Will 2020 be your breakout year? Will this be the year you meet your true self?
There is something very compelling about living in the present. It’s more manageable and less threatening than peering into the abyss of the distant future. The present is familiar and can be harnessed to create the future you’re seeking. Use it wisely since you’ll never get it back.
1. Create written task-based goals rather than performance-based goals. Obsessing about results creates uncertainty and fear, thereby, throwing us off our game. Tasks live with us in the here and now. Make them clear, measurable and easy to implement. Focus on the tasks and the outcomes will follow.
2. Embrace being uncomfortable; you’ll get used to it. If you are not hitting your goals now, you’re already feeling uncomfortable! Make some well-planned changes, be consistent in implementation and move ahead.
3. Set fabulously lofty goals and be willing to fail to fall forward. Larger than life goals will energize you, inspire you, challenge you and pull you forward. Chances are your results will be more rewarding than hugging less moderate achievements.
4. Security comes from within; it is a spiritual trait, not a material one. Who you are at your core essence does not change with the evolving roles played in your life. Don’t dread failure. “It is the opportunity to begin again, only next time more wisely.” Henry Ford.
5. Don’t sweat the small stuff but don’t forget the details. As you create your task-based goals, be sure to define how to effectively and efficiently execute those activities. For example, if you plan on making 50 cold calls a day, how will you identify those individuals, what is your pre-call plan and what amount of time will be needed to make those dials.
6. Develop a sense of urgency, it’s later than you think. Why waste precious time thinking about taking action. Create a cookbook or behavioral plan of actions you need to do daily, weekly, monthly to ensure your success. Break it down, make it real, make it consistent.
7. Attitude matters – Success lives in your head. Attitude, self-efficacy, effort and achievement derive from how one thinks about oneself conceptually. People perform in a manner that is in alignment with their own sense of worth and self-identity. There is only one of you and that makes you uniquely special.
8. Stay focused and avoid distraction. Research confirms that the average adult has an attention span of eight seconds before a competing thought pops up! Limit your reliance on electronic devices when interacting with others. Humans really are more significant than a tweet.
9. How you act determines how you feel. The physiology of facial expression is a cause of emotions in its own right. The physical act of smiling can positively impact baseline cardiovascular levels and result in lower levels of distress. Remember your Roles in life do not determine your Identity. Learn the Sandler R/I theory of selling, smile and enjoy the ride.
10. Once committed to a plan of action, take action and burn your bridges. Approximately, 20% of adults are chronic procrastinators. Society provides an endless array of distractions that can siphon off your drive and concentration. Remember, you’ll never get to home plate if you don’t take your foot off first base.
Change is the most difficult task upon which we can embark. Create a mountain of stretch New Year’s resolutions and you’re likely to peer into an overwhelming future and abandon ship by mid-January. Do nothing and you’ll get more of the past. How about this instead: live 2020 in the present and attempt a modest change by adopting one or two of the above suggestions.
Look for small victories and changes on a daily basis. "Always remember, you're braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you believe" A.A.Miln
Go on, step forward - your future is waiting.
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