Goal, Plan, Action

Now that you’ve written down your goals specifically.
Chunked them into smaller goals and written your plan.
It’s time for massive (fearless) action!
If there is something you can do now (this second) towards a goal, go and do it. Take the time. This post isn’t going anywhere, that is taking action, I’ll still be here when you come back.
Now, there are some that say ‘all successful people take action’, I say all ‘motivated people take specific actions, which leads to successful outcomes‘.
Why do I say that?
Because some people take plenty action, but they aren’t taking the right action, in the right way at the right time.
Or they toe dip, play about in the baby pond, they research their goals, find what they need to apply and then do nothing.
Assuming that you have written down your goals ‘the what’, and you have identified the ‘why, who, where, when and how’, it’s time to act.

It’s Time for Boldness

Your action may include a period of discovery, learning, researching, discussing, identifying, learning and adding to your actions to take. Some people can get caught up on the ‘prepare’ stage, when in fact what they need is to move and motivate themselves further.
For example, assume you want to change career, you have identified ‘key’ people you want to talk to. You could have a list of names you’re sitting on. Yet, for some reason you aren’t doing nothing with it. The action you may need to take is connecting with these people via email, phone or social network.
Action, especially when heading into the unknown can be a little daunting. But your plan is worthless, if you don’t take the steps to apply it.
Also many get stuck in the planning and preparing part. They spend a long time ‘thinking’ and ‘talking’ about it, and don’t see the results because the plan is not moving, there is no energy to it. Thinking and talking is fine, however there has to come a point of action.
For example, assume you’re wanting to lose weight.
You have set the goal to attend a gym or a class. You are taking massive action on the healthy eating part, but the gym goal is sitting there doing nothing. Review the goal again, ask yourself what is stopping you taking action on this step? Is it a fear of visiting a gym for the first time? Do you feel ashamed or embarrassed to attend? Worried others will look at you? Money?
If you do this process, you may find you need to review and evaluate the original goal. Go back to the ‘who, what, why, where, when’ is there anything you can add to the goal to ensure that action will take place?

Gaining Momentum

Energy is built from energy.
As soon as you start to take action, you will probably see yourself getting quicker and taking more. Why? It’s all these small steps that build momentum.
If you’ve already laid the groundwork, it’s important to focus on productive actions; the actions that will carry the most power, the actions that will inspire the greatest results.
Additionally, you should identify action steps to be taken daily, weekly, and monthly.
Remember, goal achievement is a process – you can’t take action just once and hope it works.
Most goals will require consistent effort, specific action steps taken day after day, week after week, month after month!  Identify the things you can do on a regular basis to keep your plans moving forward.
Daily actions are usually small to moderate in scale but hold the power of duplication and accumulation.  The more you do them, the more effective they become.
Weekly actions are usually a bit larger in scale, take a little longer to complete, and involve an element of risk.  They are usually the most proactive in the sense that they help you face your fears and push forward determinedly.  They would include things like releasing your creations to the public, or increasing your business marketing efforts by attracting attention to your products or services.  These bolder actions usually bring about bigger results.
Monthly actions are things you do to keep yourself on track, like evaluate your progress and readjust your plans if necessary.  Monthly actions can also include extraneous activities not vital to your goal except in peripheral ways.  This can include networking, expanding your market reach, working on your personal development, reading, learning, researching, etc.
Make a list of the most productive actions you determine should be done daily, weekly and monthly.
It’s important to note that you are not setting a schedule with this exercise; you are simply identifying key, productive action steps that you can take on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.  Don’t get caught up wondering how you can find time to do all this, or whether a certain task should be done daily or weekly.  Simply put down a general idea of the most productive actions that you can think of. 


credit to:  http://dawnbarclay.com

WINNING ATTITUDE

Attitude is your state of mind when you approach a person or situation. It can range from positive to negative. Others can tell a great deal about your attitude by the way you: Look — Are you smiling or frowning? Sound — Is the tone of your voice friendly or hostile? Behave — Are you a conscientious or a careless worker? YOU are the one who determines your attitude and its effect on others. Why is attitude so important? Because how you feel about your job affects how well you do it and how coworkers feel about working with you!
Your self-esteem also affects your attitude. It’s how you see yourself as a person. If you value the type of person you are, you have a good sense of self-esteem. You’re proud to be you! Self-esteem is not the same as being selfish or self-centered. People with high self-esteem respect others as well as themselves.
People who have negative attitudes stand to lose a lot. They are usually careless and don’t care how their attitude affects others. They are easily discouraged, without goals, frequently absent, unable to solve problems or take risks, and unwilling to seek new challenges. A bad attitude can hold you back at work and make life—for you and others—miserable. People with low self-esteem are their own worst enemies. They don’t give themselves a chance to succeed, and they don’t think they have the power to change. These people often put themselves down, fear failure, take the easy way out, and resist change. The good news is that you can improve your self-esteem. It helps to spend time with others who feel good about themselves because a positive attitude is contagious! To improve your attitude, self-esteem, and job satisfaction, follow these tips: Think positively. Understand the demands of projects and perform efficiently. Set ambitious goals for yourself. Get to know people. Trust yourself and your perceptions. Acknowledge the negatives, but don’t dwell on them. Once your attitude is right, you will lead by example. When the leader has a positive attitude, it rubs off on the whole team. It’s not enough to know the difference between a good and bad attitude though; you’ve got to put your knowledge into everyday action! Leading the way involves being dependable, courteous, honest, and conscientious. You must cooperate with others, show initiative, do tough assignments first, upgrade your skills, accept challenges, and try to solve problems. Now that you know what a difference a positive attitude can make, I encourage you to use enthusiasm and a positive attitude to make a world of difference in your life—both on the job and off! CREDIT TO ....SUCCESSMANTRA.NET

BE PROACTIVE

To be a proactive person mans to be someone who is always thinking ahead, being positive and actively looking for the goal. Being proactive will help you not have to much work in the long run, avoid disasters (financial, personal, relations) and plan for the future. Here are a few tips on being proactive.
Step. 1
First, you can take a look at tasks that you have to complete and come back all the time. What kind of jobs, work, meetings always happen regularly? Also, what comes up during these tasks? Maybe you always have to take out the trash right in the middle of your paper. Think about what kind of job or work takes you the longest to complete. Maybe math in general takes longer than a reading assignment. Or maybe a paper on the companies taxes take longer to do than figuring out how much fax paper your employees need each month.
Step. 2
Now figure out how you can find ways to do the job or work faster and better. You can write out a well thought out plan on how you will do this. Know if tasks take longer than others you should give yourself more time to complete them.
Step. 3
You should be able to prevent issues that may occur in your life. This means if the problem is forseen and able to be stopped, do so. You should have a backup plan if you know the primary may certainly in the next few weeks.
Step. 4
You need to solve problems and not worry about them. Many people make the mistake of complaining or panicking about the upcoming issues rather than finding ways to overcome them.
Step. 5
Try to anticipate a job, work or anything else that may come your way. If you are aware than the task is always given to you find ways to start on them earlier, especially if they take you longer.

lucasrafique's photostream

lucasrafique's photostream on Flickr.

10 Reasons to Invest in Your Career

Not investing in yourself is like floating down a fast river without a paddle, map or knowledge of what's around the next bend. Things may go fine for a while, but at some point, you're going to realize you made a giant mistake.
To avoid such unforeseen disaster, you need to make a proactive and thoughtful investment in a plan for achieving your career -- and life -- goals.
And if that isn't enough to convince you, here are 10 reasons that investing in your career is a must:

1. It's the Greatest Return on Investment, Anywhere

The return on investing and improving yourself is astronomically higher than any financial investment you could make. From increased lifetime earning power and unimagined opportunities, to protecting yourself from unemployment and the satisfaction that comes from personal growth and success, the returns are enormous.

2. You're the Boss of You

If you're the president and CEO of You Inc., then it's your job to ensure you don't go out of business. It's your job to nurture growth and prosperity. You do this by planning carefully, performing consistently, operating true to your mission and investing in You Inc.

3. You Become More Valuable

Draw up two balance sheets for yourself. On the first, list your financial assets and liabilities. On the second, list your skills, ideas, knowledge, marketability, personal networks, passion and ability to make things happen. Increase your personal net worth by investing in your second list -- that's how you'll increase the assets on your first list.

4. You Can Become Great

You are capable of greatness. Most of us settle for just getting by, using a fraction of our capabilities. This is tragic. Realize your greatness by identifying your talents and investing in your potential.

5. You Can Achieve Your Goals

Your career and life goals are far too important to be just wishes. A mismanaged career can derail your life goals. Investing in yourself dramatically increases the probability of achieving your goals and is a real demonstration of your commitment to achieving them.

6. You Create Your Own Future

Your career is yours to mold. Investing in yourself gives you the clarity, power and tools to create your own future and take the path less travelled. Sometimes, investing means taking a risk, but that's the price of entry for success and happiness.

7. Because the World Is a Complex Place

You cannot know everything you need to know or do everything you need to do alone. You can't be your best without help. Find and invest in those who can teach you, show you the way and help you achieve your goals.

8. Life Is Too Short for Mediocrity

You don't have the luxury of being mediocre -- period. Whether you opt for self-improvement or outsourcing your weak areas to someone who can do them better, determine where you are mediocre and get help.

9. It's a Cliché, But on Your Deathbed...

The reason we hear this often is that it is so true. The passage of time will provide a perspective we don't have now. One day, you'll look back at your problems and successes and see them as bumps in the road. Your focus will be on the big picture: the life you led, opportunities pursued or abandoned, how happy you were, and the legacy you left behind. Investing in yourself will give you the courage and determination to be happy and do your own thing.

10. Who Else Can You Count On?

Let's face it: You're alone on this. No one has as much to gain or lose as you do. No one else is going to make those consistent investments in your development to maximize your career and life.

How to Invest in Your Career

Invest in understanding yourself better and developing your goals, plans, professional skills, knowledge, career management skills, networks, and your personal brand and profile. Do it yourself, or pay experts to do it for you.
Try thinking, planning, self-assessment tools, goal development, reading, consulting experts, getting coached, taking courses, upgrading or acquiring skills, and proactively marketing yourself. Recognize that investing in yourself often requires that you don't play it safe.


By Ian Christie, Monster Contributing Writer .

PERSONAL SWOT ANALYSIS AND THE BENEFITS.

SWOT Analysis is a useful technique for understanding your Strengths and Weaknesses, and for identifying both the Opportunities open to you and the Threats you face.

Originated by Albert S Humphrey in the 1960s, SWOT Analysis is as useful now as it was then. You can use it in two ways – as a simple icebreaker helping people get together to "kick off" strategy formulation, or in a more sophisticated way as a serious strategy tool. -

 

After you’ve defined your career aspirations and goals the next step is to understand more about yourself and your external environment. This is where the SWOT analysis is helpful. It stands for:

• S = Strengths (internal)
• W = Weaknesses (internal)
• O = Opportunities (external)
• T = Threats (external)
 

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To get an idea of what you could incorporate into your own SWOT chart, look at some examples in each category:

Strengths

Strengths are your internal, positive attributes and selling points. You have some control over these. Examples include:

• Positive personal traits.
• Relevant skills, competencies, knowledge and work experience.
• A solid education.
• A strong network.
• Commitment, enthusiasm and passion for your field.

Weaknesses

Weaknesses are your internal negative attributes. You have some control over these as well. Examples include:

• Negative personal characteristics and poor work habits.
• A lack of work experience or relevant experience.
• A lack of education.
• No network or a small one.
• A lack of career direction or focus.
• Weak professional or career-management skills.

Opportunities

Opportunities are uncontrollable external events that you can potentially leverage. Examples include:

• Favorable industry trends.
• A booming economy.
• A specific job opening.
• An upcoming company project.
• Emerging demand for a new skill or expertise.
• Use of a new technology.
• Referral to a high-powered contact.

Threats

Threats are uncontrollable external factors that may work against you and require you to take protective action. Examples include:

• Industry restructuring and consolidation.
• Changing market requirements and their impact on your employer.
• Changing professional standards that you don't meet.
• Reduced demand for one of your skills.
• Evolving technologies you're unprepared for.
• The emergence of a competitor, either to your company or to you personally.
• A company decision maker who does not like or support you.

An external factor can sometimes be both a threat and an opportunity. For example, the emergence of a programming language that replaces one you know is a threat if you do nothing about it and an opportunity if you commit to becoming one of the early experts.

 

 

BENEFITS OF PERSONAL SWOT ANALYSIS

 

There are lots of benefits and advantages of Personal SWOT Analysis for your success and betterment, Few of them are as follows,

1	Develops strategies and strengths to achieve your goals
2	Shine amongst your friends and colleagues, for best job prospects
3	Indicates your present position on the path of success
4	Measures your chances of reaching desired goals
5	Enhances your carrier, personality and life
6	Better understand who you really are as a person
7	Maximize your strengths and minimize your weaknesses
8	An important step in enhancing life and career.
9	Explores and enhances your hard skills and soft skills
10	It give you an insight into your personality traits and preferences
11	Focuses your Attitudes, abilities, skills, capacities and capabilities.
	Give you an insight into your personality traits and preferences.  DO YOUR SWOT ANALYSIS TODAY AND CHART AN INCREDIBLE PATH TO YOUR DESIRED FUTURE.

 

FORESIGHT : THE POWER OF TOMORROW, TODAY.

“For tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today.”
                                ....African Proverb....

 

To ride a car you need to look far ahead otherwise the propensity of accident increases. To be successful one also need to look ahead which they named foresight. 

Humans have an incredible capacity for “mental time travel.

We can look back into our past, by recollecting memories and past experiences, or we can look forward into our future, by projecting new and possible events in our lives.

Foresight is our ability to accurately predict future outcomes. It is a long-term, “bigger picture” view of how certain events will unfold over a period of time – and how we can act to influence certain outcomes in our lives. foresight is needed to prepare for the challenges and the opportunities the future holds.
 Foresight will give you fresh perspectives on things; it will open your mind to a bigger picture and widen your horizon beyond visible limitations. It will position you at an advantage against challenges and odds that are coming your way.  Nothing will take you by surprise.
From invention to innovation, whatever you name it, all are result of farsightedness. Steve’s foresight awarded us with first personal computer, Henry Ford’s foresight with model T, and very own Samson H. Chowdhury’s foresight awarded us with first Pharmaceutical company and Kamal Quadir’s with mobile platform for selling and buying and for transferring money.

The quote below captures the very importance of "FORESIGHT"

 “I believe the secret of his success, so far as there is any secret lies in power of foresight, which often seems to his associates to be wonderful. It comes simply from his habit of look-in gate very side of a question, of weighing the favorable and unfavorable features of a situation, and of sifting out the inevitable result through his unfailing good judgment.”
 

5 Key Ways to Build Foresight

Here are 5 key things to do if you want to build more accurate and effective foresight in your everyday life.

1.Gain knowledge. The more knowledge you have about a subject, the easier it’ll be to find common patterns and themes within that subject. Read books, articles, and scientific studies to gain as much knowledge as possible about a thing (see how to become an expert at anything for more information).


2.Build experience. Direct hands-on experience delivers a kind of knowledge and insight that can’t be found in articles or books. Try to find ways to actively expose yourself to new things and actually build a broad range of experiences to learn from and draw upon when applying foresight (see how to improve your intuition for more information).


Both of these pursuits will improve your memory and past experiences. And, as we know from the study I mentioned earlier, this plays an important role in being able to project patterns into the future.


3.Think hypothetically. Play out “thought experiments” in your mind. Ask yourself the possible causes and effects of certain situations that you don’t necessarily know the answer to. Think to yourself, “Is this logical or possible?” Use your knowledge above to help you.


4.Make small predictions. Practice making small and low risk predictions just to test out your foresight. Do you have a hunch that a particular investment is a good one? Then just put a little in it and see how it works out before investing more. Ideally, the more knowledge and experience you have in something, the more comfortable you should be in using foresight. But don’t fall into the “illusory superiority” trap by being overly confident in things you don’t really know much about (you need to be as honest with yourself as possible).


5.Play devil’s advocate. Always be willing to test  your assumptions with a critical eye. Try to search for situations where you may be wrong, or the “rule” or “guideline” you have in mind doesn’t work. This can help you sharpen your thinking and discover different factors that may be influencing a situation which you didn’t previously take into account.

EXTRA TIP
See Yourself in the Future

It’s important to success and happiness to have some idea and plan for the future. The better our foresight is, the more we can act accordingly today so that we find ourselves better off tomorrow.

But how often do you really look into your own future? Do you have any idea where you see yourself in 5 or 10 years? Any long-term goals, aspirations, or passions?

Where would you theoretically want to be in 5 or 10 years if you had a choice? What types of things do you need to start doing to get there?

TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR TOMORROW, TODAY.