This post will tell you why every plan you have ever built was wrong.
You make a plan for your ideal future. The future that you picture yourself as being happy
Plans are a fickle thing, we want them to be put in stone once they are made. We do not have to continually work if the plan doesn’t need to be adjusted.
Plans have to be allowed to change and adapt as the situation changes. It’s like when we have an ideal situation we want to create, that ideal is only good for the moment. Because as we move through life, as we develop new interests and our ideas change that ideal begins to shift and change.
The ideal is a target that can never be hit because it is always moving.
We plan for the ideal, then we get frustrated when that ideal cannot be realized and we give up on the plan becoming reality.
When building a plan you have to understand the ideal will forever be chased, but never reached. You have to stop measuring the success of a plan on whether or not you achieve the ideal. It is not achievable.
BUT!
If you begin to measure progress this is where true accomplishment comes from. When we are measuring against the ideal we are looking at how far we have to go, when we measure against progress (knowing where we started, full post here) then we can see how far we have come.
The ideal is ever shifting but our progress, once achieved, is set in stone. We cannot change the past, this goes for good and bad. Once we accomplish something good, you cannot change the past.
That’s awesome!
No one can take away from you the accomplishments of your past, think about that for a minute. When we look back on our lives we are trained to think about and remember the things we did wrong. What regrets do you have? I could have done this better. What if you take a minute and think about what did you do right? What accomplishments did you achieve? What was done well? Those things cannot be changed, they are forever set in the stone of your life!
Talk about a mindset shift!
So what are the things that you can actually control in your planning? Do you know?
There is only one thing in life that you have control over and that is you. You have control of your actions, your thoughts, your emotions. If the only thing you have control over is you, then your plan can only have parts that depend on you. Otherwise it is doomed to fail.
When making a plan look at each step in the process that you have created and ask yourself “do I have complete control of this step?” if you do not, then that is not a good step and it needs to be revised to make sure that the step is still accomplished but that you have control over the execution of it.
This is scary for some people, it requires that you take responsibility for the step being accomplished. However, there is good news! “All human growth requires the possibility of failure” – Dennis Peacocke
If you are ready to grow and make your dream a reality, then it is time to take responsibility for your actions, the success or failure of each step along the way (that only you can control, do not allow a step the requires something from someone else!), then you are ready to begin working on your dreams.
Make a plan
1.Understand your why for the plan before you ever start. If you don’t know your why go HERE and read the post about how to find your why.
2. lay out each step from where you are today to accomplishing your goal. You may not know every step along the way but write down the steps that you do know. As you accomplish those steps I bet the next step in the process will become clear. Or you may realize that you went down a wrong path and have to back track and redo some steps differently than you thought. Either way, the next step will reveal itself while you are going down the correct path!
3. Make sure that each step only requires action from you. No one else!
Review plan regularly
I suggest reviewing your plan once a week, if not more often. For sure you need to review the plan after the completion of each step. This will allow you to keep the big picture in mind as you accomplish each step along the way. It will also allow you some time for reflection on the progress you have made, does the plan need to change at all or do you keep going down the path you are on. Take the time for reflection on what has been accomplished and make sure the next step needed hasn’t changed.
Measure progress, not how far you have to go
DO NOT MEASURE AGAINST THE END GOAL! Only measure against the progress you have made. Remember where you started and look at where you are today, then allow yourself to feel the accomplishment of making progress (no matter how small or large). This will help you to stay positive and motivated along the way.
Adjust plan
It is very likely that along the way your plan will need to be adjusted. You will have to back track and redo some steps. You wont hit the goal on the first try. But as you work on one goal and then the next, you are training your brain and habits to acclimate and acquire success. Do not get frustrated about the steps that need to get redone or the adjustments that need to be made along the way. They are part of the growth process for you personally so you are ready and prepared to receive the goal and benefit you have been working toward. Embrace the process.
Keep going
Don’t give up. Keep going. There are going to be hard days and days when you want to quit but please don’t. Get up shake it off and keep pursuing the goal that you have set. You will be a better person on the other side of this process. Even though it doesn’t feel positive in the moment these are the growing pains that are creating the future, better you. Don’t stunt your growth keep pushing, the pain wont last as long as you think, and there will be happiness on the other side.
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