It is now 2016. The New Year is here. It is a time when many people try to make changes in their lives. Sometimes these are drastic changes. However, one thing I constantly and consistently notice is that these changes are attempted without a plan of any sort. Most think they have a plan, at least conceptually. However, what they actually have is just an idea.
I used the example, in a previous post, about exercising. Many people have a “plan” for exercising that goes something like this. I want to exercise more in the new year. So, I am going to join a gym and go three times a week. Some may use a personal trainer at the gym to put them on track while others may actually do a little internet research or ask a friend what they use for a workout routine. This is not a plan.
Your planning for the year should encompass all aspects of your life, both personal and professional. And it should weave the two sides of your life together to support each other. However, for the sake of time and post length, I will stick to making a plan around exercising; which you can use the underlying principles in the rest of your life planning as well.
If your plan is to exercise more and you have already established your why (previously explained), then you need to go to the end and work backwards. In a year from now, what do you hope to achieve? Do you want bigger muscles, slimmer and more tone physique, lose weight, increase endurance, lower stress? Each of these have different routines and different commitments to other things in your life.
Let’s use the example of wanting to build lean muscle only. Most have combination objectives. But I am trying to keep it simple to convey the principle. In wanting to build lean muscle, you need to determine how much lean muscle you want to add by the end of the year. From that you can hire a personal trainer to help you design a routine and meal plan or you can try to do the research yourself. The former costs more money but requires less personal time. The latter costs more time but requires less money.
Regardless of direction, you need to determine what the objective is that you are working towards. Without a stated objective, how will you know when you have achieved it? After you have your stated objective, then you can establish the processes and support required to achieve the objective.
For example, let’s say you want to gain 12 pounds in lean muscle within the next year. That equates to one pound of lean muscle per month. To achieve this, you will need to set a workout schedule (how many times a week), a workout routine (what you will do while working out) and a diet (what you will eat before and after your workout as well as the times in between). This is an oversimplification of things. But I think the point is illustrated. You need to establish your objective and work backwards to establish your action steps, processes and support.
You can use this process to establish your plan for your personal and professional life for the whole year. I strongly recommend that you take the time to do so. Heed my words. If you do not, you will likely blow in the direction of the strongest wind even if it is not in your best interest. And how will you know if it is or is not in your best interest if you do not have a plan established to help you define and determine those things? Create a plan. Take Control. Live life by design…not by chance.