It is not too early to start planning for the new year.  What do you want to be doing in 2009?  Are you thinking about a new job, or starting back to school?  Have you lost your job and need to learn more skills to obtain better employment? 

One of the best ways to get ahead and be successful is to set goals and work to achieve them.  It is as simple as that.  Here are some goal setting tips to help you get ahead in 2009:

1. Put your goals in writing, and keep the list where you can refer to it frequently
2. Make your goals very specific – such as "I want to earn my MBA degree within the next 3 years"
3. Make your goals measurable – for example lose 25 pounds, or run a marathon
4. Goals should be attainable – don’t make goals that are out of your reach.  Earning a college degree is attainable if you prepare and plan in advance, and then do the work.  Earning a Ph.D. in the next year may not be attainable if you don’t have some background to get you there.
5. Goals should be relevant – losing 1 pound may not be a relevant goal, while losing 20 pounds is definitely a relevant goal but only if you are overweight.
6. Goals should be time – bound – for example "earn my degree in the next 3 years" over "earn a degree sometime in the future".  Make the time specific, but be flexible.

Following these tips for goal setting should get you off to a good start in the New Year, and remember it is never too early to start planning to meet your goals.

"Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars." Les Brown

Many people go through life wondering how to achieve success. They never see their lives as "successful"; however, most don’t understand the meaning of success.

We can be successful in business – most people gauge this by the amount of income achieved, while a real measure of success could be just how happy someone is at their occupation. Others may be successful parents, having well adjusted, intelligent, happy children. Just how you view success could be the factor for achieving it.

Many very brilliant, successful people will tell you "think big". Too often we feel that everything is out of our reach, and by thinking just that we never achieve our dreams or goals. Reach for the stars and you may just get there!

If you want to further your education, then do it. Don’t let yourself be caught up in negative thinking – it’s too expensive, it’ll take time away from my family, etc. You can do it and do it well. You can plan your time better so that your family is not neglected. Online degree programs make it much easier for working individuals to continue their job and family responsibilities, while earning a degree. And, the investment in education will pay off in the end with higher wages, and often better benefits.

So what’s stopping you from shooting for the moon?