The most important thing anyone can do to create a plan for what you want your life to look like is to make it a top priority to THINK. Whether it be in the area of Faith, Relationships, Money, Career or Health (or all of these areas), you will be amazed at how clear your Plan becomes once you get alone by yourself, with a pen and paper – and NO DISTRACTIONS! My experience has shown that people really do know what they want from life – once they turn off all the noise that bombards their lives.
In a complete Life Plan, every area listed above should be addressed. For each area, focus on both the positive and negative sides. (Example: “I will be completely out of debt by 12/13/18. Also, I will not add any new debt in my life from this day on.”) Make sure that the plans you make are actually YOURS! Too many people go through life making plans that will make someone else happy, not themselves. Think about all the unhappy adults who become doctors, athletes, or successors in family businesses just because that was what their parents told them they should become. Also know that there is no magical checklist of what should go in a Life Plan. It is your Life. You choose what to put in your Plan.
Here is my favorite quote for you to consider before you make your plan. Viktor Frankl once said:
View your life from your funeral. Looking back at your life experiences:
– what have you accomplished?
– what would you have wanted to accomplish but didn’t?
– what were the happy moments?
– what were the sad?
– what would you do again?
– what wouldn’t you do?
The best way to make sure you achieve the Life Goals you set is to include these three elements: Specific Deadlines, Accountability, and a strong Sense of Urgency.
The late Zig Ziglar said, ‘Don’t become a wandering generality. Be a meaningful specific.” The same holds true for Life Goals. When you set a deadline to hit a goal, set an actual date. That eliminates the words “soon”, “one day” and “in the future.”
I have heard it said that most people – like all rivers – follow the path of least resistance and end up at the lowest point. If you truly want success from your Life Goals, you need an Accountability Partner. Many people will attempt to succeed without one in their lives, and may even achieve some level of success by themselves. My experience has shown that the most successful people in every area of life got that way by surrounding themselves with people who held them accountable.
The third element often goes overlooked. That is the main reason I wrote SubmUrgency: How to Live – and Die – Without Regret. Living your daily life – and working your Life Plan – with a strong Sense of Urgency makes a huge difference. Too often we procrastinate in one or more areas of life, and suffer as a result. If you will focus on attacking your Life Plan every day with a strong Sense of Urgency you will be astonished by your progress!
