You've probably heard the old expression, "You don't plan to fail, you fail to plan.
" Or one of the Navy SEAL's favorite mottos, "You plan your dive and you dive your plan.
" There are lots more of these too, but you didn't click on this article to take part in a cliché festival.
The reason that there has been so much written on goal setting and on planning, which are really interlocked, is because they are vitally important and they work.
If you want to get somewhere in life, be it to a new city or a new level of financial, business or social success, you need to know the destination before you start the journey.
The destination is your goal, and the plan is the route you will take.
You'll find that all successful people follow this rule.
They always set a goal and always make a plan to achieve it.
It's pretty tough to succeed otherwise, to tell the truth.
So the why is easy.
You should create plans because they will make it so much easier to reach your goals.
It's not guaranteed, but if you just go blindly ahead, it's almost guaranteed you'll never reach that goal.
So let's focus now on how to create a plan.
Not just any old plan, but a plan that will work and act as the tracks to the locomotive of your success.
There are several key components, so let's start with the most important one, which we've already touched on: YOU MUST HAVE A GOAL This is the first step to a plan and to succeeding.
As we mentioned, you've got to have a destination, a purpose.
Now, when we talk about goals, here, we're not just referring to some ambiguous generalization, like, "I want to be rich.
" Or "I want to be famous.
" When we speak of goals, we're talking about a very specific target.
So what you must do is sit down and think very hard about exactly what you want.
If your goal, as the thrust of this article is leaning toward, is business and financial success, then set yourself a specific goal in that respect.
Now, you may have many levels of goals, from this month, to this year, to the next five years, to your lifetime.
And this is great, and we encourage that.
But for the purpose of this article, let's set a laser-focused goal that fits into your long term plan.
For example, you might set a goal that by the end of the year, you will increase your company's revenue by 15%, or you might set a goal that you want 6 new clients by the end of the next quarter.
These are very specific.
And the reason for this is that with a much focused goal, it is easier to create a plan to achieve it.
DEFINE THE TASKS YOU MUST COMPLETE The next stage in planning is the actual plan, or what on the surface seems like the plan.
The definition of a set of tasks that must be completed in order to attain your goal in the time you've set for yourself.
Mind you, this is not the end of the plan.
For example, in our above ideas, if you are planning on increasing your company's revenue by 15% by the end of the year, you must write down what needs to be done in order to make that happen.
That might mean increasing the advertising budget, or hiring a new sales person, or you making contact with 100 new customers in order to close 25 of them so that the average sale will generate $7,500, thus reaching your financial goal.
Or, to take the other example, to sign 6 new clients by the end of the year, you must have some idea of your sign up rate.
How many clients sign after initial contact? What is your close rate? So if you want 6, that might mean talking to 30, which means you must make contact with 50 new contacts each month in order to get 10 hot leads, in order to close 2 per month for the next 3 months.
Something along those lines.
You will have to determine exactly what needs to happen in order to reach the goal you've set, and you must commit that to paper and to memory.
WHAT WILL YOU SACRIFICE? Another aspect of your plan, once you have the goal and the actions listed, is to note what things you will give up in order to get what you want.
In other words, how will you pay for your achievement.
Everything in life comes at a cost, be it money, time, lost sleep, exercise, etc.
So if you know what you want and what you need to do to get it, you must also have an idea of the things you will put aside, even in part, to ensure you have the time and resources necessary to attaining your goal and acting on your plan.
This might sound a bit silly, but it is important, and should be incorporated into your written plan.
MAKE A COMMITMENT This is the most important part of your plan.
You must decide to commit to the goal and the actions, and the sacrifices you've written down in order to get what you want.
So as not to seem ambiguous, let's be clear on what we mean by commitment.
The first thing you do is write out a statement of commitment on your plan and sign and date it.
Therefore, you will have written evidence that you can review any time you want that you have made a signed promise.
Often, this has a bracing psychological effect.
Next, find a person or persons who you trust and who will be supportive of your plan and give them a copy of it.
This now makes it public, along with your statement, and will help create accountability.
It's easy to fib to ourselves but much harder to look somebody else in the eye and make excuses.
And if possible, get your associates to sign your plan as well, stating that they will commit to keeping you accountable and that they know you can achieve your goal.
And lastly, as part of your commitment, take action.
Do something every day to work on your plan.
When you have a definite goal, and a plan to attain it, and take action on that goal, you will find a source of great power.
You can do it if you believe you can.
And clear goals mixed with strong desire and definite action builds enormous belief and confidence.
I know, you're probably thinking that this planning article has turned into a self help book.
Well, that's only because we're citing established truths here.
If you follow these four simple steps, you can get anything you set out to.
And another quick reminder, it is okay to ask for help in this process.
There is also great power in bringing two or more heads together.
So good luck and happy goal seeking!
" Or one of the Navy SEAL's favorite mottos, "You plan your dive and you dive your plan.
" There are lots more of these too, but you didn't click on this article to take part in a cliché festival.
The reason that there has been so much written on goal setting and on planning, which are really interlocked, is because they are vitally important and they work.
If you want to get somewhere in life, be it to a new city or a new level of financial, business or social success, you need to know the destination before you start the journey.
The destination is your goal, and the plan is the route you will take.
You'll find that all successful people follow this rule.
They always set a goal and always make a plan to achieve it.
It's pretty tough to succeed otherwise, to tell the truth.
So the why is easy.
You should create plans because they will make it so much easier to reach your goals.
It's not guaranteed, but if you just go blindly ahead, it's almost guaranteed you'll never reach that goal.
So let's focus now on how to create a plan.
Not just any old plan, but a plan that will work and act as the tracks to the locomotive of your success.
There are several key components, so let's start with the most important one, which we've already touched on: YOU MUST HAVE A GOAL This is the first step to a plan and to succeeding.
As we mentioned, you've got to have a destination, a purpose.
Now, when we talk about goals, here, we're not just referring to some ambiguous generalization, like, "I want to be rich.
" Or "I want to be famous.
" When we speak of goals, we're talking about a very specific target.
So what you must do is sit down and think very hard about exactly what you want.
If your goal, as the thrust of this article is leaning toward, is business and financial success, then set yourself a specific goal in that respect.
Now, you may have many levels of goals, from this month, to this year, to the next five years, to your lifetime.
And this is great, and we encourage that.
But for the purpose of this article, let's set a laser-focused goal that fits into your long term plan.
For example, you might set a goal that by the end of the year, you will increase your company's revenue by 15%, or you might set a goal that you want 6 new clients by the end of the next quarter.
These are very specific.
And the reason for this is that with a much focused goal, it is easier to create a plan to achieve it.
DEFINE THE TASKS YOU MUST COMPLETE The next stage in planning is the actual plan, or what on the surface seems like the plan.
The definition of a set of tasks that must be completed in order to attain your goal in the time you've set for yourself.
Mind you, this is not the end of the plan.
For example, in our above ideas, if you are planning on increasing your company's revenue by 15% by the end of the year, you must write down what needs to be done in order to make that happen.
That might mean increasing the advertising budget, or hiring a new sales person, or you making contact with 100 new customers in order to close 25 of them so that the average sale will generate $7,500, thus reaching your financial goal.
Or, to take the other example, to sign 6 new clients by the end of the year, you must have some idea of your sign up rate.
How many clients sign after initial contact? What is your close rate? So if you want 6, that might mean talking to 30, which means you must make contact with 50 new contacts each month in order to get 10 hot leads, in order to close 2 per month for the next 3 months.
Something along those lines.
You will have to determine exactly what needs to happen in order to reach the goal you've set, and you must commit that to paper and to memory.
WHAT WILL YOU SACRIFICE? Another aspect of your plan, once you have the goal and the actions listed, is to note what things you will give up in order to get what you want.
In other words, how will you pay for your achievement.
Everything in life comes at a cost, be it money, time, lost sleep, exercise, etc.
So if you know what you want and what you need to do to get it, you must also have an idea of the things you will put aside, even in part, to ensure you have the time and resources necessary to attaining your goal and acting on your plan.
This might sound a bit silly, but it is important, and should be incorporated into your written plan.
MAKE A COMMITMENT This is the most important part of your plan.
You must decide to commit to the goal and the actions, and the sacrifices you've written down in order to get what you want.
So as not to seem ambiguous, let's be clear on what we mean by commitment.
The first thing you do is write out a statement of commitment on your plan and sign and date it.
Therefore, you will have written evidence that you can review any time you want that you have made a signed promise.
Often, this has a bracing psychological effect.
Next, find a person or persons who you trust and who will be supportive of your plan and give them a copy of it.
This now makes it public, along with your statement, and will help create accountability.
It's easy to fib to ourselves but much harder to look somebody else in the eye and make excuses.
And if possible, get your associates to sign your plan as well, stating that they will commit to keeping you accountable and that they know you can achieve your goal.
And lastly, as part of your commitment, take action.
Do something every day to work on your plan.
When you have a definite goal, and a plan to attain it, and take action on that goal, you will find a source of great power.
You can do it if you believe you can.
And clear goals mixed with strong desire and definite action builds enormous belief and confidence.
I know, you're probably thinking that this planning article has turned into a self help book.
Well, that's only because we're citing established truths here.
If you follow these four simple steps, you can get anything you set out to.
And another quick reminder, it is okay to ask for help in this process.
There is also great power in bringing two or more heads together.
So good luck and happy goal seeking!
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