My 2013 Goals

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Jan. 03

Happy new year! 2013 is officially here and it’s time for my 2013 goals post. It’s a long standing tradition here on PPC Ian to blog about my goals for the new year. (You may want to check out my: 2012 goals, 2011 goals, and 2010 goals.) These posts really help me document my aspirations for the new year so I’m able to stay on track and strive for excellence. I try to keep my goals attainable, but still a stretch. Typically, I do not hit all of them (within one year), but I have a great track record of hitting most of them (and a super high percentage of them if you project out more than one year). I feel that if I’m hitting all my goals within the year, I’m not pushing myself hard enough. I hope you enjoy reading this post as a way to spark your own goals. I truly feel that documenting goals on paper (or via blogging) is a critical step in achieving your dreams. Here’s to an amazing 2013!

2013 Goals

  1. Save money and invest wisely.. This was also my number one goal for 2012. While I accomplished this goal in 2012, it’s not the type of goal that is over after one year. Saving money and investing wisely is a lifestyle. It requires many years of persistence to truly get the momentum building in your favor. As such, I’m going to be watching every expense very closely and hunting down passive income vehicles (such as dividend-paying stocks) every single day. Specifically, I’m looking to grow the amount of money I have invested in dividend paying stocks by at least 20%.
  2. Help others and build careers. In 2012, I got promoted to VP. This was one of my longest standing goals. I view my role as the greatest honor and responsibility. At my company and also within the industry, I will strive every single day in 2013 to help others. Whether it’s via this blog, public speaking, 1-on-1s with team members, dinner with partners, or just about any other avenue, I’m going to do everything I can to motivate and empower. In terms of making it specific, I will help at least 5 people every single day, in a big way.
  3. Invent a major new marketing strategy. I love online marketing and the marketing field overall because it’s all about innovation. I enjoy pushing myself to the limits. This year, I want to invent at least one major new marketing strategy (new to me/my company).
  4. Continue to grow my offline marketing expertise. I’m all about pay per click and online marketing. When it comes to online marketing, I have 8+ years of experience. In more recent years, I started getting into offline marketing in a major way. I have built some great expertise across several offline marketing channels and am always learning more. In 2013, I want to deepen my offline marketing expertise and invest at least a few hours each week building my marketing toolkit.
  5. Optimize, optimize, optimize. I just wouldn’t be PPC Ian if I wasn’t thinking about optimization. All day/night, I’m thinking about optimization from a PPC standpoint. However, this goal also ties into my life. I’m looking forward to optimizing my time (get more sleep, and more effective sleep), optimizing my workout schedule (getting out there and working out 4 days/week, one of the goals I did not hit in 2012), organizing our home and making better use of the space (a project Nicole and I are working on right now), optimizing my commute (trying different times to get to/from work as quickly as possible), really finding any and all ways to get even more out of life. I’m a big fan of optimization and 2013 is all about optimizing everything.
  6. Match or potentially exceed our 2012 contribution to charity. Nicole and I donated a record amount of money to charity in 2012. We truly believe in helping others and get a thrill out of giving back. I’m not sure if we will exceed our 2012 contributions this year since we need to balance this goal with the saving/investing goal (which would allow us to donate maximum money long term). That said, we will strive to match our 2012 contribution.
  7. Visit Hawaii. My wife, Nicole, and I love Hawaii. It’s one of our favorite places in the world. We try to go every year. (Here’s a fun post about our 2011 Maui Vacation). In 2012, we took a multitude of smaller trips, but no major vacation to Hawaii. Why? We got super focused on work (which is a good thing since we love our jobs). In 2013, we are already planning a vacation to Hawaii.
  8. Invest in family and friends. It’s all about the big picture. I like to keep this goal on my list each year because it’s easy to get focused on work, blog, business, and investments. However, it truly is all about the people in your life. I’m going to make sure to take time for fun times with family and friends.

I could not be more excited about 2013. What are your goals for the new year!

Image of 2013 © iStockPhoto – A-S-L

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My Current Personal & Professional Goals

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May. 02

When I was in college, I had just two goals in my life: Get married to an amazing, beautiful woman and do well financially. I wanted to go after these two goals early in my life. Thankfully, I’m proud to say that I’ve accomplished my two life goals! I have the most amazing wife ever and have made it big in online marketing (which has allowed me to do well financially). Now that these two goals are crossed off the list, I was thinking the other night, what’s next? What are my next few goals? What kind of legacy do I want to leave behind? What’s the bigger picture? Today, I’d like to highlight some personal and professional goals at the top of my list.

Goal 1: Leave Behind a Legacy of Contribution

Las Vegas

It really came to me while running 6 miles the other night: I want to help more people. Now, I’ve helped a lot of people over the years, mainly dozens of employees who have reported to me at my various companies. Many of my old reports are now senior managers and even directors. How cool is that! I consider the fact that many consider me the “best manager ever” as one of my greatest accomplishments and my way of giving back. This is why I get up and love going into work!

That said, let’s think about the big picture here. There are many people right here in the San Francisco Bay Area who can’t put food on their table. There are people who truly need help, immediately. These people are in desperate need of assistance, and I want to help them!

That’s why I started contributing to charity this year in a major way. At this time, I don’t have time to donate but I do have some extra money. Specifically, I have chosen to invest a portion of my Internet marketing money to Second Harvest Food Bank. My pledge to you and goal for myself: I will donate a record amount of money to charity this year and will raise the bar each year in the future. I will make regular contributions every month or so, just like I invest in my 401k. I’m going to make a real impact on people who need help now! At the end of the day, this is what truly matters and this is the legacy I want to leave behind.

Goal 2: Get To The VP Level

I’ve written about this one before in my 2011 goals! I definitely want to get to the VP level or above, it’s one of my personal challenges and milestones, something I must cross off my list. I feel like I’m on the right path: I’ve managed over $100 million dollars of search marketing spend during my 7 years in this career, I’ve managed and mentored dozens of employees who consider me the greatest ever, and I’m a pro at all online marketing channels. More than just a milestone, the VP title will give me more influence. I want to leverage my way of doing things to shape the corporate culture of an entire division. Again, it’s about growing my influence while giving back.

Goal 3: Figure Out Work/Life Balance

I have many goals outside of work, although I’m addicted to work and can’t get enough of corporate online marketing. Right now, it’s a tough balance. And, that’s ok, I’m building my empire. That said, I want to start improving my work/life balance, slowly. In particular, I want to live more of a mobile lifestyle and spend four or more weeks vacationing/working remotely each year (my home base is in the SF Bay Area). My two targets for working remotely: Las Vegas and Hawaii. I love working remotely and my productivity and happiness skyrockets when I’m somewhere exciting. (Side note: Just got back from an awesome trip to Las Vegas and will be writing about that in my next post.) Also, I want to run a half marathon this summer and spend a lot more time running in general. The point of the online marketing game, in my opinion, is achieving optimal work/life balance in the long run.

So, there you have it, some of my current high level personal and professional goals in addition to my 2011 goals. What’s on the top of your list right now?

Image of Las Vegas &copy iStockPhoto – rabbit75_ist

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