February is often when people drop their goals or perhaps slow down, it could be any of the goals that we have for any area of our lives. Even if you are on track, there are things to consider to ensure you are really on track and to make this month your most productive month which you can apply forward to the following months.
Action Without Review Is Futile
You need to do daily, weekly and monthly evaluations in order to understand what is working and what is not. The evaluation includes looking at the strategy, systems, and people. It can be one or all of these things that are not working, like a machine, is it that something needs to be taken out fixed and put back in, does something need to be replaced, does the whole operation need replacing, or is it that the person operating it needs to be fixed (re-trained) or replaced. It is not easy at times to determine what the true contributing factors are however you need to be constantly evaluating. Action without review is futile.
Make SMART goals
The goals need to be SMART goals – Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic and Time-Based. Most of us have heard of this but few execute it. Once you incorporate a ‘SMART’ system to goal setting, together with regular reviews you will be able to stay on track and achieve more.
Keep Failing Forward
Our relationship with failure needs to improve and each of us react differently depending on the circumstances and ourselves. However your growth comes from failures as you learn what to do, yes I know the saying goes that you learn what not to do, but actually it’s that you learn what to do, as you figure it out for yourself by looking at the failures and learning the lessons. Fear of failure and your emotional attachment to it will inevitably hinder and slow down your success.
Take Risks and You Will Become A Better Decision Maker
Take calculated risks and be intelligent about your choices, just don’t hold back because you are scared. Unless it’s a true fight or flight moment, remember fear and excitement are the same things, it just depends on how you look at it. Learning how to assess risk and taking the risks will allow you to develop your confidence and allow you to become a better decision maker. Risk is not a bad thing, in fact it’s the only thing that enables new opportunities and progress, you need to do something different to get different results. There is a difference between being a risk taker and a reckless person.
‘Embrace The Reality and Everything Becomes Easier’- @la_vie_atelier
Keep yourself present in the real world and never say ‘If Only…’ ‘I wish it was..’ ‘It would be easier if…’ etc It is very easy to do so however you need to transform your mindset and you do this by becoming self-aware of the language that you use to yourself as well as when conversing with others. Embracing your reality means that you accept the reality for what it is right now so that you can do something about it and not make excuses and dwell on it. This also is about for when things are going well, as new pressures can come with success it’s all too easy to get overwhelmed. Embrace things for what they are, not for what you want them to be in the present moment, so you can work on and execute the strategy to get where you want to be.
‘Learn From The Past, Live For Today and Plan for Tomorrow’ – @la_vie_atelier
The past is for reflecting upon and learning the lessons, The future gives you hope of what can be, and Today is the greatest gift you ever have as it is the only time truly promised to you, so make it count. Live for today does not mean you go crazy, it means that you have gratitude for the day, you keep things in perspective and you execute the plans you have for that day. You also appreciate that it takes days, weeks, months and years to achieve any singular goal, ambition and vision. Plan for tomorrow enables you to understand where you want to go and by reviewing this daily you are able to keep the focus and direction steady. As Steve Jobs said ‘You can only join the dots going backwards’ the past is for learning and a reminder of how far you have come.
Life is for Living, this includes scheduling in some downtime for you- Have Fun! Plan, Execute and Tweak as you go Along and Enjoy The Process!