By Pamela Reich, Director of Communications Strategy, and Hillary Kelbick, President & CEO

The start of a new year… a new decade… and the pressure to set resolutions kicks in, yet again. This time we’re really going to eat better, exercise more, manage our money better, work smarter, be in better touch with friends and family. Sure, these are noble goals – things we should do, important goals for the new year, but vision is something very different. For ourselves, it’s the way we look at our lives, how we see our place in the world, and how we want to be seen. For our company, our vision is also about our future, our path, our growth, and our success.

And if 20/20 is the ideal measure of vision, the year 2020 is the perfect time to identify the 20/20 vision we hope to achieve.

In this usage, vision is defined as “the ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or wisdom” (Lexico/Oxford). So as we enter this new year, let’s focus not just on a long-term vision for the future, but tangible steps we can take as individuals, and as a company, to live better, be better, and do better, starting fresh right now.

• Set a designated “think time” for yourself every day. Be away from the screens. Be away from others. Be away from distractions. Take a walk, sit quietly in a dark room, excuse yourself from your day-to-day activities – even if it’s for just five or 10 minutes. Take the time to clear your mind and just think… about yourself, your feelings, and your vision.
• Clear away “stuff.” To think clearly, we should do our best to eliminate distractions like piles of papers (calling out to be filed, read, or tossed), excess clothes we never wear (donate, donate, donate), old toys and books (a few mementos are fine, but not a library-full), old project files, et cetera. Digital storage is a great alternative!
• Be a good friend. Reach out, connect, listen, be supportive, and offer advice. Strong personal relationships are the bedrock of a healthy soul, and a healthy business.
• Be there. Keep your eyes and ears open. Absorb everything around you and react. Being present means you are aware and available to others around you. And that holds true in business as well as in our personal lives.
• Seek joy wherever it may come from and be happy for what you have. Try not to dwell on the “if onlys” or the “poor mes.” Always find your glass half full.

At MKP, we are committed to making our second 25 years even better than the first, and we can only do that by working hard to bring our vision into 20/20 focus. We’re redoubling our commitments to:

• Be a true partner. Show our clients that our wisdom and experience is there to benefit them. And it’s why they should continue to rely on us.
• Listen more. Ask questions. Be proactive. Dig deep. That’s how we will add value and provide clarity to help our clients achieve their 20/20 visions.
• Anticipate and respond to the needs of our clients (and their customers) with smart strategies, using all available channels and resources to deliver the message.
• Get unstuck. Instead of relying on what may have worked in the past, be openminded. Let the juices flow and open new doors to develop creative solutions that spark better communications.
• Collaborate with our colleagues. The MKP team is more powerful when we work together throughout the process of defining and achieving our vision.

So use your imagination… do what you can to feel satisfied, content, and fulfilled. Our individual and collective vision will begin to take shape and we will be ready to kick off the new decade with a renewed energy and optimism.

MKP communications inc. is a New York City-based communications company that delivers spot-on strategy, smart, fresh creative, and flawless execution, exclusively for financial services clients.