If Not Now, When?
May 2010
Part I
Do you have dreams and goals that you want to achieve but have been putting them on the backburner?
Perhaps dreams and goals is too grandiose a commitment. What about those things you just want to do or have or want to accomplish? They might include such things related to personal growth, business goals, health and exercise goals, lifestyle goals, family goals, personal relationships, material objects, vacation and travel goals, etc.
Why do we procrastinate doing the things that we desire? There are a multitude of reasons. See if any of these reasons apply to you.
- Your list includes too many should do's and not enough want to do's
- You fear failing
- Lack of confidence
- You lack belief that they are attainable
- Deep down you feel that you don't deserve it
- You feel that now is just not the right time to try
- You lack a passionate desire
- You don't have a support system to help you achieve it
- Your life is out of balance
- You're just too disorganized
- You're not clear about what it is you want
Food for Thought-Do it NOW!
I've written extensively about goal achievement and why some people seem to have an easier time achieving their goals while others struggle. The list above is a great place to start. If two or three items on the list apply to you, it's time to do some introspection. What follows are excerpts from some of my previously published Champions' E-zines. I hope what follows helps you to answer the question, "If not now, when," by saying that NOW is the time for you to achieve your goals and to live up to your full potential.
Over the years I have been very fortunate to work with many wonderful clients in my individual, group and management team coaching practice. They have each taken the risk to reach out to achieve more of what they perceived that they were capable of achieving. And they made great progress. Sometimes it came in flash, other times it took a little longer. Why were they able to achieve at higher levels? What traits did they have in common? If I could boil down all of the experiences of my clients into those factors that made significant differences in their lives, businesses, and ultimate success, it would include be the following 6 key factors.
- Inspiration-Mission-Purpose
What woke you up this morning? Was it an alarm clock or an inspiring and compelling vision of the future you are creating for yourself and/or your organization? Wishing for success won’t bring it about. Working harder at strategies that aren’t working just leads to frustration.
Knowing what you want your life and career to be about is perhaps the most significant factor in the fulfillment of your dreams and achieving the success that you have envisioned for yourself. You would be surprised how many people I talk to that have their lives governed by too many should do’s and ought to do's. Some have long forgotten why they are on the path they are on. Being clear about your life’s purpose also means not putting up with toleration’s, lack of goals, and not getting your needs met.
Write down what it is you want to accomplish, don’t just think about it. The very act of writing it down will help you to clarify what you want. Be able to articulate what you want to accomplish clearly. Vividly imagine what it feels like to have already achieved it. Share your vision with others and celebrate the milestones that you have achieved along the way. By celebrating those "smaller" achievements along the way, you get positive reinforcement that you are on the right track and can achieve more. As you come close to accomplishing each goal, write out new ones to help pull you forward towards the future you desire.
- Goal Clarity
Once you know what you want your life and legacy to be all about, it’s time to develop a strategy and a plan to achieve it. What is required next is to write down what your short and long term goals need to be to accomplish your purpose. Be very, very, clear on what your goals are. Don’t include what others have suggested for you. Goals are very personal. They can be big and small. They can and should be comprised of both business and personal goals. Whatever you decide your goals should be, go after them with passion and a burning desire to achieve them. Anything less will yield unsatisfying results. Be very specific and precise in how you describe your goals, wishes, and desires. Include measurable and objective benchmarks to gauge your progress and timeframes to shoot for to achieve each one. From time to time take stock in your progress. Sometimes progress can only be measured by looking backwards to see how far we have come. Make course corrections whenever necessary. Many smaller course corrections along the way are much preferred over one or two big changes that may come too late to make a difference. No one expects perfection without practice, fine tuning, patience, and perseverance.
- Focus & Consistent Commitment to Action
Now that you have defined your mission, purpose, and goals, it is time to focus on achieving them. Don’t be led astray with distractions. Checking email incessantly, solving every problem ourselves, and multi-tasking at the expense of accuracy, among others; drains our energy and causes us to lose our focus and sometimes even our direction. Create and review your key focus areas each day and ask yourself, “What is the highest and best use of my time today to accomplish my goals or focus areas?” It’s easy to get caught up with checking off a multitude of items from our "to do" lists, however, unless those items directly relate to our primary goals (which should support your larger purpose); our progress towards our primary goals will slow down to a crawl. Here’s the sequence of events: State goal, create an action plan, execute the plan, review results, make course adjustments, revise the plan, execute the plan, etc.
Consistent commitment to taking the required actions to achieve your goals is a crucial element in the achievement of these goals and in your ultimate success. Create systems to track the actions you must take each day and make the necessary course corrections to ensure your success. Busy work might make you feel good, but only by taking the appropriate actions each day will you move closer to reaching your goals and dreams.
To be continued...
Good luck to you on your journey to success.
Robert A. Arzt , CLU, ChFC, LLIF, is CEO of Polaris One and InsuranceCoachu.com. Bob is coach to professionals who are ready to achieve more. He is available for speaking engagements and consultations. To speak with Bob, you may contact him at 301-610-5624 or by e-mail at bob@insurancecoachu.com. You may also visit his website at www.insurancecoachu.com.
To take advantage of a free coaching session to accelerate your success, click here.
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