Zamboni 2010

Question:  What is the coolest job in the world?  
Answer:  Zamboni driver.
 

Seriously, is there any job cooler (pun intended) than sitting atop a 4 ton steel “ice resurfacing” machine?   It might as well be a throne!   (Except that it doesn’t, to my knowledge, also have a beer holder.  Certainly my friends from Wisconsin and Michigan will set me straight.)  

The best thing about a Zamboni is how it takes all that choppy ice and makes it smooth again.   And hence, the best metaphor for this final week of 2010.  Sure, 2010 had a few chuckles and laughs, but mostly it was cracked and choppy ice.   Let's consider these final days of 2010 as “in between periods” and spend some time running the mental Zamboni over our lives.  Let’s smooth it out.  Let’s start fresh in January.   Let’s get ready for a slick and fast start to 2011.

Inevitably, this weekend will be full of party conversation about new years “resolutions”.   And yes, I completely know that my goals need to be S.M.A.R.T.  (Specific. Measurable. Attainable. Realistic.  Timebound).    But, as my Chicago friends would say, "fogehta about dat!"    I recently read a book that espoused the benefits of “themes” instead of specific “goals”.   Hey, I like it.   This is what your high-school or college coach might have pinned up on the bulletin board in the locker room.  This is an anthem, not a set of “performance expectations”.  This is what might appear tattooed on your bicep if you get it right.  This is a rallying cry. 

So, my theme for 2011 is... (drum roll…)     
Make It Happen!  

As cliche as it sounds I actually put some thought into this.   Let me break it down for you:

Make - This word means “action”.  Notice how the word “Hope” does not appear here.  Yes, I hope good things will happen in 2011, but (again) fogehta about dat!   It’s not about hope.  It’s not (necessarily) about thinking.   It’s about doing.   It’s about putting the changes, the adjustments, and the activity into motion.   

It - This word means “result”.   This is a list of “its” that I want to achieve (fitness, strength, career, family, experience, learning, etc).  These must be visualized and within reach but just outside my grasp.   They will not “happen” without intent, planning, and execution.

Happen - This word means “reality”.  When “it” happens it won’t be “happening” in my mind or over a beer at a bar.  “Happens” won’t be preceded or qualified by shoulda, woulda, or coulda.    It means real.   It’s real when I can see it, touch it, save it, spend it, savor it, or love it. 

The first thing the Zamboni does is to shave a thin layer from the current surface of the ice.   That’s what this week is all about.  It’s about cutting the chop from 2010 and laying down a smooth surface for 2011.    Get ready.  Get moving.    More importantly…   

Make it happen!

TomMc