Over the years, everyone from Larry David to random writers on Medium has weighed in on the cut-off date for “Happy New Year” wishes. But you know what? Sometimes we overthink things. It’s the New Year. So on this January 7th, we at GrepBeat are ignoring the argument and wishing you all a Happy Remaining 358 Days Of 2025.
And because the year is still new, and we’re just getting back on our content horse (pictured right), I thought it would be fun to talk resolutions. Not my own, fascinating as they may be (if you want to beat me on the tennis court you’d better catch me now). Rather, I wanted to dig into what folks from around this tech/startup ecosystem of ours are thinking about as they look toward new achievements and greater success—personally and professionally—in 2025 (minus seven days).
Below, you’ll find professional, startup-specific, and (most enjoyably) personal New Year’s resolutions from more than two dozen community members who were featured by GrepBeat in 2024. Resolutions range from detailed business ambitions and big-picture strategies to, naturally, ethical lock-picking and the creation of body jewelry.
And hey, if you’ve been struggling to piece together your own resolutions, you might just find some inspiration.
Professional Goals….
Jan Davis (Co-Founder, RTP Angel Fund)
“My goal is for our fund—the RTP Angel Fund—to identify and invest in the next Pendo!”
Dan London (CEO, Adwerx)
“As I continue my first year as a CEO, my 2025 resolution is to connect with more fellow CEOs in the area…. Coming from a marketing background, I also hope to share my perspective on the ever-changing marketing landscape and add value to our conversations.”
Youri Nelson (CTO, Lumos Data)
“One of my objectives this year is to develop a bit more of a professional social media [presence] to share with the Small Business Community why the work we do at Lumos Data matters and how we hope to impact that community.
Tim Scales (Director, Executive Director, American Underground)
“In 2025, I want to build a climate focus into more of my work. The increasing urgency of climate change, paired with the expected decline in Federal support, means that we all need to be a part of the solution. I think it’s never too early in a startup’s journey to consider your future environmental impact, and build in ways to minimize it.”
Ron Berry (Co-Founder, Artificially Digital)
“My resolution this year is to determine an optimal manner to get beyond the current deluge of AI news and educate interested parties on how they can best employ AI to meet their business needs and measure their gains.”
Steven King (CEO, Blue Sky Robotics)
“At Blue Sky Robotics on Monday, when my entire team is in the office together, we will be identifying some of the actions we want to make natural habits in our daily work. I will lead the team through some exercises where they identify what they want to improve, and we will write goals and develop some habits to help improve our work.”
Venus Liles (Founder, Liles Law)
“My work resolution is to get more under-represented founders access to legal resources.”
Startup-Specific Goals….
Adee Feinstein (CEO, Compatica, Inc.)
“I have a three-pronged resolution regarding our company and its flagship product, the Incidentli Workplace and Job Site Data Recording app:
- Expand usage of the application in both current and future subscribers to include meaningful use for all “on-site” data recording… documenting all types of risk-management events, such as Employee Conduct and Site Security.
- Embed AI-driven functionality in our app, facilitating a more efficient intake of data.
- Provide no-charge deployments and implementations to not-for-profits in the Triangle (service that we very lightly commenced with in 2024 and would love to greatly expand).”
Kevin King (CEO, Anatra)
“We hope to have our Cargo UAV (LC500) in Ukraine airspace completing import and export missions by the end of 2025.”
Rui Sun (Co-Founder, Dr. Milou)
“For 2025, my focus is on scaling Dr. Milou, our social enterprise dedicated to transforming pet oral health. This year, we aim to build a mission-driven community that educates pet owners on preventing dental diseases, while collaborating with local vet clinics and pet shops to expand our impact. By empowering pet owners to take preventive action at home, we hope to save more pets’ lives and help clinics focus on critical care.”
Tyler Maloney (CEO, TeachMe.to)
- Implement personalized learning paths: “In 2025, we’re committed to leveraging advanced AI technologies to create personalized learning experiences tailored to each individual’s strengths, interests, and goals.”
- Strengthen community engagement: “Through forums, live Q&A sessions, discussion groups, and collaborative projects, we aim to create a space where ideas flourish and lifelong connections are made, enhancing the overall learning experience.”
- Enhance accessibility: “Education should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their circumstances…. By bringing low cost coaching options into the market, we ensure that every individual has the opportunity to learn and succeed.”
Ryan O’Donnell (CEO, Sunlight)
“Sunlight is hitting the road in 2025! We have a lot of trips planned to visit our customers and attend most of the child welfare conferences. After a long hiatus from traveling for work, maybe I’ll finally get status on Delta Airlines again?”
Omar Kharbat (CEO, Boots & Ladders)
- Grow to 10,000 Users: “Build on our momentum and reach 10,000 engaged service pros by the end of 2025.
- Educate to Elevate: “Integrate educational tools to help tradespeople master business essentials while they grow their presence on the platform.
- Simplify and Streamline: “Keep refining the user workflow, removing friction points to make the platform as intuitive and effortless as possible.”
- Optimize Performance: “Clean up the platform’s codebase, eliminating unnecessary code to improve speed, maintainability, and reliability.”
- Spread the Word: “Ramp up storytelling with podcasts, videos, and articles to let more people discover what Boots & Ladders can do.
- Reconnect with GrepBeat: “Plan another round with GrepBeat to share our progress, mission, and success stories with their audience.”*
Tiana Elame (Founder, EnvAns)
“Produce a minimum of 24 live stream episodes for the Environmental Answers (EnvAns) Podcast, with the kickoff this week on January 8th at 1:00 pm; secure additional funding to complete the second prototype of the EnvAns search tool and run a pilot.”
Rhonda Jean (CEO, Nearby Nearby)
“My goal for 2025 is to establish Nearby Nearby as the go-to platform for rural discovery and the ultimate connector for rural businesses, starting with our pilot launch in Chatham or Randolph County. Additionally, I aim to secure grants and funding to expand into Western North Carolina, helping communities recover economically from the recent natural disaster by ensuring visitors can easily discover open businesses—at no cost to the business owners.”
Runbin Dong (CEO, Scale Social)
“Participate in Jason Calacanis’ LAUNCH program, get the spot to actually pitch to Jason, and secure Jason’s check; get to 150 paying customers, $1M in ARR; get featured on GrepBeat again** with ALL of these awesome goals achieved prior to the 2025 deadline!”
*I swear I didn’t ask Omar to say this.
**Aw shucks, guys.
Personal Goals….
Melvin Hines (CEO, Upswing Retention)
“I typically try to use the start of the new year to learn/explore something new for 30 days, and if I enjoy it I can keep it going. So for a few years now, I’ve picked something new to do each month of the year (mostly just the first half of the year). Here are my monthly items this year: January—Read the Bible every day; February—Practice French every day; March—Read the Quran every day; April—Run every day; May—Start a draft of [my] second book.”
Jan Davis (Co-Founder, RTP Angel Fund)
“My personal goal is to keep on weight-lifting twice a week, the heavier the better!”
Ivan Barajas Vargas (CEO, MuukTest)
“1% daily growth: personally, as a human, as a husband, as a friend, and as a CEO.”
Dr. Sarah Glova (CEO, Reify Media)
“My theme for 2025 is ‘bravery, poured gently.’ I’m leaning into courage in small but meaningful ways, with three things I want to do every month:
- Write a letter to an author I admire (the handwritten kind, with some beautiful stationery, maybe even a wax seal if I’m feeling extra…
- Host a monthly tea party with women who inspire me (hoping to brew up some meaningful conversations… sorry, couldn’t help it).
- Perform one big act of bravery (like attending an event that feels a little intimidating or saying yes to an unexpected opportunity).
Cheers to joy—and to stepping just a little outside the comfort zone.”
Ryan O’Donnell (CEO, Sunlight)
“Before we were expecting our first biological son, my wife and I made plans to visit all 50 states. Having a newborn would normally throw a wrench in those plans but so far he has been to nine states! Admittedly, a few of those states were because our return flight home from Boston was canceled during the whole Crowdstrike nightmare. Maybe we’ll keep up the momentum in 2025 but hopefully this time without a global IT outage!”
Brian Reale (Founder, ProcessMaker)
“Work on AI skills; build at least one personal AI agent on Claud (MCP Tools) that is good enough to share with friends. [Also,] take a year off from coffee drinking.”
Will Bowen (CEO, Givebacks)
“Be happy with what you have, while you pursue what you want!”
Megan Rowe (Co-Founder, Check What’s Good)
“My goal is to try two new things a month. Last year, an ‘ethical’ lock-picking class came through our AI event tool and I spontaneously went and really enjoyed it.”
Steven King (CEO, Blue Sky Robotics)
“Personally, I am working to make sure my habits reflect what I know is most important, like my family and my faith.”
Venus Liles (Founder, Liles Law)
“My personal resolution is to learn how to make body chain jewelry.”
Claire Benton (CEO, Teachbase)
“Have a Hobby! It is so easy to get swept up in build mode that you forget you need to nourish other parts of you. When I am in social situations lately and they ask what I like to do, I draw a blank. Yikes! All I can think of is the TV Shows I am watching in my tired down time. So, in summary, get a hobby!”
Rui Sun (Co-Founder, Dr. Milou)
“Personally, I’m working on enhancing my storytelling skills to better share the impact of our work and inspire deeper collaboration across the ecosystem.”
Tiana Elame (Founder, EnvAns)
“Develop a routine that allows me to balance my personal life (I’m a new mom!), family, and business effectively.”
Thanks very much to all those who sent in resolutions, and a Happy New Year to you all!
