When people ask me what one most important action I take every year has contributed to my achievements the answer is simple. I work from a success plan.
This success plan includes what I really want in life and in business and how I will get there. I’ve been doing this for the past 12 years and I believe it’s a fool proof way to manifest any set of goals.
If you’ve never done a success plan before, it does require some soul-searching, deep thinking and a good chunk of time the first go round. But once you’ve done this the first time, then every year all you do is update and the time investment is minimal.
If this process is seems overwhelming, don’t procrastinate. Break it down into small pieces. Just write one section a day. In a week or two, you should have a critical tool to speed up your path to success.
I just finished updating my success for 2013 and here is my outline. I hope it is helpful to you. The sooner you complete yours, the sooner you will start seeing results.
Before I begin my plan, I inventory my last year.
- What did I love about the last 12 months and want to repeat?
- What specific things or actions did I do that caused those results?
- What did I not enjoy and don’t want to repeat?
- What specific things or actions did I do or not do that caused those results?
From here I work through the pillars of my plan.
Vision:
Think of your vision as if you were writing your obituary, and how do you want to be remembered. But write it in a present tense.
Here’s mine.
I, Karen Post, am an accomplished, awesome, very creative person. I am confident, witty, smart, talented and a life adventurer. I am a sought after business and branding authority, motivational speaker, published author and consultant known by many as the Branding Diva®. I touch thousands through my writing and presentations on entrepreneurship, personal growth, branding and marketing issues. I inspire, empower and help others to achieve their goals and live a full, fun and rewarding life.
Words that describe Karen’s brand
These words are adjectives that describe your personality
- Inspirational
- Successful
- Spontaneous
- High-energy
- Fun
- Witty
- Smart
- Creative
Values:
Your values are what is important to you, there are no right or wrong list of values
Here are mine.
- I value me (my passions, creative gifts, physical being and contributions to the world).
- I value my independence.
- I value my originality.
- I value financial security.
- I value my body, my health and appearance.
- I value the thrill of challenge and risk.
- I value achievement and recognition.
- I value design, beautiful and fine material and natural things.
- I value my personal relationships, my partner, family, friends, and my advisors.
- I value creative environments.
- I value being in the high-idea flow zone.
- I value giving back and helping others succeed.
My 2013 goals:
I try to limit my goals to 2 or 3 big ones. Goals need to be accountable and specific, not vague.
- GOOD EXAMPLE OF A GOAL – I WILL EARN $500,000
- BAD EXAMPLE OF A GOAL – I WILL BE RICH AND FAMOUS
Objectives:
Objectives are smaller milestones that are necessary to reach your goals.
- Sell ________ of books
- Earn national publicity ______ placements
- Deliver _____ paid speaking gigs
- Get booked for a TED event
Overall Strategies:
These are behaviors that must be embraced.
- Be disciplined with rituals
- Don’t compromise creation fuel, time and process
- Stay focused on results, master the art of task chunking
- Perform beyond expectations for clients
- Broaden speaker offering with new motivation program around “Self-steam”, the new fuel for ultimate fortune
- Maintain top SEO ranking
- Build top tier delegation/support team
- Do less better
- Be a smart and efficient knowledge sponge
- Have a blast, everyday
Next, I write specific action plans for each one of my income streams. I have three income streams, they include: consulting, speaking and product sales.
I start by listing my competition. I monitor these companies and individuals monthly. I look at their website and follow them on social media, too.
Next, I Identify my target buyers.
Then, I answer these questions.
- What strategic programs or initiatives do I need to build and embrace?
- What specific actions do I need to take?
- When will I need to do these things?
- And what type of resources do I need to allocate to them?
My annual plans are no longer than 10-12 pages. They are very definitive and clear. I am firm believer in those who work from a plan, get stuff done and those who get stuff done reach goals and experience an amazing journey.
Follow this outline. Write your plan. Work it, and I promise, you will see results.
Here’s a couple past articles from my blog that may help too.
Good luck!