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Define What You Want
"To know
yourself is the first and most important step to pursuing your dreams and
goals."
Stedman Graham
Defining what you want is the critical first
step in almost any situation. "You can have anything you really want but you
cannot have everything you want."
What Goals are Worth
Achieving?
Goals worth achieving are
mission-oriented goals. Channeling your
grand vision
into a specific direction and
action makes the difference between being an
idle dreamer and being a person with a mission.
"The
achievement of one goal should be
the starting point of another."
Alexander Graham Bell
Visualize Your
Goal
Take a few minutes right now to achieve your
goals in your mind. Imagine a
life that is exactly as you want it. What
would you do each day? With whom would you do it? Nothing is too crazy or
ambitious. A few seconds is all it takes to put you in a state of excitement
and enthusiasm. If you can see your goal in your mind, you can make it a
reality. Visualization is the
first step to bringing a dream to life. If you can see yourself
happy,
successful,
healthy and
loving life, you can make it happen. The first step
is to visualize it.6...
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The Power of Focus
Whatever you focus on you will attract as your subconscious mind will make
notes of what you are focused on and you'll start to notice things related
to your goal. So if you want to achieve success then define exactly what
success means to you and focus on being successful and the ways you can
achieve success and
achieve your goals.
Define and Prioritize Your Personal Values and Mission
The first step is to clarify
your
values. You ask yourself, What values and virtues do I most admire and
wish to incorporate in to my life?
The second step is to use those values to define your position with regard
to your life and work. The values you choose, and the order of priority you
place on your choices, will determine your approach to your life and work.
Life-Business Synergy
Your next step in
personal strategic planning is to create your personal mission
statement. This is a clear, written description of the person you intend to
be. This is often even more important than setting specific goals.2
Case in Point
The
Story of Monty
In the original
Chicken Soup for the Soul,
Jack Canfield tells the story of Monty, who was the son of an itinerant
horse trainer of little means.7 During his senior year he was
assigned a writing project to describe what he wanted to be when he grew up.
His seven-page essay minutely detailed the 200-acre ranch he wanted to own.
It included a diagram of the ranch and a detailed floor plan of his 4,000
square foot home.
Despite the
passion and effort Monty put into
his paper, he received it back with a large F written on it and a note to
see the teacher after class. The teacher told Monty that the reason he had
given him that grade was because his paper was unrealistic. He went on to
cite all of the reasons why, and told Monty that if he would rewrite the
paper with a more realistic goal, he would reconsider the grade. After
considering it for a week, the young man turned in the same paper with no
changes, along with the remark, You can keep the F and Ill keep my
dream.
The conclusion of the true story has the
teacher bringing 30 students for a summer campout at the 200-acre ranch of
the now grown (and successful) Monty who lives in his 4,000 square foot
dream home.
If it worked for the son of an itinerant horse
trainer it will work for you. The principle is simple:
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create a dream that is so big that it will
keep you excited
-
define the dream in minute detail
-
live in the dream so that it becomes real
to you on the inside, and then
-
hold on to it so tightly that no one can
take it away from you.
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