SPECIAL ISSUE: Health Matters

"As East County businessman Marc Simms settled down with a cup of coffee at a table in Starbucks, he pulled out a faded piece of paper.

It’s date: Sometime in 1997.

On it, Simms’ goals for what was then the next 10 years are scribbled in black ink: Start a sales consulting company. Live near an ocean or large body of water. Have a house with a pool.

The list continued.

Today, nearly all those goals have been accomplished, but not without much effort.

“Setting the goal is basic,” says Simms, who now owns RPM Business Advisors, a sales and management-performance company. “The hard part is committing to it. It has to be written down and it has to be in front of you at all times. Then, you can work on changing your habits to achieve the goal.”

The goal, Simms says, should be specific, measurable, adaptable, realistic and timely — or SMART.

If your goal is to increase your income from $45,000 annually to more than $100,000, you can’t expect to do the same thing and achieve different results, Simms says. Instead, you must determine what needs to change to make your goal a reality, whether completing more training or something else.

As we prepare to turn our calendars to 2012, East County experts in health, wealth and fitness are ready to help you find success in the new year..." — Pam Eubanks

Read the advice of East County experts in East County Observer's newest installment of Health Matters below.