Hello 2011!

Another year under the belt and life continues to accelerate rapidly forward. I took the opportunity to slow down over the holiday. And by slow down, I mean step away from my computer, spend time with family, get some fresh air, fresh powder and most importantly reflect on my life. During the many hours on the road between California, Oregon and Utah I thought about what I accomplished over the last year, what challenges I overcame and how I have grown. As I switched between my favorite podcasts, books, loud music and occasional silence, I let my mind wander, dream, question and explore the many opportunities that 2011 provides.

When I returned to San Francisco, a good friend and fellow adventure mate encouraged me to write my thoughts, memories, accomplishments and goals down (I highly encourage you to as well). I documented my most memorable experiences, events that I may or may not want to replicate, as well as skills I gained. These include everything from speaking engagements and forming partnerships, to climbing mountain peaks, making my first trip to the ER and getting my first stitches.

I set goals that both big and small, fun and serious, ambitious and easily attainable. They range from challenges to events, skills and the baby steps required to get their. I had a little fun with it and broke them into the following five categories:

1. Health and fitness
2. Adventure and competition
3. Volunteer and charity work
4. Personal
5. Professional and skill development

Here are just a few example’s of the day to day goals that I set for myself:

Write more. Blog more. If you take a glance at my blog, you can see my writing has been far from prolific. I mostly wrote about the speaking events, campaigns and work happenings. I am going to start using this site a little differently; instead I will showcase my life and the broad range of things I am passionate about. I am making it a goal to write more, write often and write about adventures, thoughts, inspirations and experiences.

Read more. Listen more. If you know me, I have never been one to sit still or sit back and read much. But when I do read, I enjoy it, I like to learn and I like to follow stories, history, economics or freakonomics and business. Listening includes NPR in the mornings, podcasts and books on the road. I even put together a reading list bookshelf at shelfari, and I am always open to suggestions.

Surf a shortboard. Much easier said than done, well at least for me. The competitive me wants to be good NOW! After two years of paddling and battling, I am finally confident on my longboard and most importantly riding waves regularly. Making the jump to a short board is like starting all over again, but the challenge is what makes it appealing. Not to mention the smaller lighter board to carry and to duck under the big waves.

Other goals include things such as building a bike from scratch, to launching a social good campaign, learning how to use my camera to it’s fullest potential and volunteering my time and money to nonprofits I am passionate for. I believe you have to be both a dreamer and a doer to accomplish things in life. Personal growth is a truly result of trying new things, challenging yourself and taking risks. Granted everyone is faced with unique challenges, but it is the ones that you present yourself that can guide your destiny.  I encourage you to look forward and reflect back on your year, set some goals and document your achievements