As we approach 2011, I have been reflecting a lot on all the things that happened this year. It was one of tremendous growth for Tiber River and for myself personally. My personal growth has been reflected in all aspects of my life, not simply my personal life. I have grown and learned so much and I'm amazed at how much one can learn in so short a time span. Last year, I was counting down the days, looking forward to a new year, so I could forget all about the old one. I was, as Mary Oliver asks in one of her poems, "Are you breathing just a little and calling it a life?" WOW - I nearly fainted when I read that because it said so much in just a few words.
2009 was an incredibly difficult year for me but I see now how those hardships served to teach me some very valuable lessons as well as strengthen me for the journey ahead. This year, Tiber River has also grown up and the stage is now set for a great many changes, all of which will begin next year. Thank goodness for those challenges of 2009 because without them, there is no way I would be ready to do what needs to be done for Tiber River this coming year. As it is, I am anxiously awaiting 2011, not because I want to forget 2010. Au contraire. I am excited about 2011 because it is a continuation of the many changes we started in 2010 and because those changes will lead to something awesome.
Last weekend I started and finished the book, Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh, and it inspired me to pick up another book, PEAK by Chip Conley. Delivering Happiness and PEAK have helped me move from 'the intuitive to the intentional'. I realized that Michelle and I have been trying to build Tiber River in a intuitive way, purely by gut feel. However, I now realize we need to become much more intentional in everything we do and I am SOOO excited because we finally have the tools to do this. I very highly recommend these two books.
Chip Conley's book PEAK is about learning how to achieve more peak moments in your life. I am now actively Seeking the Peak, every day, every minute. Abraham Maslow writes that peak moments are "..moments of ecstasy which cannot be bought, cannot be guaranteed, cannot even be sought... but one can set up the conditions so that peak experiences are more likely, or one can perversely set up the conditions so that they are less likely."
I believe 2011 is going to be a huge year for Tiber River. It is the year we truly begin to come into our own as the kind of company we have always strived to be. It will also be a huge year for the entire Tiber River team. We will need to grow and develop, both personally and as a team, in a way we haven't done before. Michelle and I will need to develop skills we have not yet mastered and learn to do things in a way we never have. And I cannot wait!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
