What the hell happened to me? I used to own the Top 40. I knew all the song titles, lyrics, artists, albums, everything back in the 80s and 90s. When we were determining songs for our 1990 lip sync contest as part of CU Times' 25th anniversary, choosing was difficult because we knew and loved all of them. Thing is, very few of the artists are still performing or even well known today. Who remembers Wilson Phillips or Taylor Dane?

I recognized maybe a handful of the artists' names on the current top 40. Why? Because in life as in business, we decide what's important and what's no longer as important. I decided I wasn't going to listen to and relentlessly memorize the latest music any more. My vision for what was important changed, including growing a family and a career, and toning down my obsession with new music.

As budget season is upon businesses everywhere, we must decide not only what to add, but also what to eliminate. Now is a good time to revisit your credit union's vision statement, and whether it remains relevant and is supported by your strategy and budget. If you haven't created a vision statement, it's a very good idea to consider as a way to clearly and succinctly state where the organization is heading for members and employees, and inspire the team to all push in the same direction.