Here's my list of the tools you'll need for a great year:

1. If you can afford it, buy, lease, or rent a backhoe tractor with a bucket scoop on the front. You can easily dig new ditches for power, water, or sewer, or help the rainwater drain away. The bucket scoop makes it easy to level a site, haul in more gravel, or fix those darn potholes. If you can swap out for a blade, you can keep your road smooth, and if need be, clear the snow on your roads and sites faster.

2. A good electrical tester for little stuff like checking a light or fuse, or larger items like 20, 30 and 50 amp breakers.

3. A good, heavy duty cordless drill/screwdriver. There are hundreds of things around a park that needs tightening now and then. If you live in a cold region, after you finally thaw out, twist the loose screws back in, and use a hammer to knock in the loose nails.

4. A good digital camera to capture those special shots you need for all your promotional programs in 2010.

5. A better photo file to store the good shots, or digital files for sorting your photos. See previous tips for this topic.

6. A Good Special Event File for building up your off weekends. Take a new calendar and using last year's attendance numbers, circle the weekends with the lowest attendance, and go to work on planning something special to begin promoting those weekends in 2010. Don't accept off weekends – fight to improve them!

7. Many folks take vitamins and supplements, as well as pills for aches and pains, but make sure you also keep a good size bottle of 'patience' around. It will make the bad days much better. It's a great tool!

8. Make a Marketing Schedule and To-Do list for the year, and start filling it up right away.

Copyright 2010 by GTI