Imagine looking back on December 31 this year and thinking 2008 was so fabulous that it’s now the year for all others to beat – your new benchmark year.

By taking on 2008 with your moxie (mox•ie: guts, determination, passion, & perseverance), your benchmark year is guaranteed!

8 ways to bolster your moxie:

1.  Defy your Comfort Zone. Notice if you are being gutsy about your goals or just comfortable about them (then choose gutsy!) If you want extraordinary results this year, move out of the comfort zone; if you are OK with the same results as last year, don’t move.

2.  Stop Worrying What Other People Think. It’s paralyzing to please so many people. They all want you to do life the way they do it (but they have no moxie!) Start worrying what you think about your life.  

3.  Talk to Strangers.  Everyone is craving connection but they’re concerned about what you think of them. So, you go first. Talk to strangers and watch your network expand exponentially.

4.  Learn Something New Every Day. Subscribe to the word of the day at www.dictionary.com; and read only educational articles (skip the articles with bad news).

5.  Tackle One “Someday” Every Month. Someday we’ll do a picnic on the beach. Someday we’ll paint the kitchen our favorite color. Someday we’ll play hooky to go to the movies. I have friends who have lived their whole lives in San Francisco and “someday” they’ll visit Alcatraz and Muir Woods.

6.  Say Yes! to Opportunities that Excite You. When new opportunities make your eyes twinkle, your stomach flip flop, and your goose-bumps dance, those are signs your soul is excited. Jump quickly and deal with the details later.

7.  Turn Off the Television Set. If we watch TV for one hour less each day, we will at the end of the year have salvaged enough hours to equal fifteen 24-hour days. That’s adding more than 2 weeks to your year!

8.  Eat Ice Cream. When my regular-sized grandma was 54, she went on a 30-year diet fighting the one thing she enjoyed – sweets. One day when she was 84 and skin and bones, I showed up with her favorite ice cream – mint chocolate chip. She scoffed, “I can’t eat that. It’ll go right to my thighs.” Six months later she died. She missed the moment to eat ice cream.

If you are ready to have a phenomenal year, one that will be your benchmark, then it’s essential you create moxie, get on the court, experiment, and live. And above all else, don’t miss your moment to eat ice cream.