Before the new year, Maddie Grant published a great blog post asking association bloggers – and staffers – how they will change the world in the coming year. She wasn’t asking for resolutions, per se, but asking how you can make the world better for others in your life – whether your coworkers, friends and family or even strangers.

As for me and MemberClicks? We want to continue to engage with small staff association staffers on a daily basis. We want to learn what problems you face in your everyday lives so we can help make them easier. We want to help you understand how and why social media is so important. We want to speak to small staff associations each and every day. We want to be your partner, not just your technology vendor. We want to help your small staff association provide its members with the best possible tools they need to succeed.

Our “world” is the world of small staff associations and those unique issues that they face.

And personally? I like to test my limits both professionally and physically, and this year, I’m going to run the ING New York City Marathon (my first 26.2!). I view the marathon as a metaphor for life – trust your training, slow and steady “wins” the race, plan ahead. The discipline it takes to train for a marathon – or any race you deem “long-distance” – can be applied to my professional life as well.

TALK TO US: How will your small staff association change its world this year? And tell us – what can MemberClicks do to help your small staff association?

Welcome to 2011! (Sure, it’s the third day of the new year, but for most people, it’s our first day back in the office.)

It’s common for many of us to set resolutions around this time of year, vowing to become better people, fitter people, more cultured people. But how many of us really keep those resolutions?

Most people make the mistake of setting unrealistic goals. I know there’s no way I’m going to be at the gym at 7 a.m. four days a week. I’m just not a morning person, and my best workouts always occur in the evening. So a more attainable goal for me is to commit to the gym two evenings a week, to complement the running and yoga I already do.

The difference is all about attainability. You have to know your work habits and your own strengths and weaknesses before setting goals or resolutions.

If you’re committing to work-related goals, again, be realistic. The SMART method for goal-setting is a little contrived, but it’s also very applicable. All goals — or resolutions — should be specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely. And it’s even possible that your resolutions could have mini-resolutions that serve as building blocks for the bigger ones.

It’s also important to know when to reevaluate your goals. If you wanted to grow your membership by 10 percent and your membership just wasn’t increasing, either lower your goal (which isn’t necessarily failure!) or reevaluate your membership marketing process. Perhaps there’s something you can do differently.

Do you set New Years resolutions? Why or why not?

Image source

Who can believe it’s 2010? Personally, I was excited to say goodbye to 2009 and am ready to see what 2010 has in store for me — and for associations, as well. So in honor of the new year, here are my top five association management blog posts from the past week.

1. Over at Acronym, Brian Birch wrote about innovations from the past decade and how they will help associations going forward into a new one. My favorite part? The link to check out your association’s Web site’s old design (web.archive.org). So hilarious and nostalgic.

2. Jeffrey Cufaude discussed how associations should approach their goals going forward into 2010. He says, What beliefs, mindsets, policies, procedures, or practices help perpetuate the same behaviors or outcomes, the ones you want to change? Good questions here.

3. David M. Patt wrapped up the year by sharing some leadership lessons he discussed throughout 2009. My favorite points are the last ones – spend your time on relevant activities and be sure to communicate properly.

4. Updating or reinventing your chapter program for 2010? Check out Peggy Hoffman’s post at the Idea Center for tons of ideas on goal-setting. Keep in mind that it’s important to set goals that are measurable so you can keep track of your progress.

5. So I thought I posted a link to Elizabeth Engel’s post, So what will YOU do TODAY?, on Twitter. And when I check my Twitter stream, I realized I had forgotten to include a URL. So sorry, Elizabeth! Regardless, everyone should check out this post. We don’t need to wait for the new year to set resolutions or goals. What will you do to help your association today?

Thanks for reading Splash in 2009, everyone! I hope everyone’s new year got off to a fun and safe start, and have a great weekend!

(Image via ahisgett on Flickr)