October, November, what?

So, October was Organize month...which came and went. That means I was never organized enough to actually do something there!

Tuesday and Wednesday I have off so I am going to go back over the month, look at my goals for the month and see if I was able to accomplish them. I usually post them in my first post on the forums here, so I can go back and track them. I hope I like what I find!

I also came to a realization the other day. I am working on having the first issue of a small series of books head to the publisher this month. It struck me that one of my goals for the year of 2009 was to publish one more book. What is funny is that I was not even thinking on this goal. I was actually just zeroed in on this project that, when it was conceived, had so much rapport with me that I jumped at it immediately.

I cannot tell if it had rapport with me because I had set that annual goal, or if the annual goal came from my inner drive to write. Who knows? Who cares! It is happening, and I am glad to know that an annual goal got knocked out.

So, we are in the throws of November. I titled October the month of Organization in my own life. The month of November is the month of Necessary Planning. Why, you may ask.

I have found that, in many cases, November finds most people rallying for the Thanksgiving. Though people take time for Thanksgiving, we as a nation seem to use it as a transition to Christmas. Very few REALLY slow down and enjoy Thanksgiving. Productivity seems to drop as we slowly approach the end of the month, and, suddenly, the December Race occurs.

December is a bustle! From Black Friday on, gifts need to be purchased and wrapped; taxes need to be completed; family needs to be called, visited, considered; work vacation is negotiated over...and somewhere in this madness we try to find spare moments to master plan our next year.

Hello! Its master planning the year. Hopefully we are doing it with plenty of "big picture" time, no distractions, prayerfully, conscientiously, reviewing the previous years for ways to grow. This takes time people!

It is for this that I used to want to name it Distracted December. I have toned that nastiness down a little bit to December Downtime. I think that I should let you all off the hook and allow you to let December be what it is. As productive people, we want to achieve goals, but not at the expense of family and relationships. December will simply have its ups and downs.

So, when should we do our planning? November's Necessary Planning month, people. At least, it will be for me. (My birthday is also in November, so its kinda like my fiscal year!) Use this month to start reviewing the year.

What goals did you set for the year?
How many have you accomplished?
Did you keep that momentum throughout the months goal-setting and implementation?
What caused some of the fall through? (Check your journal entries, your SuccessFit entries, or blogs to track down some of the distractions.
How can you learn from it for the next year?
Then, go back to your REAL Big Picture. (What you want your life to have looked like at the end of it!)
Remind yourself of those goals. For me, I want to be remembered as one who Activated and Equipped, Motivated and Inspired, accomplishing this through the arenas of Writing and Missions. (This has evolved over time, and I also have a whole master strategy to it. More on that another time.)
From there, come back and ask yourself, what do I need to accomplish in the next 2-3 years for that to be a reality?
Then ask what you would need to accomplish in 2010 to be heading that direction.

Simple. But it does take time (if you are doing it right!)

As I have been doing this over the years, my planning habits have evolved. I know that I have a running tally of things I want to see accomplished every year. I also have a Legacy Life Vision (that took me a while to create, especially one that I was thoroughly and completely satisfied with.)

And, seriously, I have missed a TON of deadlines. But, I shrug it off with the thought of where I would be without any goals and deadlines.

A Plan Is What We Do Until We Have a Better Plan

So, I adjust the deadline, and press on!

I digress. That is the November of Necessary Planning. Get on it. Do not hesitate. The next time you have 3-4 hrs before work, or a few before bed, sit down and go over your goals and dream about 2010. If you do not have those, go to the homepage and download our Top 100 document to get you down the path of goal-setting and planning your life!

If you have any questions, just ask!

3-2-1 GO!