Everyone is self-motivated in the New Year, and our resolve usually lasts a good two weeks if we are lucky.

So I was wondering – where does one find the inspiration to truly change and to make our own world, as well as the world at large, a better place?

Sometimes you don’t have to look so far to find inspiration. The biggest role models might be right in front of you.

I was just spending time with my brother in law, Gabe, who is one of the most consistently motivated people I know. A former air force instructor pilot, (he flew T-38s), he is self-employed and is also the coach of my nephew Alex’s football, lacrosse and soccer teams. All this while he wakes up at 6 a.m. Sunday mornings to play tennis. He works out five days a week, does homework with his kids, has an occasional date night with my sister and, at times, he even sleeps.

Gabe, whom I consistently embarrass by nicknaming him “my hot brother-in-law,” prints out a calendar for the whole year –  writing down every detail of what he needs to accomplish in a day, from business trips to sending his son’s football team a Happy New Year e-mail.

“The thing about a calendar,” he explains, “it’s what you put in it. I think a lot of people have calendars and still don’t get anything done. Garbage in, garbage out.”

So in order to motivate myself, I decided to not only use my daily planner, but to go the Gabe route and print out monthly calendars for the year and set a solid plan for myself.

I stared at the blank papers in front of me and started to scribble in my usual workout, personal and professional goals. Then I started to write out small ways to make a difference.

I decided to add one small project monthly to my goals for 2010. Little, single acts of goodness by individuals can grow from seeds into forests.

Israel is the only country in the world that has more trees today than when it became a country. While some people can buy forests, I know by planting one tree – and perhaps planting the idea in your head – I might also help grow a forest.

Other small acts of kindness that are written into my once-a-month attempt to make a difference include donating blood while in Israel, sending a lone Israeli soldier a care package and donating money to a girls orphanage in Israel.

Other manageable ideas that are not time intensive or overwhelming are helping an older person with simple tasks like grocery shopping, or spending a few hours teaching someone to read. Simply giving good guidance to a neighbour’s kid who you know comes home to an empty house and needs someone to talk to is invaluable.

It’s always the little things, the kind remarks, the time people take out of their days to do something nice that people remember. Truthfully, it’s the boomerang effect. Making someone happy will most certainly make you happy too.

So, while I have not planned out all my good deeds for 2010, I’m working my way up to Gabe motivation and organization. As a result, I have picked out one day in every month when I will try to make someone’s world better.

Imagine if every person on the planet did one act of goodness a month? And if you think I am taking happy pills, let’s take a moment to look at how a few acts of goodness have changed the world.

Did you know that Google founder, Sergey Brin’s family was assisted by Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society when they left the former Soviet Union?

Did you know that Danish fishermen risked their lives and saved almost every Jewish person in Denmark, smuggling them out during World War II?

Did you know my grandparents in Israel always believed the size of your heart mattered more than the size of your home? Family members who survived the Holocaust and immigrated to Israel moved into their house. One was given a mattress to be placed on top of the bathtub as a place to sleep. This was so that he would have some privacy, as every other room in the house was filled with people.

So while everything you do might not change the world at large, it might make you feel good, motivate you and make someone’s world a better place. Now isn’t that inspiring?

Who knows? If the motivation lasts, maybe the working out will too!

Happy 2010!