Shining at something requires a commitment to it.

Artists, athletes, writers, doctors, philanthropists, and administrators who shine are intensely involved in their art.  Maybe not every minute of every day, but people who shine understand that accomplishing something notable requires intense commitment.

So is also true of you as you embark on 2011.

Other blogs or websites might be curious about your list of resolutions for the new year, but not me.

What I care about is how you plan on shining in 2011.  What notable thing are you sure you want to accomplish this year - so much so that you are willing to display intense commitment toward it for the next 52 weeks?

Intense commitment does not require list making.  Lists are long and drawn out and, more often than not, they are not very discerning.  They might include the important and urgent, but they can also include the mundane.  Lists of resolutions often read like this:

• Lose weight
• Save money
• Spend more time with family
• Get involved in the community
• Drink more water, and
• Get more organized

But, accomplishing any one of the resolutions listed above requires sustained mental and physical energy.  People who are intent on shining understand the energy it requires and, therefore, know that to be successful they must focus.  They happily trade in a long list of goals for a word or phrase that can be used to name their year.

Instead of agreeing to the above list of resolutions, a person committed to shining might select any one of the following:

• Year of Weight Loss or maybe even better, Year of the Half Marathon
• Year of Financial Planning
• Year of Family Game Nights
• Year of Lions Club
• Year of Water
• Year of Organization or maybe even better, Year of the Planner Pad

Don't rush.  Naming your year is no small commitment and should require deep thought and reflection.  It is a proclamation of something so important to you that you are willing to redirect your mental and physical energies for the next 362 days.  Spend the week thinking about what you are so intent on accomplishing at that you are willing to make the kind of intense commitment that is required of those who shine.  Then, meet here on Friday ready to share with the rest of us what you have decided to Name Your Year.

Shining off until tomorrow...