucky, and others not so much! 

If you're the person who owned this Lotto ticket, you might fit into the not so much category! Like, the odds of winning the average lottery are many millions to one, so the odds of being one number off on every single number must be astronomically high, or higher, as well.

If you didn't have to, would you even want to know how close you came to winning the jackpot?

There are plenty of weird stories about luck when it comes to lottery winners and their tickets or numbers!

How about the father and son who both won on the same lottery with separate tickets, or the guy who was cleaning out his desk one day and found a forgotten lottery ticket that was 6 days from expiring and proved to be a winner! Then there's the Scottish family who's members have won the lottery 3 times, and the breast cancer patient who's won twice. 

Would you consider the latter to be a good luck versus bad luck battle? 

And how about persistence versus luck, or a combination of the two factors?

Olga Beno, of Atlantic Canada, dreamed of her lottery numbers and subsequently played them, winning over $5 million...28 years later!!

Then there's the 'karma' philosophy, the cause and effect of actions.

A fellow in New Zealand, waiting in line to buy lottery tickets, was rudely pushed aside by a brusque customer who butted in front of him. Instead of losing his cool, he calmly waited and bought his randomly picked tickets after the other customer was done. 

He claimed his $1 million prize later that week, something that may not have happened had he not bought his tickets at that precise moment . 

stock photos by @byronasorus

Sedentary Jobs Reconfigured!

Maybe you have a job where you sit all day long and there's proof that being sedentary is just plain bad for your health.

Here's an interesting idea that may help get you up and moving while still allowing you to get your work done! Like a variation of the 'standing desk', this wheel may have you feeling a bit like your childhood pet hamster but ultimately may provide many a benefit to your health

Recent studies show that sedentary lifestyles and poor health go hand in hand, and the typical desk job is one of the biggest contributors.

So, chew on some carrots and lettuce for lunch,  then get your feet moving in this big 'hamster wheel' during your workday and maybe you'll add some years to your life! 

Avoiding Alien Abduction

After writing about unusual types of insurance which included coverage for "Alien Abduction" , how about following the tips as suggested in this funny graphic for "surviving an alien abduction". 

I mean, the insurance industry is always saying there's nothing better than taking some pro-active measures to prevent a loss!

This Means (Cyber) War

There always seems to be some sort of war occurring in the world, be they civil wars or conflicts about ideology, but physical conflicts none the less. However, there is a war going on that many people can't see, with no actual "physical casualties" in the typical sense of a battle. An "out of sight, out of mind" scenario but one with some dire consequences none the less.

Having done a large series of posts on cyber crime and related topics, particularly during "Cyber Security Awareness Month" in October, it's scarily fascinating to watch the ever increasing internet attacks that seem to be happening daily.

Photo by Drew Graham on Unsplash 344554

The latest article from my subscription to Insurance Business brought up some interesting reports on the cyber crime that is currently plaguing the world and predictions that there will be an all out cyber war in 2018. Mass data breaches ( UBER and Equifax) and ransomware attacks ( Petya and NotPetya) are examples of the recent cyber crime wave and some of these types of activities can be traced to nation state sponsored acts of subversion. It's just a matter of time before politically motivated cyber crime becomes the most common type of attack, particularly when considering countries that have faced strict sanctions.

Anthony Dagostino, global head of cyber risk at multinational risk management firm Willis Towers Watson, believes nation state leaders who face economic sanctions could start encrypting their currencies and then conduct cryptocurrency mining and ransomware attacks to raise funds.

Of course, there are strategies to combat such warfare and global partnerships and communication seem to be the key, but it's a scary situation and one that needs more attention.

Norsecorp is a global cyber security firm that hosts a live cyber attack map, as pictured in this screen shot and showing thousands of attacks every hour.