What You Do

The only measure of what you believe is what you do. If you want to know what people believe, don’t read what they write, don’t ask what they believe, just observe what they do.

– Ashley Montagu

Impossible?

“Many things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done.”

― Louis Dembitz Brandeis

Dream Big

“If we all did the things we are capable of, we would astound ourselves.”

— Thomas A. Edison

Reflect, Adjust, Plan

If you’re not married, I am sure you know of someone who has gotten married or been to a wedding — have you ever seen the planning process that takes place to get ready for that special day? It can really stress some people out. They plan and plan for 6 to 12 months a head of time to make sure everything is in place and good to go.

Is it ironic that we take that much time to plan for just one day, but yet when it comes to planning out what we want to accomplish in a given year, we hardly spend a few minutes?

These next few days are a great opportunity for you to take some time to reflect on what you have accomplished in 2012 and what you would like to accomplish and do different in 2013. I am not talking about New Years resolutions — those are different. I am talking about spending some quality time to reflect, adjust, and set a course of direction for your life in 2013. I am going to walk you through what this time looks like for me. Hopefully you can spend some time to do this yourself and make it an annual routine.

Reflect. This is the first place to start. Look back on 2012 and write down in a journal to yourself how it went — What did you accomplish? What trials did you go through? What did you learn? What do you wish you would have done? This will help you start to shape your goals for 2013. If you had set goals for this past year, review them and mark down how you did.

Adjust. After looking at the last year you should have a good picture of the direction you took — what areas do you need to adjust, if any? Was this past year a step forward toward your God inspired mission? If not, or if it could have been more productive, start thinking about what things you will adjust in the New Year.

Plan. Now it’s time to set some goals. If you have never done this before, your goals should follow the SMART framework. They should be: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. With that in mind, start writing down what you want to accomplish. Here are the categories you should make your goals in to stay well rounded:  Spiritual, Family, Physical, Intellectual, Career, Financial, and Social. Just make sure they fit the framework above — don’t write down wishes or things you have no way of accomplishing or measuring.

The most important part of making goals is writing them down — preferably somewhere you will continually see them. The second most important part is having an action plan for each of these goals. For example, if your goal this year is to lost 25 pounds, then your weekly/monthly action plan might be to go to the gym 3 times a week, run 12 miles a week, stick to a diet, etc.

So be intentional this week and take some time to reflect, adjust, and plan for 2013.

A Powerful Balance

“Our preoccupation with goals, results, and the quick fix has separated us from our own experiences. To put it more starkly, it has robbed us of countless hours of the time of our lives.”

– George Leonard

This is important to realize and be aware of in our pursuit of personal development toward an end goal. In fact any goal you have set for yourself it is vital to realize the power that exists in balancing the desire and preoccupation to have that goal with loving the process of getting there. Of course the other extreme is not good either. I would call it drifting — going through life without any direction or goals and just living in the here and now. This would be detrimental to fulfilling your purpose in life.

The power is in the balance. Having an ambition to set goals and find your purpose in life while living and enjoying every moment of the journey in getting there. That is why in my other post I included your passions in determining your mission statement for your life. You have to love what you do down to the monotonousness routine of it. This balancing act is much easier said than done — it takes time and practice to get it right.

Working out is a good analogy.  If you have a goal to lose 30 pounds and all you do is focus on going the gym everyday hating the pain that you are going through and being preoccupied with weighing yourself daily focusing on getting to your goal, you will miss life and likely burn out. Instead, slow down, enjoy the time spent at the gym. Cherish your progress — a pound loss, muscle definition, greater endurance, etc. Learn to truly enjoy the discipline of going to the gym and working out — that monotonous process.

Once you find the balance, you will enjoy the rewards that follow — progress towards an intentional goal and enjoying every moment of the process.