Donald Deibler, a business owner based in Hegins, Pennsylvania, is making explicit a personal rule that has quietly shaped his approach to work and life: no goal counts unless it is written down first. The policy, which he applies to both his business operations and personal commitments, offers a window into how he manages the demands of running multiple food and beverage ventures simultaneously.
Every January 1, Deibler sets his goals for the year. At the start of each month, he adds smaller, specific objectives. Both lists remain in front of him daily, not tucked away in a notebook to be forgotten by February. "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 simplicity of the rule belies the discipline required to follow through, especially given the unpredictable nature of his workdays.
Deibler serves as business manager of All Stars Ice Cream and Cafe Bakery, a role that rarely looks the same twice. He also supports his wife's ownership of Dead Horse Beer and Burritos. Running two operations means two sets of goals running at once, sometimes overlapping. A written goal, he says, is something he can return to when the schedule gets noisy. "By taking everything one task at a time," is how Deibler describes handling moments of doubt. The same approach applies to goals: a big yearly target gets broken into monthly pieces so it never feels like one overwhelming task.
The monthly goal is not a smaller copy of the yearly one; it is 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 it. Daily, both stay visible enough to shape decisions rather than simply sit on a page. Deibler measures success in plain terms: "By accomplishing your goals and exceeding past that." There is no external scorecard involved. He checks his own list against his own results.
When asked what continued growth looks like, Deibler's answer is straightforward: "By setting new goals." Nothing about the policy assumes an endpoint. One goal closes and another opens. This cycle of setting and achieving goals is how he keeps moving forward once an old objective is met.
The policy extends beyond business. Deibler credits his family, including his parents and siblings, as his biggest influence. Growing up with five siblings in Donaldson, Pennsylvania, meant learning early how to divide attention across more than one priority without losing track of any of them. That lesson shows up in how he treats commitments to the community as well. He has stayed involved with 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 written-goal policy work rather than fail. "Hard work and a positive attitude," he said, are the qualities he considers most important. Neither shows up on a to-do list, but both determine whether the list gets finished. He also gauges his success by a standard that is not borrowed from anyone else: "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. In an environment where many small business owners struggle to maintain focus, Deibler's policy offers a simple, replicable framework: write it down, keep it visible, and let it guide daily decisions.
