Hope you enjoyed the Part I of the series ‘What’s Next for HR in 2013’. Now pull out a chair to read Part II, this time from Christopher de Mers and get your day rocking by rebooting your resolutions! How about that! And here we go… 

It’s that time of year again when refreshed by a few days off, a bounty of bowl games, holiday spirit(s) and a little reflection you resolve to change things about yourself both professionally and personally. Congratulations!

You’re going to put in a few more hours at the office (yet spend more time at home), brush up on your technical skills and network more intently. And don’t forget eating right, exercising more and this year finally getting eight hours of sleep a night.

Good luck with that.

Studies show the futility of tying personal change efforts to an arbitrary measure like the flip of the page on a wall calendar. The truth is most resolutions lie dusty and unused before the end of January.

So let’s reboot the resolution and try something different.

Resolve to be authentic

The world of the HR professional is full of change, interruption, mini (and not-so-mini) crises. Priorities shift with business needs and morphing environments constantly test and re-arrange plans, projections and process. Your authentic self – that is, the way you normally show up – can not only meet those shifts with more confidence than a persona you attempt to adopt, but in fact can make a greater impact in the workplace.

So no need to radically remake yourself every twelve months.

So let’s reboot the resolution. You have natural tendencies – calm under pressure, highly excitable, reasoned, cerebral, loud, demonstrative, crazy, outrageous, fun, etc.  Whatever it is that makes you “you”. Look for situations and challenges in need of those attributes. You can be yourself, get things done and feel less conflicted at days’ end. Resolve to be authentic.

For example; are you a take-charge type of person known for sorting things out? Seek out projects that have derailed and get involved. Be who you are and help get them back on track. Naturally quiet and introverted given to studying data, trends and forecasts? Make inroads into compensation and training where data and metrics can make the difference. Able to see the meaning in masses of information and collaboration? Take part in strategic planning or organization development processes.

Planned change and personal improvement 

All of us look for things to increase and improve in our technical and social skills sets.  No change at all is atrophy. So by all means get your certification, finish your masters, really master those compensation details, and finally figure out social media: whatever it is you want to accomplish next go for it.

Just don’t tie that need to an arbitrary and almost sure-to-fail method like a new year’s resolution. You don’t need to wait for January to expand your skills and knowledge.

A resolution you can effect right now and one that will have more impact in your life starting today is to be yourself, and to appreciate the value you bring – as you show up every day – to the workplace. Be authentic. Be yourself. And be confident you’re helping to make things better by being you.

And let’s re-boot the resolution.

Christopher de Mers, SPHR has been practicing human resource management for 20 years. One day he hopes to get it right. His career includes leadership roles with Apple, Dell, P&G and The Home Depot. He taught the HRCI Certification prep course for ten years at The University of Texas at Austin. He holds an MBA as well as a Bachelor’s in Liberal Arts, and is lifetime certified as an SPHR.

He is a past president of the Austin Human Resource Management Association, and is a frequent speaker and blogger on HR-related topics. He lives (happily) with his family in Austin and enjoys cycling, golf and live music in his downtime. Follow him on Twitter @ChristopherinHR