Positive Mindset - Making 2009 the Year that Changed the Coarse of Your Life

A recent segment on Good Morning America asked its hosts, Diane Sawyer, Robin Roberts, Sam Champion and Chris Cuomo, to define “the year that changed your life”.  Each traveling down memory lane to pinpoint the year that ultimately changed the course of their life. 

Ironically, this segment coincided while developing my business strategy for 2009.   After outlining the goals I wanted to achieve for my business this year, I sat down to carve out a strategy to achieve those goals.  Knowing where I want to end up from where I am at today, I began to map out a plan of necessary actions that would get me from Point A to Point Z.  

As with any new path one chooses to venture, the past must be reviewed.  The announcement of Good Morning America’s segment seemed to resonate with me as I planned for the year.   It became clear that besides identifying the year that changed my life that I had the perfect opportunity to make the right decisions that would indeed make 2009 the year that changed my life and the life of my family. 

We should always look at the past for direction from our triumphs and pitfalls.  With that said, we also need to set our sites forward and carve new paths to voyage armed with the information of our accomplishments and losses.  Look back at the year that was the pivotal point that led you to where you are today, analyze the reasons behind it and the choices made.  Then look at your present and how you can again turn your world on its axis and make 2009 the year that changed your life.  

The Point

You have the choice.  You have the power.  You make the decision.  Vow with me, to make THIS YEAR – 2009 - to be the year that changed the course of your life.   Take a positive step towards success with the proper mindset and make this a remarkable year for yourself both with your business and personally; one that will be fondly remembered and modeled in the years to come.
Photo by Conanil

Staying Focused In Order to Achieve Success

It’s day six of the 2009, are you working towards your goals for the year?  Want to keep on track in order to achieve your goals? 

 

You’ve invested the time to outline your goals for the coming year.  You have followed through with developing a plan that makes those goals attainable.  Now, it’s time to put words into action.  It is now that you must implement the action so that you can achieve those lofty dreams.

As you proceed through the day, you will find yourself straying from the tasks at hand.  We all do it; tweeting on Twitter, reading blogs, surfing the web. 

Stop and ask yourself one question: 

Is what I’m doing right now consistent with my #1 goal?

 

Post it on your bulletin board - write it on your dry erase board.  Keep it out in front of you and periodically check-in on yourself. 

The Point

When you feel that you have wondered off the beaten path or just want to keep from straying, ask yourself if what you are doing at that given moment is going to assist you in accomplishing your number one goal.  A quick self-check and you’re back on point.
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Attainable Goals or Lotfy Ideas - Start 2009 with a Plan

As the year begins, most have given thought to what you want to accomplish in 2009. Sitting down with pen and tablet, you begin to list all the goals that you want to achieve in the coming year. After a bit, you have a long laundry list. With list in hand, what is the next step? Have you developed a plan to implement your goals? Are there tools in place to measure the achievement of your goals? Or, after a period time is the goal list shoved into a desk drawer until it is discovered months later when it’s time to set goals for the new approaching year?

Setting goals is more than making a list of items to accomplish. It’s laying out an attainable plan with guidelines, action steps and milestones. Goals should be set at a measure that is above your average performance level in order to heighten your skill set. They should not be based on your best performance nor should they be easily attained.

Process and Plan

As you think through the goals you want to achieve, ask yourself following questions so that you focus not only on the end result of the goal but the path needed to accomplish the goal.

• What do I specifically want to achieve?
• What resources are needed?
• Do I have the skill set needed or is there a learning curve to factor?
• Do I have the data and knowledge needed?
• Do I need assistance or collaboration with a colleague?
• What obstacles could block progress?
• What contributing factors are beyond my control?
• Is there more than one way of accomplishing goal?
• What does the desired outcome of the goal look like?
• Why do I want to achieve this goal?
• What is a realistic timeline for achievement?

Record and Review

After you have developed your goals and the action steps necessary to achieve them, write them down in a notebook and review them regularly. Jack Canfield suggests reviewing your goals daily and visualizing what accomplished goals look like.

The Point

Goals should be more than a laundry list of lofty ideas. Developing a plan to accomplish your goals lends itself as a huge contributing factor to successfully accomplishing them. Schedule quiet time to plan your path for the 2009 and achieve your dreams.

Photo by krisgriffon

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly – Evaluating 2008

It’s that time of year when a laundry list of goals and resolutions are made.  We have high hopes of changing ourselves, taking our business to the next level, conquering the world and saving the planet.  As you start define your goals for the coming year, have you taken the time to review those set for 2008?  Are your goals repetitive year after year?   Are you reaching the desired outcome?

In order to set achievable goals for 2009, evaluating those that were set for 2008 is a necessity.  Taking an honest look at the accomplishments and failures is not always easy but much can be learned.

Reviewing the goals that were set for 2008 and evaluating the outcome provides valuable information as you plan for the coming year.  The following questions will help you to explore your goals and achievements.

9 Questions - Reviewing Annual Goals

•    Did you review your goals regularly throughout the year?

•    Did you plan steps to take in order to achieve your goals?

•    Where your goals measurable – could you clearly define when the outcome was reached?

•    Did you accomplish each goal set?

•    Was the result what you envisioned?

•    What role did you have in the outcome of each goal?

•    If a goal was not accomplished, was the contributing factor within your control?

•    If you had to define the same goal would you expect the same results?

•    How would you approach an unachieved goal differently?

The Point

By evaluating The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, we set-up ourselves up to achieve more and obtain a more rewarding outcome.  We not only learn from our successes and our achievements, we learn from our failures.  Reviewing the year at the close provides an honest overview and the necessary information to be more successful in the coming year.

Photo by luschei

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