By Sandra Bauman & Mary Aviles

Chris Brogan challenged us to consider 2016 through the lens of Three Words. We accept that challenge and offer you our Six Words: Read. Be. Think. Reach. Polish. Revel.

Sandra’s:

My three words are interrelated, and all three have a professional and a personal application.

Be.  Like most people, we are always busy (I hate that word, but don’t know how else to put it). We seem to be moving at a full-on sprint pace all the time, multi-tasking, juggling, striving – at work and at home.  This first word is a reminder to me to give myself permission to just BE.  I will look for opportunities to find small moments to just BE in the moment.  To think, to feel, to appreciate, to wonder, to reflect, to breathe.

Think.  We love going to conferences – we learn new things, meet new people, and come back with new ideas that energize us. But, we always lament that outside of these experiences, we don’t seem to ever have time to stop and THINK as much as we’d like.  Akin to the BE word, I want to make time to just THINK so we can be more innovative, smarter, inspired, and always learning.

Read.  If you’re in a “knowledge” business, chances are you have a big pile on your desk or in your inbox (or both) of things you want to read. We do. I want to make a bigger dent in that pile, READing more … which should lead to some more THINKing. On the personal side, my college-aged son and I have started a book club where we READ things we recommend to each other and then talk about them.  First up is Seth Godin’s It’s Your Turn.  Good stuff – with applications for work and family life (and lots to THINK about and opportunities to BE)!

Mary’s:

Reach. We have a major development goal in mind for this year. Accomplishing it will push me outside of my usual role and comfort zone. It will require significant commitments in both time and focus. Achieving this goal will mean REACHing for it.

Polish. In 2012, we set our sights on thought leadership. In the past three years, we threw ourselves into social media marketing and made a conscious effort to share our work throughout the industry. But, as is so often a necessity with consultants, we did this in a catch-as-catch-can fashion whenever we could squeeze it in. This year, I’d like to see us take this one step further. I’d like to POLISH our marketing and key messages. I’d like to do a better job infusing the unique tone of what it’s like to work with us into our marketing communications.

Revel. This time of year always feels a bit melancholic as I consider the passage of time. When I started working with Bauman Research & Consulting, my oldest child was just a year old. Now, she’s nearly twelve! It’s precisely because of her and her two brothers that I chose consulting for the luxury of being able to be physically present in their lives in a way that an off-site job might not have allowed. However, this year I’d like to do a better job of being emotionally present, wholly focused when it’s their time. I do a pretty good job ringing the cowbell on daily career successes; I need to do a better job of REVELing in my Shorties.

Okay, your turn! What are your Three Words for 2016?