Day 12: Take Action!

Yesterday's blog ended by emphasizing the importance of taking action. Whatever your goal is, you must have a plan to get there. That plan needs to be specific and it must be written down. I'm sure you've heard the saying, "If you don't know where you're going, any road will get you there." You have a goal now (don't you?), so you know where you are going. That is important and you have to have that goal set first. But now that you have the goal identified, you need a plan for how to reach that goal.
I live in Kansas City. If I decided to go New York City I would need to decide how I am going to get there because there are many ways to get to that city. I can fly or I can drive. If I choose to fly, then I have to choose an airline, decide whether to fly first class, business, or coach and decide which airport to be my arrival point. If I choose to drive, I'll have to get out the road maps or do map quest. I'll also have to choose one or two places to spend the night. How do I make those choices? It all depends on what I want from this trip. Is my goal to get there as quickly as possible or is this a sight-seeing trip and the journey is just as important as the destination.
What does all of this have to do with your goal? Everything! Your goal is your destination. Your action plan is your road map. If you haven't already done this, take some time today and write out your plan. Think about the questions suggested in the illustration. What do you want to achieve in your goal? How quickly do you want to achieve it? Are there some plateaus along the way that are resting places or that are important markers of success that you need to reach while on the road to fully achieving your goal? Think through all of this and then make a plan. Start on that trip by doing something today and every day. It is the focused, continuous actions that you take each and every day that will carry you where you want to go.