Resolved: In addition to losing 25 pounds, learning French or Spanish and brushing up on the trumpet last blown during the Ford administration, I am also going to ace my next job evaluation, which comes up in mid-December.

I did all right this time, else you wouldn’t be reading this. But as you get older, you get more nervous. Hence my top resolution for 2013 deals with job satisfaction.

I am borrowing from an old friend from The Washington Post. Each year he would come up with a series of resolutions. But he’d always lead with: “I promise to be less sincere!” (I think he was a cynic, but you can learn from anyone and everyone. And I have.)

In my case, when the boss asks me what my greatest job-related weakness is, where I am most at fault, I plan to reply:

“My primary flaw is that I care too much. I want to do the best job possible and be a model employee. I care so much that it distracts me from other parts of the normal workday. Things like taking a well-deserved break. Maybe making a personal phone call. No, not for me. While my colleagues are checking their Facebook accounts, texting (news sources?) or telling about the weekend’s adventures, there I am work, work, work. If my dedication wrecks my health, even kills me, so what? I die happy!”

I am going to dab my eyes a little as I lash myself for my biggest (and by implication only flaw.) I’m thinking sympathy, appreciation and maybe a big raise.

That’s my master plan for success in 2013.

If you have any resolutions, thoughts or job-related survival tips, please share them. You can email me at mcausey@federalnewsradio.com.

Using the wisdom of the crowd, we may all prosper.

But remember the I-care-to-much line is mine!

Best date to retire

For FERS employees thinking about when to retire, 2013 is a very special year. Picking the best date could save them thousands of dollars in taxes and boost the value of their unused annual leave. So what is the best date (or dates) to retire? Short answer: It depends. But some are much better than others.

That’s one of the subjects of today’s special radio show Your Turn/For Your Benefit. FYB hosts Bob Leins and Tammy Flanagan and myself talk about 2012, the new year and some very important changes for federal workers and retirees. Listen if you can (1500 AM or online). To reach me, mcausey@federalnewsradio.com

NEARLY USELESS FACTOID

By Jack Moore

What do “spoiler alert,” “fiscal cliff,” “job creators” and “double down” have in common? They all share the dubious honor of making the 38th annual “List of Word to be Banished from the Queen’s English for Misuse, Overuse and General Uselessness” compiled by Michigan’s Lake Superior State University.

(Source: Associated Press)

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