Donald Deibler, a business owner based in Hegins, Pennsylvania, has adopted a personal policy that no goal counts unless it is written down first. The approach, which he applies to both his role as business manager of All Stars Ice Cream and Cafe Bakery and his support of his wife's ownership of Dead Horse Beer and Burritos, underscores a simple but often overlooked principle: formalizing objectives on paper can be the difference between intention and accomplishment.
Deibler's method is straightforward. Every January 1, he sets yearly goals. At the start of each month, he adds smaller, specific goals that serve as steps toward the larger annual target. Both lists remain visible, not filed away in a forgotten notebook. "I like to set yearly goals every January 1st and monthly goals at the beginning of every month," Deibler said. "I keep these in the back of my mind daily." The policy is simple on its face; the discipline lies in the follow-through.
Why this matters extends beyond one individual's routine. In the demanding food service industry, where schedules are unpredictable and distractions are constant, having a written reference point can help maintain focus. Deibler describes handling moments of doubt by taking everything one task at a time, a philosophy that mirrors his goal-setting structure. A big yearly target is broken into monthly pieces so it never feels overwhelming. He measures success in plain terms: "By accomplishing your goals and exceeding past that." There is no external scorecard; he checks his own list against his own results.
The monthly goal is not merely a smaller copy of the yearly one, but a specific step toward it. On January 1, the year's goal is written down in full. On the first of each month, a smaller, specific goal is added underneath. Daily, both stay visible enough to shape decisions. Deibler says the habit of setting new goals is also how he keeps growing once an old goal is met. "By setting new goals," he said, is what continued growth looks like. Nothing about the policy assumes an endpoint; one goal closes and another opens.
The standard applies across multiple operations. Deibler manages All Stars Ice Cream and Cafe Bakery and supports his wife's ownership of Dead Horse Beer and Burritos. Two operations mean two sets of goals running at once, sometimes overlapping. He credits his family for shaping his approach. "My family, including my parents and siblings," is who he names as his biggest influence. Growing up with five siblings in Donaldson, Pennsylvania, taught him early how to divide attention across multiple priorities without losing track of any. Outside the businesses, the same habit shows in his community commitments, including local youth sports donations and volunteer coaching, work that also runs on a calendar rather than good intentions alone.
Deibler is direct about what makes the policy work. "Hard work and a positive attitude," he said, are the qualities he considers most important. Neither appears on a to-do list, but both determine whether the list gets finished. He also gauges success "by my own standards," whether that is a monthly goal for the bakery or a longer-term plan for the burrito business. The written-goal habit is not a marketing device; it is the same operating rhythm Deibler has used across both businesses for years, now made explicit for anyone who asks how he keeps two food and beverage operations moving in the same direction without losing sight of either one.
