7 CEOs Share Their New Year's Resolutions for 2010

Susan Gregg Koger saw sales at her company, ModCloth, soar to $15 million in 2009. She hopes to build upon that success next year by finding a mentor with experience in fashion and by collaborating with more established businesses in her industry. “I’d like to meet other thought leaders in the e-retail space, and meet more ModCloth customers face to face,” she says. Her personal goals include making time for daily journal entries, travel to Asia, and improving her photography skills.

Maureen Kelly’s company, Tarte Cosmetics, will mark its 10th anniversary this spring by launching a new, limited-edition collection of “green” cosmetics, developed in conjunction with celebrity makeup artist Tina Turnbow. But Kelly strives not to let new product launches disrupt her work-life balance. “I’m going to make more time, even if it’s getting up an hour earlier and hitting the gym or coloring with my two little boys,” she says.

Michael Simmons, co-founder and CEO of Extreme Entrepreneurship Tour and the JourneyPage Virtual Business Incubator, has a very specific goal for 2010: “Earn an additional $120,000 in net income.” Beyond boosting profits, Simmons says he will continue to streamline the work flow within both companies so that his employees can be as productive as possible. “We’re working to build solid systems for every role in our business, so that new employees know exactly how to do their jobs and my co-founders and I can work on the business instead of in it,” he says.

Grace Ueng rebounded both personally and professionally from a bike accident that resulted in a brain injury four years ago. In 2010, Ueng, whose athletic pursuits began with a marathon to raise funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, will launch a corporate social responsibility program at her marketing consultancy, Savvy Marketing Group. She plans to continue biking, for charity and for leisure, as well. "I hope to sign up for six races," she says.

Next year, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery will open two brewpubs and introduce Namaste, a Belgian beer fermented with dried orange slices and lemongrass. Sam Calagione, Dogfish’s founder and president, has ambitious goals outside work as well: he and his wife are training for the New York Half-Marathon in March. But, he says, “I resolve to sleep under the same roof as my kids, Sammy and Grier, every single night of July and August—meaning no overnight brewery-related trips this summer.”

Although online clothing retailer Bonobos saw its revenue rise substantially in the past year, it didn’t quite hit the mark for CEO Andy Dunn, who plans to alter the company’s approach to revenue projections: “In 2009, we had an awesome year, nearly tripling the business in a tough economy, but we aimed for even better. Next year, we methodically plan a double. In some ways it will be more satisfying to aim more realistically, plan for it, and exceed it if we can, then to shoot for the moon and be happy with not quite getting there.”

Ada Polla, CEO of skin care company Alchimie Forever, made her debut on QVC this year. She has compiled a myriad list of seven goals for 2010, both for her company and for herself: “Break even. Take up yoga. Stop doing things that I can delegate to others. Find a distributor for Europe. Develop a mission statement. Be on The Oprah Show. Replace some e-mails with handwritten notes of thanks and gratitude.”—April Joyner