Happy New Year to y’all!  It is a new year, it is 2010.  It is the time to make all those New Year resolutions.  Or is it?  Did you know that statistics show that only 3% of New Year resolutions are ever kept, seen through to fruition and sustained?  So why do you think that is?   Simple really, a New Year’s resolution means a commitment to change and that is the reason for a 97% failure rate.  We Americans are good at a lot of things, but let’s face it, change is not one of them.

So forget all about New Year resolutions and instead focus on something that will benefit us all, more, in the long term, and that is the whole concept of change.  2009 laid the foundations for 2010 to be a year of step change in the American way of life.  It will be a year like no other for the population to embrace changes in culture, the economy, unemployment, lifestyle and the environment.  That’s just the top five.  All of these issues have headed in the wrong direction, their bubbles finally burst and only in the last few months have individuals and businesses knuckled down to react and do something about it.  Businesses have finally begun to right-size by evaluating their markets and revenues and taking the appropriate action.  In previous years this would have been addressed by taking on more debt but, with a step change, that avenue has been closed.  Tough action and difficult decisions are necessary now to keep companies afloat.  That is what managing in a cyclical economy is all about.  There is not and should not be an easy way out.

This obviously is a cultural issue and historically, one of the most difficult things to change is culture.  Things have to get really bad before the momentum to change culture gathers speed.  Things are really bad and that is why I believe 2010 will be seen as a year of significant, widespread change.  The companies and the leadership that get through this year will be fitter, leaner and more environmentally conscious as well as better and quicker decision makers.  They won’t be the ones to gripe and moan about the economy, government, stimulus … they’ll manage their way through it and they’ll be the ones to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  The population, individuals themselves, will not be untouched by the step change that is taking place.  Outside of unemployment, which obviously causes stress and hardship on individuals and families, there will be a cultural shift in spending and aspirations.  No longer will the great American people be able to live far beyond their disposable income.  The credit is just not there and when it is, interest rates are unacceptable to most.  This guys is a step change.  Back to the days of, “If you can’t afford it, you can’t have it!”  It is tough because we’ve all had it so good for so long but now is the time to embrace the change that is necessary to create a better long term future for us all.

I feel sure that 2010 will bring about these changes whether we like it or not.  We need to approach the New Year with our eyes wide open, backed with tenacious determination.  Don’t just accept the change, welcome it.  Grasp it.  Live it!  If we all do this we may even be able to make some New Year resolutions in 2011 and blow away that 3% success rate.