CMO Message: Setting Ourselves Up for Success in 2023

When I asked ChatGPT about how to set ourselves up for success in the New Year, this was what I got back: “Setting ourselves up for success in 2023 isn't just about setting goals and making a plan – it's also about thinking deeply about our values, motivations, and long-term vision for ourselves.”

I was shocked by how well the humanistic artificial intelligence responded. In fact, I was thinking along the same track of values, motivations, and vision. However, even when we do our best to reflect on our values and what we want long-term, it’s so easy to get derailed. It is ingrained in our culture to set New Year’s resolutions, only to break them within a few weeks. It could be a co-worker’s birthday cupcake in February that causes you to give up on controlling your blood glucose for the rest of the year. Saint Patrick’s Day pulls you back into your old drinking habits even though you said this year you’d be cutting back. Missing one week of journaling leads you to not write for a whole month despite your intention to focus on self-reflection. Your long-term vision hasn’t changed and the common reflex is to blame yourself for not having enough motivation.

Perhaps the problem is not motivation but rather the time horizon. New Year’s resolutions are, more often than not, going to be broken at some point. No one likes to fail over and over again. If you’ve failed once on your resolution, why bother trying again if you’re likely to fail a second time? Once you are off the bandwagon, you might as well stay off.

Success isn’t built one year at a time, it’s built one decision at a time. Improving your sleep begins with getting one good night's rest. Losing weight begins with choosing one healthy meal. Growing a company begins with making one customer happy. All these micro decisions add up. Instead of focusing on the whole year, what is one thing you can do today, no matter how small, that gets you closer to your goal? From this perspective, it doesn’t matter what happened with the cupcake, Saint Patrick’s Day, or missed journal entry. All that matters is what you are going to do now.

From all of us at UnitedAg, we wish you a very Happy New Year full of joy, abundance, and good health!